Contact

Green hydrogen for emissions-free steel production

By

September 21, 2022

Image titel:

Sources:

Green hydrogen for emissions-free steel production

Possible development of German crude steel production until 2050, © LBST

Possible development of German crude steel production until 2050, © LBST

Green hydrogen is the future of the German steel industry, which is currently facing major pressure to change due to the challenges of climate protection and increasing international competition. Through H2-aided steel production by direct reduction (DR), on the one hand, greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) in the steel sector can virtually be avoided and, on the other, the industry of Germany can once again demonstrate its strength in innovation. With this in view, energy consultancy Ludwig-Bölkow-Systemtechnik (LBST) is busy preparing a new analysis in the form of a metastudy on behalf of the German hydrogen and fuel cell association (Deutscher Wasserstoff- und Brennstoffzellen-Verband, DWV) in cooperation with DWV’s special advisory group HySteel on the role of green hydrogen in the steel industry.
The core task of the study consisted in a detailed discussion of the following questions. How might the H2 demand of the steel industry in Germany develop up to 2045? And what are the technical, economic and ecological parameters for a sustainable crude steel value chain in Germany? For this purpose, the corresponding studies of the last years were evaluated and in-depth technical and strategy discussions with representatives of the HySteel commission were held.

Technology paths for steel production
Today, crude steel production in Germany is carried out with the aid of the integrated bituminous or metallurgical coal-based smelting of pig iron in a conventional blast furnace (BF) with subsequent oxygen blowing (basic oxygen furnace, BOF) for adjustment of the carbon content. A large proportion of the examined studies assume that annual crude steel production in Germany will maintain its current level of around 40 megatonnes (Mt) of crude steel. Accordingly, steel production was responsible for about seven percent of Germany’s CO2 emissions in 2018.

A departure from coking coal and the alternative use of (green) hydrogen as the reducing agent are therefore unavoidable long term. Short term, the direct reduction of iron ore with the aid of natural gas (CH4-DR) also constitutes an option by which to reduce GHG emissions. In fact, a large part of the approximately 108 Mt of direct reduced iron (DRI), or sponge iron, was produced this way worldwide in 2019.

Further processing of the sponge iron to make crude steel takes place in a suitable melting unit, which today is usually an electric arc furnace (EAF). But to achieve the climate protection targets by 2045, the crude steel production must be carried out using green hydrogen (H2-DR), with further processing of the sponge iron in an electric arc furnace run by renewable electricity.

The German steel industry, that is crude steel production and plant construction, has already adapted to this alternative, fully integrated process technology by developing different variations with sometimes highly innovative integrative concepts. A successive replacement of the conventional BF-BOF route by 2045 can enfold in three phases: setting the course up to 2030 with the first pilot plants for CH4- and H2-DR, consolidation of the market by 2040 and establishment of a market for green steel by 2045/50. In this way, already by 2025 should more than 1 Mt of crude steel be annually produced in a CO2-reduced or -free manner at the pilot plants.[…]

… Read this article to the end in the latest H2-International

Authors: Dr. Jan Michalski & Christopher Kutz – Both at Ludwig-Bölkow-Systemtechnik GmbH, Ottobrunn, Germany -, Dr. Ulrich Bünger – Freelance consultant for renewable energy, Dießen am Ammersee, Germany – & Dr. Michael Ball – Freelance consultant for hydrogen energy technology, Den Haag, the Netherlands

Here are interesting and current articles on the topic of hydrogen – stocks and the stock market!

Economic prospects for companies in the hydrogen sector | Future, stocks & hydrogen companies on the stock exchange and more…

Which hydrogen companies will prevail in the competitive market in the long term? Get tips and cartwheels and learn more about risks or opportunities. Our stock market specialist and expert author Sven Jösting reports critically, independently and competently.

Jul 22 2024

Port of Rotterdam turning green and blue

Europe’s largest port wants to become sustainable “How quickly can we implement the energy...
Jul 22 2024

Rotterdam establishes itself as an H2 hub

Impressive size and professionalism A completely different league to Hannover Messe or Hy-Fcell in...
Jul 22 2024

Wystrach name change

The lengthy process to rename the company Wystrach is slowly coming to an end. As the tank...
Jul 22 2024

Sufficient water in Brandenburg

Water resources in the German state of Brandenburg have long been the subject of much discussion,...
Jul 22 2024

Partnership is the new leadership

Chancellor Olaf Scholz visits Hydrogen + Fuel Cells Europe The atmosphere was good. Not ecstatic,...
Jul 17 2024

Enertrag builds near Magdeburg

Despite challenging times, there are still reports of new H2 projects going ahead. For example, in...
Jul 17 2024

Wissing signs Berlin declaration

E-fuels – irrespective of their disputed suitability for the car sector – will be essential for...
Jul 15 2024

Only a third of NIP projects approved

Interview with Elena Hof, Paul Karzel and Jörg Starr from CEP The Clean Energy Partnership or CEP...
Jul 15 2024

Switzerland’s largest H2 plant

Energy group Axpo and the company Rhiienergie have launched the first H2 production plant for...
Jul 15 2024

Why hydrogen stocks can fall even further

Max Deml’s stock analysis In the past, hydrogen was usually isolated from fossil fuels such as...
Jun 13 2024

H2 Bank Selects Seven Projects”

The European Commission is allocating nearly 720 million euros to seven projects for renewable...
Jun 13 2024

World’s one-of-a-kind H2 test lab

Electrolyzers on the test bench In Hydrogen Lab Bremerhaven, manufacturers and operators of...
Jun 13 2024

First commercial green hydrogen production

Solar Global operates electrolyzer plant in Czech Republic An electrolyzer in the town of...
Jun 12 2024

Hydrogen 3.0

“Are we on the cusp of a hydrogen revolution or merely witnessing the build-up of another bubble?”...
Jun 12 2024

Mechatronic H2 pressure regulator

Up until now, Italian company Landi Renzo has been mainly known for its conversion sets for gas...
Jun 11 2024

Establishment of a metrological infrastructure

Flow measurement of high-pressure gas and liquid hydrogen In the field of flow measurement, the...
Jun 11 2024

FRHY Stack, first of its kind!

Technology platform for high-rate electrolyzer production The cooperative FRHY project, which...
Jun 10 2024

HySupply – German-Australian hydrogen bridge

Acatech and BDI show what’s feasible Defossilizing the energy system is an important goal of the...
Jun 05 2024

In the beginning was the refueling station

Creating planning security through the development of H2 infrastructure We have long discussed the...
Jun 04 2024

Digital potential

Low-cost green hydrogen through digitalization Plans to expand Germany’s hydrogen landscape are...

0 Comments

Leave a Reply

Discover more from H2-international

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading