Swedish Steel Mill Hails Success of Hydrogen in Steel Rolling

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Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland)--Swedish steel maker Ovako has announced the successful use of hydrogen as the source of high-temperature heat for steel production at its Hofors steel mill in Sweden.

The company confirmed, in conjunction with Linde Gas AB, the success of a full-scale trial using hydrogen to heat steel before rolling. Using hydrogen instead of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) before rolling at the mill in Hofors resulted in steel that showed no impact on the quality of steel produced. The company said that "given the right conditions, Ovako could therefore introduce hydrogen heating for furnaces at all its rolling mills," drastically reducing its carbon footprint "from cradle to gate."

"This is a major development for the steel industry," said Göran Nyström, executive vice president for Group Marketing & Technology at Ovako. "It is the first time that hydrogen has been used to heat steel in an existing production environment. Thanks to the trial, we know that hydrogen can be used simply and flexibly, with no impact on steel quality, which would mean a very large reduction in the carbon footprint. We have worked closely with Linde for many years and are proud to be doing this together."

Anders Lugnet, group technical specialist for Energy & Furnace Technology at Ovako, added: "We have been working on furnace modernization for a long time to make our furnaces as productive and energy efficient as possible. It is very exciting that we now have proof that it is possible to use hydrogen in heating without affecting the quality of the steel. If we can make this investment, it would have a great positive impact on the environment. Our estimate is that an initial investment would save 20,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide each year, and that is just the beginning. We performed this trial in such a way that it can be reproduced at full scale in Hofors and at our other rolling mills."

In December, German steelmaker ThyssenKrupp Steel Europe (Duisburg, Germany) announced that at its Duisburg steel plant hydrogen was being used in a working blast furnace. Traditionally, around 300 kilograms (kg) of coke and 200 kg of pulverised coal are needed to produce a ton of pig iron. The coal is injected as an additional reducing agent into the bottom of the blast furnace shaft through 28 nozzles, or tuyeres. For the first time, hydrogen was injected through one of the tuyeres into Blast Furnace 9. The company will now extend the use of hydrogen to all 28 tuyeres on Blast Furnace 9 and then, from 2022, to the remaining three blast furnaces at Duisburg. For additional information, see December 9, 2019, article - ThyssenKrupp Using Hydrogen in Steel Production.

Industrial Info is tracking the world's first project for creating fossil-free steel, also located in Sweden. Last year, the developers of the HYBRIT initiative purchased a hydrogen generation electrolyzer solution from Nel Hydrogen. Located at the Lulea Steel Works in the north of the country, HYBRIT will use hydrogen from electricity produced by renewable energy instead of coking coal for ore-based steel making, which also will have the added benefit of replacing typical carbon emissions with water. The pilot plant will operate from 2021-2024, followed by a demonstration phase, with the target of full-scale implementation by 2035. For additional information, see May 19, 2019, article - World's First Hydrogen-based Steel Project Moves Forward.

Ovako employs around 3,000 employees in more than 30 countries and has sales of approximately 1 billion euro ($1.1 billion). In March last year, it became a subsidiary of Sanyo Special Steel and a member of Nippon Steel Corporation group, the third-largest steel producer in the world, with more than 100,000 employees globally and revenues of approximately 50 billion euro ($54.2 billion).

Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, six offices in North America and 12 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Our European headquarters are located in Galway, Ireland. Follow IIR Europe on: Facebook - Twitter - LinkedIn For more information on our European coverage send inquiries to info@industrialinfo.eu or visit us online at Industrial Info Europe.