Woody biomass waste derivatives in decarbonised blast furnace ironmaking process

Abstract

Modern ironmaking process relies significantly on fossil-related fuels, which ultimately results in the enormous CO₂ emitted into the atmosphere. Biomass of plant origin, as a carbon-neutral energy source, has been considered as an alternative to fossil-based reducing agents such as coke. This study aims to investigate the potential of three woody biomass waste derivatives produced from biomass waste pyrolysis and gasification, namely charcoal, bio-oil, and bio-syngas, as the reducing agents in blast furnace. A model based on heat and mass balance and Gibbs free energy minimisation is proposed to simulate an ironmaking process with assistance of these derivatives. The effects of specific composition of biomass waste derivatives on process operation, CO₂ emissions, and coke replacement are explored. Also the effects of H₂-rich gas produced from biomass waste gasification on the blast furnace operation are estimated. Results indicate that reactions of woody biomass waste derivatives in blast furnace are complex and greatly dependent on composition. When charcoal has a higher carbon content, lower CO₂ concentration is found from the top gas. The higher content of hydrogen in bio-oil will inhibit further reduction in CO₂ emissions. Bio-syngas with H₂/CO ratio of 1.3 proves to have a remarkable potential to reduce CO₂ emissions. From the aspects of available biomass waste resources across the world, woody biomass waste derivatives as reducing agents are more suitable for countries with the limited pig iron production. This study provides a reference on the future of moving forward the decarbonised ironmaking by using woody biomass waste derivatives.