Decarbonizing Iron and Steel Production

Iron and steel production accounts for 8% of global greenhouse gas emissions*, and traditional steelmaking comes at a cost: for every ton of steel produced through the traditional blast furnace/basic oxygen furnace route, nearly two tons of carbon dioxide are emitted into the atmosphere.

Our expertise in low-carbon-intensity hydrogen (blue and green hydrogen) production and distribution, as well as technologies like oxy-fuel combustion, hydrogen combustion, oxygen enrichment, and carbon capture for sequestration can help support your decarbonization goals.

Technologies that Support Decarbonizing Iron and Steel Production

Low-Carbon-Intensity Hydrogen

Blue or green hydrogen can displace fossil fuel in combustion-intensive processes, like reheating furnaces, and in the production of Direct Reduced Iron (DRI), for both reduction and heating; DRI can be a source of low-carbon-intensity iron units for steelmaking.

Renewable Energy Sources

Investment in dedicated incremental renewable electricity generation can support powering your process to net-zero, for example, by supporting clean hydrogen production through electrolysis.

Oxygen-based Technologies

Oxy-fuel combustion and/or oxygen enrichment can be used for melting and heating to improve process thermal efficiency and reduce fossil fuel consumption.

Carbon Capture for Utilization/Sequestration

Carbon capture, transportation, and sequestration can potentially drive your process to net-zero. Alternatively, carbon monoxide can be separated from process streams and recycled to the blast furnace.

How can low-carbon-intensity hydrogen help decarbonize steel production?

Introducing hydrogen can provide incremental benefits in carbon emissions reduction on the way to full conversion and decarbonization.

As both an energy carrier and a reducing agent, clean hydrogen can be introduced at integrated mills and mini-mills alike to replace fossil fuels in both ironmaking and steelmaking processes.

How can clean hydrogen help produce low-carbon-intensity steel?

Today, natural gas and coal are used across a variety of processes throughout the steelmaking supply chain, even those that have electrified steelmaking to reduce emissions (direct reduced iron and electric arc furnace steelmaking). Moving forward, hydrogen can be introduced as a blended solution―and eventually adopted as a 100% replacement―to fill the role that fossil fuels hold today and to help transition one of the hardest-to-abate industries to net-zero. Swipe to learn how.

Blast furnace equipment for iron production

Blast Furnace Iron Production

Hydrogen can be used in place of coke as a reducing agent in blast furnaces.

Direct Reduced Iron Production

Hydrogen can be used in the production of Direct Reduced Iron (DRI), for both reduction and heating.

Melting and Heating Processes

Oxy-fuel combustion, using hydrogen as a fuel, can lower emissions in processes such as blast furnace stoves, EAFs, reheat furnaces, and ladle preheating.

Renewable Energy

Clean, renewable energy from wind, solar, or hydropower is generated using zero emissions.

Carbon Capture

Oxy-fuel combustion with hydrogen as a fuel can be used to concentrate CO₂, making it easier to capture.

Your Partner for Low-Carbon-Intensity Iron and Steelmaking

Air Products combines supply of industrial gases, applications technology and equipment with an experienced applications team to help realize your sustainability goals with turnkey decarbonization solutions. Integrating oxy-fuel, hydrogen, and/or carbon capture into your iron and steel production processes can vastly lower greenhouse gas emissions, helping you reach your sustainability targets.

Advanced Clean Energy Combustion Lab

We have the unique capability and expertise to develop proprietary combustion technologies and test them at our pilot-scale research lab using a variety of fuel blends, equipment and process/CFD modeling for integration into industrial-scale production.

Reliable Hydrogen Supply

Air Products operates 110+ hydrogen production facilities plus extensive hydrogen pipeline networks. We are the world leader in hydrogen, with more than 60 years’ experience in safely producing and handling hydrogen.

Low-Carbon-Intensity Hydrogen First Mover

Blue or green hydrogen can displace fossil fuels in traditional integrated mills or in the production of Direct Reduced Iron (DRI). Hydrogen can be used for reduction in a DRI or blast furnace and for heating requirements in iron and steelmaking processes.

Carbon Capture Expertise

Air Products is a global leader in creating technology solutions for capturing CO₂ from fossil-fuel-based processes. We have a long history of operating large-scale carbon capture facilities.

Decarbonize with confidence.

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*Decarbonization in steel | McKinsey