An electrifying new ironmaking method could slash carbon emissions

By extracting metallic iron without producing carbon dioxide, the new
process could even be carbon negative, at least for part of the
world's iron production

Making iron, the main ingredient of steel, takes a toll on Earth's
delicate atmosphere, producing 8% of all global greenhouse gas
emissions. Now, a team of chemists has come up with a way to make the
business much more eco-friendly. By using electricity to convert iron
ore and salt water into metallic iron and other industrially useful
chemicals, researchers report today in Joule that their approach is
cost effective, works well with electricity provided by wind and solar
farms, and could even be carbon negative, consuming more carbon
dioxide (CO2) than it produces.

"It's a very clever approach," says Karthish Manthiram, a chemical
engineer at the California Institute of Technology who was not
involved with the study. He notes that the process has other
advantages, including working at a low temperature, and being amenable
to working with intermittent renewable electricity. "It checks all the
boxes."

https://www.science.org/content/article/electrifying-new-ironmaking-method-could-slash-carbon-emissions

JAB <here@is.invalid> wrote:

> An electrifying new ironmaking method could slash carbon emissions
>
> By extracting metallic iron without producing carbon dioxide, the new
> process could even be carbon negative, at least for part of the
> world's iron production
>
> Making iron, the main ingredient of steel, takes a toll on Earth's
> delicate atmosphere, producing 8% of all global greenhouse gas
> emissions. Now, a team of chemists has come up with a way to make the
> business much more eco-friendly. By using electricity to convert iron
> ore and salt water into metallic iron and other industrially useful
> chemicals, researchers report today in Joule that their approach is
> cost effective, works well with electricity provided by wind and solar
> farms, and could even be carbon negative, consuming more carbon
> dioxide (CO2) than it produces.
>
> "It's a very clever approach," says Karthish Manthiram, a chemical
> engineer at the California Institute of Technology who was not
> involved with the study. He notes that the process has other
> advantages, including working at a low temperature, and being amenable
> to working with intermittent renewable electricity. "It checks all the
> boxes."
>
>
> <https://www.science.org/content/article/electrifying-new-ironmaking-method-could-slash-carbon-emissions>
>

Nice, I hope it turns out to be commercially viable.

--
^Ï^. Sn!pe, PA, FIBS - Professional Crastinator

My pet rock Gordon says:
The first duty of government is defence of the realm.

JAB <here@is.invalid> wrote:
> An electrifying new ironmaking method could slash carbon emissions
>
> By extracting metallic iron without producing carbon dioxide, the new
> process could even be carbon negative, at least for part of the
> world's iron production

"Still, a laboratory experiment is a long way from an industrial process.
Even if the technique can be scaled up, there are kinks to work out. The
Oregon group’s setup generates essentially as much chlorine gas as it does
iron, notes Iryna Zenyuk, a chemical engineer at the University of
California, Irvine. Although chlorine gas has many industrial uses, the
amount that would be generated by a scaled-up version of the new method
would be more than is needed, leading to pollution. As well, Zenyuk says,
producing iron electrochemically requires that the starting iron oxide be
pristine without the impurities found in most ores. “Purification can be
costly,” she says.

Kempler says both concerns are valid. Even so, scaling production to match
industrial chlorine gas needs would still produce tens of millions of tons
of CO2-free iron and chlorine annually, he notes. As for the purification
of iron oxide, he adds that because sodium hydroxide is well known to bind
to trace impurities in iron ore, some of it can be used to purify the iron
oxide prior to use in the reactor, a project they are currently testing. If
it all works out, ironmaking could someday put a little less burden on the
climate."

What could you do with an excess of chlorine? Assuming all the industrial
uses have taken what they need and there is still some remaining.

Theo

On 12 Feb 2024 16:44:13 +0000 (GMT), Theo
<theom+news@chiark.greenend.org.uk> wrote:

>What could you do with an excess of chlorine?

Disinfect more water?

On Sat, 2 Mar 2024, JAB wrote:

> On 12 Feb 2024 16:44:13 +0000 (GMT), Theo
> <theom+news@chiark.greenend.org.uk> wrote:
>
>> What could you do with an excess of chlorine?
>
> Disinfect more water?

Adding to that:

Disinfectant: Chlorine is commonly used to kill bacteria and disinfect
water in drinking water and swimming pools1
4 ..
Chemical Industry: Chlorine is utilized in organic chemistry as an
oxidizing agent and in substitution reactions. It is a key component in
the manufacture of consumer products like PVC, plastics, paints, textiles,
medicines, antiseptics, insecticides, and paints1
4 ..
Water Treatment: Chlorine is crucial in sewage treatment works and is used
to treat drinking water to make it safe for consumption1
..
Medical Applications: Around 85% of pharmaceuticals use chlorine or its
compounds during their manufacturing process1
..
Historical Uses: Chlorine was historically used to make chloroform and
carbon tetrachloride but is now strictly controlled due to health risks.
It was also used as a chemical weapon during World War I1
..
Industrial Applications: Chlorine is involved in making bleached paper
products, solvents like chloroform, tetrachloromethane, and
dichloromethane, as well as in the production of dyes and paints1

Enjoy! =)

Best regards,
Daniel