Technical Market Support » Future Technologies
This project provides an updated understanding of the development status, future outlook, and challenges facing ironmaking technologies in terms of feedstock quality requirements and impacts. The project documented the directions in sustainable and low carbon ironmaking technology and the impacts on market demand for metallurgical coal to allow a technical assessment of the suitability of Australian metallurgical coal for modern ironmaking operations. The project also aimed at identifying future research opportunities to support the marketing of Australian coking coal to a shifting global market.
Firstly, current trends and future prospects of various low carbon cokemaking and ironmaking technologies were evaluated. This included the forecast of the share of blast furnace ironmaking and the development of alternative ironmaking technologies.
The project was divided into two major parts of lowcarbon cokemaking; and sustainable blast furnace ironmaking.
Sections dealing with the influence of renewable and waste addition on thermoplastic properties of coal blends and the quality of resulting cokes are included.
Efforts were made to draw correlations from literature data regarding the impact of coal property parameters on carrying capacity in blends with renewable biomass feedstock and other waste additives.
The review of blast furnace ironmaking focused on available decarbonisation options and their implications for raw material requirements. Proposed methods for introducing hydrogen-rich carbonaceous materials, coke oven gas (and reformed coke oven gas), oxygen enrichment, and introduction of H2 gas as an alternative reducing agent into the blast furnace were reviewed. The focus was given to the understanding of how the changes introduced by these methods influence coal and coke rate and quality requirements in the blast furnace.