ArcelorMittal tests CCUS technology in Europe and the USA

ArcelorMittal is teaming up with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Engineering (MHIENG), BHP and Mitsubishi Development to develop Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage (CCUS) technology in Europe and the US.

The companies will first conduct large-scale, multi-year trials of the MHIENG system at ArcelorMittal's steel mills in Ghent, Belgium, as well as at an unspecified US site.

The Ghent project includes two phases. Initially, top gas CO2 will be captured from the blast furnace at a rate of around 300 kg/day CO2. The second phase involves testing the separation and capture of CO2 from off-gases in a heating furnace of a hot rolling mill that burns a mixture of industrial gases including coke oven gas, blast furnace gas and natural gas, ArcelorMittal reports.

“We are developing two ways to decarburize steelmaking: Smart Carbon and Innovative-DRI. Both routes will further our commitment to zero-carbon steel production. The Smart Carbon route also allows us to integrate carbon capture and reuse (CCU) or storage (CCS) technologies, capturing the carbon emitted during the steel production process,” says Manfred Van Vlierberge, Managing Director of ArcelorMittal Belgium.
The steelmaker aims to cut CO2 emissions by 35% by 2030 in Europe and by 30% by 2030 globally.

ArcelorMittal Gent's 5mtpa steel plant will also launch its Steelanol demonstration plant later this year, which will capture blast furnace gases and convert them to ethanol.

Meanwhile, the companies will build a mobile direct reduced iron plant at one of ArcelorMittal's plants in North America to test MHIENG's technology on this steelmaking route.

While MHIENG will supply its technology, BHP and Mitsubishi Development will provide financial support for the trial, which should take several years, ArcelorMittal said.

BHP is actively involved in steel decarburization and has collaborated on similar projects with players such as Posco, China Baowu, JFE Steel, HBIS Group and Tata Steel. Together with ArcelorMittal, these steelmakers account for over 17% of global steel production.

According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), CCUS technology, a key decarburization solution for hard-to-reduce sectors such as steelmaking, must be used in more than 53% of primary steel production by 2050 to meet European zero net emission targets. .

Callanish notes that despite the availability, very few steelmakers in the world and none in Europe have invested in CCUS technology.

For the past 30 years, MHIENG has partnered with Kansai Electric Power to develop its "KM CDR™ process for CO2 capture". The technology has been installed at 16 plants around the world, two of which are under construction.