How the Top Gases of a Blast Furnace Can Be Recycled to Reduce Co2 Emissions Coming from the Steelmaking Industry?

There are many aspects of pollution from the releases of carbon dioxide, this is one of the main problems of metal extraction is balancing ecological, environmental, economic and social aspects. Throughout the last few years, it was established that CO2 releases are the main aspect of the global warming effect because of the amount of pollution given out.

Firstly, I am going to explain the process of extracting iron in a blast furnace. An ore is a material originated inside ground, which contains a metal however not just the plain metal itself, but usually a metal oxide mixed with rock. When a metal is removed or extracted its ore is reduced so metal loses oxygen from its oxide. For iron the name of the ore is Haematite the compound of the metal present is iron (III) oxide.

Initially the Iron Ore, Limestone (Which is made of Calcium Carbonate, CaCO3) and Coke (Mainly made of coal, and collected almost out of pure carbon) are inserted into the top of the blast furnace. Then the process begins:

Stage 1: Burning of coke in the air heat is given off.

The hot air begins to burn the coke and then lets it react to the oxygen in the air following to produce Carbon Dioxide

Carbon + Oxygen ---> Carbon Dioxide

C (s) + O2 (g) --> CO2 (g)

Stage 2: The reduction of the carbon dioxide to carbon monoxide

Reaction with more coke:

Carbon + Carbon Dioxide --> Carbon Monoxide

C(s) + CO2 --> CO2 (g)

Stage 3: The reduction of the iron ore to iron by carbon monoxide

Extraction physically happens.

The Carbon Monoxide counters with the iron ore, giving liquid iron, which we can actually use. Iron (III) oxide + Carbon Monoxide --> Iron + Carbon Dioxide: Fe2O3 (s) + 3CO (g) --> 2Fe (l) + 3CO2 (g)

Stage 4: The decomposition of the limestone produces extra carbon dioxide. CaCO3 ---> CaO + CO2: Calcium Carbonate --> Calcium Oxide + Carbon Dioxide. The calcium oxide formed reacts with sand, which is mostly silicon dioxide. This reaction forms molten iron, which runs down to the bottom of the furnace and the slag floats on the surface of the molten iron. The iron produced in the end of the process is named pig iron; most of this is turned into the alloy steel. Steel is basically the most important physical material in the world, it is an alloy of carbon as I mentioned, however with a small percentage of carbon (around 4%). It is used for making car bodies, ships, bridges and many other sectors. Steel is vital for the life in the advanced world and for the progression of developing economies. However when we extract iron to get the alloy steel we pollute the air with waste gases including CO2.

To begin with the CCS, or Carbon Capture and Storage, is a low carbon technology that collects and captures carbon dioxide (CO2) from the manufacturing of steel, or other features. It is based on three methods: