Dear Colleagues,

Ironmaking and steelmaking involve various processes and technologies that can be operated and organized in different combinations depending on the charging materials’ properties and the final required products. Different raw materials, energy requirements, and investments can vary as a function of the different plant configurations and the chosen advanced technologies employed for the emission reductions. In the industrial and scientific fields, there is a strong need to have a clear idea of the most recent technological innovations finalized to the dangerous emission reduction from ironmaking and steelmaking plants with good levels of productivity. Due to low restrictions and international protocols active in the last 15-20 years, the innovation is growing so fast that knowledge of the best available technologies is fundamental for scientists and industrial operators.

The steel industry indicates that breakthrough technologies for decarbonization will be based on hydrogen reduction. Given that the two main routes for primary steel production decarbonization will almost certainly be CCS and hydrogen-based reduction, public and private R&D spending, as well as investment in pilot plants, should focus on driving down the cost and increasing the efficiency of electrolysis equipment, piloting and driving down the cost of hydrogen-based reduction.

For CO₂-lean process routes, three major solutions have been identified: decarbonizing, whereby coal would be replaced by hydrogen or electricity in hydrogen reduction or electrolysis of iron ore processes; CCS technology introduction; and the use of sustainable biomass.

Through the hydrogen-based steelmaking route, CO₂ emissions would be reduced by more than 80%. Hydrogen steelmaking will depend profoundly on the availability of green hydrogen. It can be generated from natural gas by steam reforming or from water by electrolysis. Today, hydrogen-based steelmaking is a potential low carbon and economically attractive route, especially in those countries where natural gas is cheap. In considering systems for increasing the energy efficiency and reducing the environmental impact of steel production, the CO₂ emissions may be greatly reduced by hydrogen-based steel production, if the hydrogen is generated by means of carbon-free and renewable sources. Currently, the development of a hydrogen economy has received a great deal of attention in that H₂ is considered a promising fuel to replace fossil fuels. If H₂ is utilized as an alternative fuel, not only can the problem of progressively exhausted fossil fuel reserves be solved, but the atmospheric greenhouse effect can also be lessened. The “hydrogen economy,” based on hydrogen, is a promising clean energy carrier for decarbonized energy systems, if produced from renewable energy sources or coupled with carbon capture and storage (CCS) or nuclear energy.  

The Special Issue is aimed to focus on traditional or innovative routes capable of reducing energy consumption and dangerous greenhouse emissions. Obviously the energy topic will be described, taking into account the direct and indirect energy consumption per each analyzed technology. The methods to improve the energy efficiency are energy consumption optimization, online monitoring and energy audits.

The Special Issue will describe the main approaches to produce and synthesize iron and steel through hydrogen-based technologies. Depending on the processing route and on the energy demand, the best available techniques and the futuristic solutions will be described. The issue will be edited with contributions belonging to universities and industries in order to evaluate the industrial feasibility of each selected technology. It is planned to describe the most efficient solutions applied by ironmaking and steelmaking factories all around the world. 

The potential contributions will include the following main issues:

• Traditional ironmaking and steel making routes;
• Direct reduction of iron ores;
• Hydrogen ironmaking.

Prof. Dr. Pasquale Cavaliere
Guest Editor

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• ironmaking
• steelmaking
• greenhouse gases
• energy
• direct reduction
• carbon capture
• electrolysis