Whether for the construction of a
sensitive building, or the design and manufacture of defensive vehicles, you
need a steel that can meet and exceed protection parameters. SSAB has been at
the forefr
One of the simplest solutions available
is for manufacturers to change their smelting process by changing Blast
Furnaces (BFs), which use coking coal to generate heat, to Electric Arc
Furnaces (EAFs), which use electricity. And if the electricity supply is also
green, this can dramatically reduce the overall GHG emissions from any steel
plant.
Another method
is to use hydrogen in the ‘reducing’ process, where oxygen is removed from iron
ore without using coal. Iron ore is reduced with hydrogen while in a solid
state, hence the name direct reduction, to produce direct reduced iron (DRI),
also called sponge iron. Sponge iron is then fed into an EAF, where electrodes
generate a current to melt the sponge iron to produce greener steel.
However, there
is massive interest in steel-making processes that could produce the metal
without any carbon-based materials or energy sources, hence the name
fossil-free steel. Alternative methods of iron ore treatments, both at mines
and steel plants, are being explored, as well as heat generation without
burning fossil fuels. All this research is geared to making steel as
carbon-free as possible, as quickly as possible.
The HYBRIT partnership
One of the most
advanced of these is the Hydrogen Breakthrough Ironmaking Technology (HYBRIT)
steel-making process, which is the result of a partnership between SSAB, the
Swedish steel producer, LKAB, a compatriot mining and minerals group, and Vattenfall,
provider of green energy to the EAFs at SSAB’s Oxelösund site.
HYBRIT research
into this was launched in Spring 2016, with the aim to develop the world’s
first fossil-free iron ore-based steelmaking technology and produced its first
results in 2021, which became the first commercial delivery of the green metal,
from SSAB to Volvo, the automotive giant.
Volvo
subsequently used it to manufacture an autonomous electric mining truck, making
it the world’s first vehicle made of fossil-free steel. Fossil-free steel is
not available in large quantities yet, but HYBRIT’s success means that SSAB
will be able to ramp up production volumes to commercial levels by 2026.
According to
SSAB estimates, traditional coal-based blast furnaces need about 5466 kWh of
energy per tonne crude steel. By comparison, green hydrogen and the HYBRIT
technology would only require about 4090 kWh of energy per tonne.
Automotive
applications
In the
automotive world, Volvo got the ball rolling towards a green vehicle future by
designing and manufacturing an electric vehicle (EV) using fossil-free steel
(the mining truck mentioned above).
By committing
to being climate neutral and achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions across
its value chain by 2040, Volvo Group is moving toward creating the
transportation and infrastructure of the future.
Volvo is
committed to reducing the carbon footprint of its whole upstream and downstream
supply chain, and this most recent invention is a step in the right direction.
Volvo is also electrifying all its machinery and vehicles.
Formerly the
racing division of Volvo, Polestar has evolved into a stand-alone electric
vehicle subsidiary that is jointly controlled by Volvo and its Chinese parent
company, Zhejiang Geely. Instead of trying to reduce GHG emissions, the
Polestar 0 Project is designed to completely remove carbon emissions from every
stage of production.
Until solutions
with demonstrated success are in place, its target will be to produce vehicle
concepts that do not rely on carbon offsetting. Zero will always mean zero, and
Polestar defines it as 0 CO2e.
Complete
transparency is a necessary initial step in this process, so any claims and
statements are provable. As a result, a product sustainability declaration for
all Polestar models will be made public, beginning with the disclosure of the
tracked carbon footprints of all material sources and destinations.
Volvo’s Trucks
division will also be using SSAB fossil-free steel in its vehicles as well. The
first steel will go into the truck’s frame rails, which serve as the foundation
for mounting all other major parts. Other components of its truck range will
begin to use fossil-free steel as the metal’s supply grows.