October 2024 Metallurgy Blog
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October 3, 2024
Green Hydrogen is the Future of Iron Smelting
Green Hydrogen is the Future of Iron Smelting
New iron smelting technique developed by Swedish companies could cut global steel production emissions by 7%. The developers include Swiss electric power company Vattenfall, Steel Maker SSAB, and a mining company. The developers are so confident of their technique's success that they are pitching it to Swedish government officials, suggesting that it could decrease the country's carbon dioxide emissions by 10%. The goal of the HYBRIT project is to completely remove fossil fuels from the iron smelting process and scale up the process to full scale production. The centuries old iron smelting process used coal and natural gas as a power source, HYBRIT on the other hand uses hydrogen created with renewable energy sources, or green hydrogen as it is sometimes referred to. Specifically, HYBRIT uses a process known as electrolysis to generate hydrogen fuel for use in iron smelting. Electrolysis separates hydrogen from water using renewable electricity, it is one of the cleanest methods of making hydrogen and it minimizes air pollution considerably. The HYBRIT team has already conducted several successful pilot tests and now they are ready to move on to the development of a full-scale plant. They have already secured funding from the European union, and they are ready to industrialize their new iron smelting technique. Learn more about this topic here.
October 19, 2024
New High Purity Metal Transport Layers Optimize Green Hydrogen Production
New High Purity Metal Transport Layers Optimize Green Hydrogen Production
After a decade of research, GKN Powered Metallurgy finally launches new gen high performance, high porous, high purity transport layers (HP-PTL) for Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) electrolysis. This innovative solution is designed to optimize hydrogen production by increasing the efficiency of the electrolysis process and reducing the environmental impact. The new HP-PLT significantly reduces the required amount of catalyst materials, like iridium for example. As a result of lower stack costs, advanced PEM electrolysers become much more affordable relative to traditional solutions. Additionally, surface area connectivity is also improved thanks to the high porous structure, which is comprised of a fine powder layer. Electrical resistance is also reduced, which decreases the voltage level needed to produce equal amounts of hydrogen. In other words, the process can make the same amount of hydrogen using significantly less energy. Senior Vice President at GKN noted that ““Through the development of the HP-PTL, GKN Powder Metallurgy is driving the energy transition forward.” He further mentioned that “By reducing operational costs and enhancing the efficiency of PEM electrolysis, this innovation plays a crucial role in making renewable hydrogen production economically viable. As a result, it opens new possibilities for a safer, more cost-efficient future based on environmentally sustainable energy.” Read more about this topic here.
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