Japan: Universities collaborating with steel companies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions

Several Japanese universities are collaborating with steel manufacturers in developing innovative technologies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions such as carbon dioxide (CO2) in the steelmaking processes, as per a Japan Metal Daily report.

The Tokyo Institute of Technology, which focuses on decarbonisation, is proposing a new method of electrolysis of CO2 and converting it back to carbon monoxide (CO) gas for reuse in steelmaking. Last year, it was promoted as one of the research themes of the Zero Carbon Energy Research Institute, which has been newly established on the campus as the central base of the Green Transformation Initiative (GXI) project of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. From next fiscal year, it is expected to move to a more full-scale research stage using experimental facilities.

Tohoku University, which is active in metal materials research, is also promoting research to recover carbon from by-product gases in steelmaking, including carbon dioxide (CO2), in a solid state and reusing it as a reducing material for iron ore. Although it is only at the laboratory stage, it has already been confirmed that carbon can be captured as a solid with countless holes in porous iron. Since porous iron that captures carbon can be returned to the carbon source and iron source as a reducing material, it has the potential to reduce the amount of coking coal used to almost zero.

In addition to basic research at the demonstration stage that supports these promising technologies, some universities are doing embryonic research that is not currently premised on commercial use.

Research on the development of materials related to decarbonisation is also progressing. Due to the trend toward decarbonisation, the use of steel scrap is expected to increase in the future in the steel industry. Along with this, in high-grade steel manufacturing, it is necessary to deal with 'tramp elements' such as copper and tin, which are impure elements caused by scrap. Copper and tin have the property of making iron brittle.

Goro Miyamoto, Associate Professor at Tohoku University, will study a method for controlling the grain boundary composition of steel materials to suppress these effects. Miyamoto pointed out, "The reason why copper and tin causes steel to become brittle is that these elements concentrate at the grain boundary (the interface between crystal grains) of steel, weakening the grain boundary."

Researches to prevent hydrogen embrittlement in steel products have also reached the next level. Existing steel products such as stainless steel SUS316L are expensive because they add as much 12% nickel. Professor Satohiro Tsuchiyama of Kyushu University intends to develop a safe new steel grade that can prevent hydrogen embrittlement while reducing nickel content to less than 5%. It may lead to cost reduction.

Note: This article has been written in accordance with an article exchange agreement between Japan Metal Daily and SteelMint.