BuildSteel is tracking the sustainability initiatives of Steel Framing Industry Association (SFIA) members and their partners. Here is some recent sustainability news affecting the cold-formed steel (CFS) framing industry.
Nucor Enters Into Carbon Capture and Storage Agreement with ExxonMobil
Nucor Corporation, a Charlotte, N.C., steel products manufacturer and SFIA member, announced in June 2023 that it has signed an agreement with ExxonMobil to capture, transport and store carbon from the company’s direct reduced iron (DRI) plant in Convent, Louisiana. ExxonMobil will capture up to 800,000 metric tons per year of CO2 from the DRI plant and store the CO2 at an ExxonMobil-owned facility in Louisiana.
“This transformative CCS project with ExxonMobil is a key part of our decarbonization strategy and will result in some of the lowest embodied carbon DRI or HBI in North America,” said Leon Topalian, chair, president and chief executive officer of Nucor Corporation.
The carbon capture and storage project is expected to start-up in 2026 and supports Louisiana’s objective of reaching net-zero CO2 emissions by 2050.
With its recycling-based production method, Nucor is already one of the cleanest steelmakers in the world. The circular nature of remelting recycled scrap in electric arc furnaces means that Nucor’s steel mills generate roughly two-thirds less than the carbon dioxide of extractive blast furnace steelmaking plants, even when accounting for Scope 3 emissions, which include all upstream and downstream emissions in the supply chain.
Read the original Nucor news release.
70% of U.S. Steel Made by Electric Arc Furnaces
In separate news, Nucor’s Topalian spoke to the Congressional Steel Caucus in June 2023, and said that the American steel industry “is coming off two incredible years where we experienced robust demand for our products.”
“The American steel industry is the cleanest in the world among industrialized countries – and make no mistake – this happened as the result of EAF technologies steadily replacing high emissions extractive steelmaking over the last three decades,” said Topalian. “Today, more than 70% of all steel produced in the United States is made by Electric Arc Furnaces and that will continue to grow in the coming years.”
Cleveland-Cliffs Completes Successful Blast Furnace Hydrogen Injection Trial
Cleveland-Cliffs Inc., an SFIA member, announced in May 2023 that it had successfully completed a hydrogen (H2) injection trial at its Middletown Works blast furnace.
This groundbreaking introduction of hydrogen gas as an iron reducing agent in the blast furnace is the first ever use of this carbon friendly technology in the Americas region. The successful use of hydrogen gas represents a significant step toward the future decarbonization of blast furnaces.
During the trial completed on May 8, 2023, hydrogen gas was injected into all 20 tuyeres at the Middletown #3 blast furnace, facilitating the production of clean pig iron – the foundation of high-end steelmaking. Hydrogen was used as a partial substitute for the coke necessary for iron reduction, ultimately replacing the release of CO2 with the release of H2O (water vapor) with no impact to product quality or operating efficiency. The hydrogen was delivered to the Middletown facility via the existing pipeline and transportation infrastructure in place for the facility’s other hydrogen uses, including for its annealing furnaces.
“We are proud to be the first Company in the Americas to inject hydrogen into a blast furnace – a demonstration of our commitment to develop and implement breakthrough technological advancements toward decarbonization, said Lourenco Goncalves, Cliffs’ Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer.
Cleveland-Cliffs is the largest flat-rolled steel producer in North America.
Read the original Cleveland-Cliffs news release.
U. S. Steel Issues ESG Report Highlighting Its Sustainability Goals Progress
United States Steel Corporation, a leading steel producer and an SFIA member, recently announced it issued its 2022 Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Report titled, “Essential for our Future,” reaffirming its commitment to sustainable steelmaking and a greener economy.
Steel is essential to enabling critical green technologies like wind turbines, solar fields, and electric vehicle motors. Moreover, sustainable steel can contribute towards lowering the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of other products and industries. Steel stands out for its remarkable capability to be recycled infinitely without any loss of quality, demonstrating a nearly endless lifecycle once it has been produced.
Recognizing this enduring utility, U. S. Steel is focused on reducing emissions in meaningful ways while delivering profitable, differentiated and sustainable steel solutions for customers and communities, people and planet.
“Every single employee is playing a role in creating a more sustainable future,” said David Burritt, U.S. Steel president and CEO. “Steel’s importance to our society is undeniable, both in the past and into the future as we collectively tackle climate change. It’s of particular significance that we were the first American steel company to set a goal of achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.”
Report highlights include:
- U. S. Steel launched an electrical steel product, InduX, that will begin production at the company’s Big River Steel plant this summer
- The Big River Steel facility also produces verdeX, which is manufactured with up to 80% fewer emissions than traditional steel products and has up to 90% recycled content
- Big River Steel is the first North American steel mill to receive ResponsibleSteel site certification
Read the original U.S. Steel news release.
CFS Meets All Sustainability Requirements
Cold-formed steel (CFS) meets the highest sustainability requirements set in all major green building standards and rating programs, including the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) from the U.S. Green Building Council, the National Green Building Standard (ICC-700) for residential buildings, ASHRAE Standard 189.1 for commercial construction and the International Green Construction Code (IgCC).
According to the American Iron and Steel Institute:
- Steel framing contains a minimum of 25% recycled steel and is continually and completely “remade without any loss of quality”
- Most other construction products can only be down-cycled into lower-quality products
- Steel framing minimizes construction site waste
Additional Resources
- Update #8 | Sustainability News from FrameCAD, Cleveland-Cliffs and ArcelorMittal Dofasco
- Update #7 | Sustainability news from ArcelorMittal, SDI and U.S. Steel
- Update #6 | Sustainability news from Cleveland-Cliffs, Worldsteel and U.S. Steel
- Update #5 | News from Nucor, Cleveland-Cliffs and a New Low-Emissions Steel Coalition
- Update #4 | Steel Framing Industry Sustainability Initiatives
- Update #3 | Steel Framing Industry Sustainability Initiatives
- Update #2 | Steel Framing Industry Sustainability Initiatives
- Update #1 | Steel Framing Industry Sustainability Initiatives