Article
Engineering, Multidisciplinary
Liyun Zhu, Feng He
Summary: This study developed a multi-stage Malmquist-Luenberger index model that considers the growth and driving factors of environmental total factor productivity in different production processes. By applying the model to Chinese iron and steel enterprises from 2009 to 2013, the validity of the model was demonstrated. Results showed that environmental efficiency improvement is the critical factor in promoting ETFP growth, while technical regression in the steel-making sub-process is the main constraint to system ETFP growth, with significant regional variations in ETFP changes.
APPLIED MATHEMATICAL MODELLING
(2022)
Review
Chemistry, Physical
Peng Sui, Binglang Ren, Jingsong Wang, Guang Wang, Haibin Zuo, Qingguo Xue
Summary: China's annual production of metallurgical by-product gases, such as blast furnace gas, converter gas, and coke oven gas, has significant potential for carbon reduction and energy recovery. These gases can support the production of direct reduced iron and reduce CO2 emissions in the steel industry. This article summarizes the characteristics, availability, and utilization of these gases, and discusses their application in carbon reduction in China.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF HYDROGEN ENERGY
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Yaxin Wang, Jun Liu, Xiaolong Tang, Yu Wang, Haowen An, Honghong Yi
Summary: The deep decarbonization of the iron and steel industry (ISI) is crucial for achieving global net-zero emissions. This study presents a dynamic modeling framework to track technological evolution and analyze the carbon neutrality pathways in China's ISI. It projects a shift from blast furnace-basic oxygen furnaces (BF-BOFs) to scrap-based electric arc furnaces (scrap-EAFs) and hydrogen-based direct reduced iron electric arc furnaces (DRI-EAFs) by 2060, leading to a 63%-73% reduction in CO2 emissions compared to 2020 levels. Structural adjustment in production is identified as the most effective measure.
RESOURCES CONSERVATION AND RECYCLING
(2023)
Article
Thermodynamics
Yong Sun, Baoyin Liu, Zhongrui Sun, Ruijia Yang
Summary: Transferring industries to clean energy-producing regions and improving energy efficiency are feasible and important strategies for regional control of energy consumption in energy-rich regions. This paper constructs a three-party evolutionary game model to explore the cooperation mechanism in the inter-regional transfer of energy-intensive industries. The findings highlight the importance of stable equilibrium, cost considerations, and policy support in promoting the orderly transfer of energy-intensive enterprises.
Article
Energy & Fuels
Ming Ren, Pantao Lu, Xiaorui Liu, M. S. Hossain, Yanru Fang, Tatsuya Hanaoka, Brian O'Gallachoir, James Glynn, Hancheng Dai
Summary: The study explores low-carbon transition pathways for China's iron and steel industry to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, emphasizing the importance of adopting breakthrough technologies in the long term and implementing system-wide cross-sector decarbonization measures to achieve climate change mitigation goals.
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Da Huang, Christian Doh Dinga, Yuan Tao, Zongguo Wen, Yihan Wang, Darine Razmadze
Summary: Steel is crucial for the net-zero transition, and China's iron and steel industry plays a pivotal role in achieving the country's net-zero commitment. This study explores decarbonization pathways in the industry using scenario and uncertainty analysis and finds that uncertainties significantly impact the time and technology mix needed for net-zero emissions. Switching production methods and increasing renewable energy use can reduce emissions, and a combination of measures can achieve energy conservation and pollution reduction targets.
RENEWABLE & SUSTAINABLE ENERGY REVIEWS
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Da Huang, Christian Doh Dinga, Zongguo Wen, Darine Razmadze
Summary: This study builds a 6-objective optimization problem to quantify energy conservation and emission reduction potentials in China's iron and steel industry. The results show that neglecting uncertainties increases the risk of noncompliance with policy targets, and the steel ratios and technology penetration rates are the critical uncertainty parameters that have the most severe impacts on objectives' performance.
JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
(2022)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Rongxin Wu, Boqiang Lin
Summary: The iron and steel industry in China is crucial for both energy consumption and CO2 emissions. Industrial agglomeration contributes to improving energy efficiency, with the positive impact of agglomeration on energy services strengthening with economic growth.
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Qiang Yue, Xicui Chai, Yujie Zhang, Qi Wang, Heming Wang, Feng Zhao, Wei Ji, Yuqi Lu
Summary: China's crude steel output has grown rapidly and accounted for more than half of global production. However, the iron and steel industry's energy consumption and carbon emissions in China are relatively high. Therefore, the recycling of scrap steel and the production of DRI are crucial for the sustainable development of China's steel industry.
ENVIRONMENT DEVELOPMENT AND SUSTAINABILITY
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Qiong Zhao, Jing Zhao, Wei Zhang, Xi Hu, Jing Zhang, Wenbo Xue, Ling Jiang, Jian Zhang, Xin Liu, Hongqiang Jiang, Ruixue Huo, Zengkai Zhang
Summary: Energy transition is important for controlling air pollution, but it may conflict with the economic goal of alleviating regional inequality due to different cost burdens. This paper focuses on the regional mismatch between upgrading costs and health benefits using the example of small coal-fired boiler upgrading.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Yue-Yi Li, Hui Li
Summary: China encourages domestic trade, but inter-provincial trade may exacerbate inter-regional carbon emissions transfer. Understanding industry transfer is crucial for achieving regional carbon emission reduction. Research shows that carbon emissions are mainly transferred from the southeast coastal areas to central and western areas, with energy inequality worsening.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Junichiro Oda, Keigo Akimoto
Summary: This study empirically evaluates the factors influencing the transition of carbon intensity in the Japanese iron and steel industry. The results show that upper processes, capacity factor, and time trend are major contributors to carbon intensity fluctuations. Innovative steelmaking processes will be required to achieve the goal of net zero emissions by 2050.
JOURNAL OF CLEANER PRODUCTION
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Kun Wang, Shuhan Liu, Kaiyun Liu, Mo Dan, Xiaohui Ji, Yajing Lu, Yi Xing
Summary: Tracking carbon flows in China's iron and steel industry reveals spatial shifts in CO2 equivalent emissions. Accurately tracking carbon flows is essential for reducing the industry's climate impacts, which is currently lacking in China. This study used a combination of models and inventories to track carbon flows from mines to steel users, finding that energy use accounted for 96% of emissions, while off-gas use and CH4 leakage in coal mines were often overlooked but contributed to 25% of life-cycle emissions. The research also highlighted the significance of interprovincial coal/coke/steel trade in driving producer-based emissions and the need for life-cycle and spatial shifts in carbon management on the user side.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Review
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Jiyong Yu, Runsheng Xu, Jianliang Zhang, Anyang Zheng
Summary: China's iron and steel industry has undergone ultra-low emission transformation since 2019 to reduce pollutant emissions in the steel production process. This article summarizes the emission reduction experience of China's iron and steel industry, including the generation mechanism of pollutants and the technologies applied for emission reduction. The current status of pollutant emissions in China's iron and steel industry and the future development direction are also analyzed.
JOURNAL OF CLEANER PRODUCTION
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Peipei Tian, Hongwei Lu, Heijungs Reinout, Dan Li, Keli Zhang, Yiyang Yang
Summary: This study explores the water-energy-carbon nexus in China through a multiregional input-output analysis and finds significant consistency in water, energy, and carbon in production and consumption processes. Different categories of provinces show varying trends in virtual WEC transfers, which could assist the government in reducing environmental footprints and achieving sustainable development.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2022)