Scientists in China say they have revolutionized ironmaking with a process that is not only a remarkable 3,600 times faster than conventional techniques but also much better for the planet.
South China Morning Post reported on the remarkable breakthrough. For such a large improvement on current methods, perhaps it's unsurprising that team leader Professor Zhang Wenhai began work on it way back in 2013. While the inspiration for the new process originated in the U.S., it was Zhang who obtained a patent for it and has tirelessly developed it over the last 11 years.
The process is called flash ironmaking and is achieved by inserting ground iron powder into a scalding hot furnace. The team said the resulting "explosive chemical reaction" produces shining liquid iron that streams down to the furnace's bottom. From there, the high-purity iron can be quickly fashioned into steel.
The advantages over the standard methods of blast furnace smelting are enormous. The new method takes three to six seconds while blast furnace smelting takes five to six hours. It also doesn't require costly high-yield iron ores that China currently imports from countries like Australia and Brazil, per the South China Morning Post. Low or medium-yield ores are readily available in China and are usable for this method.
The benefits to the environment are also significant. Zhang's team calculated their method could cut energy requirements by more than one-third. Additionally, blast furnace smelting requires large amounts of coal and, thus, a hefty release of planet-warming gases.
This new method cuts out the dirty energy source completely, and the scientists say it could facilitate "near-zero" carbon pollution in steelmaking. A team in Sweden is tackling a similar clean solution for ironmaking, while a Bill Gates-backed startup is also exploring a concept powered by clean energy. Heat from steelmaking can also be used to generate hydrogen fuel, as a team in Australia is exploring.
Considering China produces more than half of the world's steel, though, this could be a game changer. China's steel prowess is part of why it's a world leader in bullet trains and EV manufacturing. CarbonBrief estimates steelmaking is responsible for around 11% of the world's carbon pollution, with China's use of blast furnace smelting accounting for much of the damage.
China has ambitious goals to achieve carbon neutrality by 2060, and the country has been pushing the boundaries of green tech. This includes a non-stop race to build the world's biggest wind turbines. Since China has a legacy as the world's biggest polluter, these developments are paramount in the fight to combat the dangerous warming of the planet.
Perhaps most exciting about the Chinese team's advances is that the critical ore-spraying lances that go into the reactors have entered commercial production. The team says each reactor, equipped with three lances, can produce over seven million tons of iron in a year.
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That indicates that this technology will be arriving soon to radically speed up and clean up the steel industry in China.
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