How much hydrogen is in green steel?

Abstract Hydrogen-based reduction of iron ores is the key technology for future sustainable ironmaking, to mitigate the CO2 burden from the steel industry, accounting for ~7–8% of all global emissions. However, using hydrogen as a reductant prompts concerns about hydrogen embrittlement in steel prod...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Özge Özgün, Xu Lu, Yan Ma, Dierk Raabe
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2023-10-01
Series:npj Materials Degradation
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41529-023-00397-8
Description
Summary:Abstract Hydrogen-based reduction of iron ores is the key technology for future sustainable ironmaking, to mitigate the CO2 burden from the steel industry, accounting for ~7–8% of all global emissions. However, using hydrogen as a reductant prompts concerns about hydrogen embrittlement in steel products. This raises the question of how much hydrogen remains from green ironmaking in the metal produced. We answer this question here by quantifying the amount of hydrogen in iron produced via two hydrogen-based ironmaking processes, namely, direct reduction and plasma smelting reduction. Results suggest no threat of hydrogen embrittlement resulting from using hydrogen in green steel production.
ISSN:2397-2106