Posted on 13 Aug 2010
An Italian research institute has patented a carbon capture process that produces hydrogen from slag, raising the prospect of substantial energy and carbon quota savings for steel producers. The innovative process, called Hysteel, aims to reduce waste produced during the steel making process by producing hydrogen and capturing CO2 emissions from slag, which can then be recycled or used to generate energy by the steelmaker. “With Hysteel, you can produce about 44 kilowatt hours of electricity and absorb 2.7 tonnes of CO2 per tonne of steel slag treated. The hydrogen produced can be recycled as fuel for the plant itself,” Paolo Plescia, the inventor of the process and a researcher at the Institute for Geoengineering and Environmental Geology in Rome, tells Steel Business Briefing.
“A typical midsized steel plant producing 250,000 t of waste a year could recover 30% of its CO2 emissions and produce 7 gigawatt hours of electricity, saving €1.1m in energy costs and €1m per year in greenhouse gas emission quotas”, Plescia claims. Hysteel remains at the development stage at present. In 2011, Hysteel will undergo testing in a pilot plant at research laboratories in Piombino, central Italy. “A typical midsized steel plant producing 250,000 t of waste a year could recover 30% of its CO2 emissions and produce 7 gigawatt hours of electricity, saving €1.1m in energy costs and €1m per year in greenhouse gas emission quotas”, Plescia claims. Hysteel remains at the development stage at present. In 2011, Hysteel will undergo testing in a pilot plant at research laboratories in Piombino, central Italy.
