How Research Is Helping to Solve a Problem in the Steel Industry

 

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Steel is a combination of iron and carbon, used for security and construction. The process of making steel generally requires pulverizing high-fossil coal to mix it with molten slag. This process is not ideal or fully effective, and contributes about 8 percent of global carbon emissions. Worldwide customers, regulators, and steel producers were looking for an alternative. A $4.5-million research project was funded by the University of Minnesota Natural Resources Research Institute (NRRI), industry assistance, and a $2.9-million federal grant from the U.S. Department of Energy.

The planet has produced underground fossil coal from high pressure and heat over millions of years. The question was, how could that kind of fuel be produced in a shorter time frame above ground, in a more precise process for making steel?

Twelve scientists on an NRRI materials and bioeconomy team are working with ten engineers and technicians on a minerals and metallurgy team, as well as members of the forest and lands research team.

Cally Hunt is a recent University of Minnesota Duluth graduate working on the research, “targeting readily available and underutilized biomass sources and subjecting them to high temperatures in the absence of oxygen [pyrolysis]. The pyrolyzed biomass is then densified to create an engineered biocarbon product that performs like and has the same properties as fossil coal used in the steelmaking process.”

While most people do not understand what that might mean, the end result is intended to create a carbon-neutral alternative for the steel industry. Trees and other biomass — which absorb CO2 — can be processed at the end of their life span into an engineered biocarbon for steelmaking.

As Hunt explains, “Currently, steel is produced primarily via two routes: blast furnaces [BF] and electric arc furnaces [EAF]. EAFs utilize recycled steel and have less CO2 emissions compared to BF. EAFs are generally considered the more sustainable steel production method; 70 percent of North American steel is produced via EAFs. Other countries are also looking for fossil coal substitutes for steelmaking. To stay globally competitive in this industry, it is imperative that we invest in this research.”

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Cally Hunt (she/her) started in the paper-making industry, and was excited to learn how to apply biomass sources into other uses. Background context was provided for this story by NRRI’s June Breneman.