Identification of The Steel Decarbonization Options for Different Regions

Abstract

Iron and steel manufacturing stands as a leading contributor to global CO2 emissions and ranks as the second-largest energy consumer within heavy industries. Over the last decade, this industry alone has accounted for over 7% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Consequently, there is an urgent imperative to identify practical pathways for substantial decarbonization. This research endeavors to identify such pathways through comprehensive modeling. We evaluate the impact of technology replacement, fuel switching, and carbon capture and storage (CCS) on energy demand, costs, and emissions in crude steel production. The analysis is underpinned by two fundamental approaches: Techno-economic Analysis (TEA) and Life Cycle Analysis (LCA). Technology replacement explores alternatives such as state-of-the-art blast furnace-basic oxygen furnace (BF-BOF-SOA) and direct reduced iron with electric arc furnace (DRI-EAF) to replace the current blast furnace-basic oxygen furnace (BF-BOF) based on iron ores, as well as state-of-the-art electric arc furnace (EAFSOA) to replace the current electric arc furnace (EAF) based on recycled steels; fuel switching involves renewable electricity, renewable natural gas, biochar, and hydrogen; CCS options focus on mono-ethanol-amine (MEA) for BF-BOF based methods. Through this comprehensive analysis, the research aims to illuminate the most pragmatic and region-specific strategies for the deep decarbonization of the steel industry, making a critical contribution to addressing the urgent global need for sustainable steel production.