Steel ki decarbonization ke liye zaroori hai ke sarkari tanzeemain tawaja dein. Is industry ne duniya bhar ki emissions mein 10% hissa liya hua hai, lekin isay behtareen banane ke liye sarkar ki darkhwast ka intezar hai.
Is masle ka hal dhondne ka pehla kadam hai ke carbon dioxide ke asal zariye ko pehchanain. Is industry ki emissions ka 80% hissa pehle marhale se aata hai: lohe ka ore nikalna, jo ke zyadatar lohe aur oxygen se bana hota hai, aur is oxygen ko alag karna. Is “reduction” ko hasil karne ke liye istemal hone wala asal cheez coal hai, jo ke maloom hai ke is se bohot zyada CO2 utpann hota hai. Is waqt, lohe ko steel banane mein carbon emissions kam hoti hain.
Is industry ki emissions ko kam karne ka aik tareeqa hai ke pehle marhale ko poori tarah se khatam kar dain aur humein is waqt se zyada iron aur steel ke products ko dobara istemal karna chahiye. Jabke United States mein lohe aur steel ka daur e daur qareeb 80-90% hai, aur global tor par bhi 80% se zyada hai, lekin yeh haqeeqat hai ke steel ko poori tarah se dobara istemal kiya ja sakta hai. Is ke liye designers ko products banane mein madad karni chahiye, jo ke asaan tor par alag kiye ja sakein, taa ke copper wiring aur doosre mulayim maaddon ko asaan tor par nikala ja sake.
Ek aur ahem factor material ki ittefaaqiyat hai: pehle hi mein kam lohe istemal karna, jisme architects aur structural engineers ka bhi kirdar hai. Hukumatain, jo infrastructure ke liye sab se baray khareedar hain, is mein aik ahem kirdar ada kar sakti hain. Magar yehi kaam architecture aur engineering professions, aur car manufacturers ka bhi hai.
Steel ko circular economy ka numainda banaya ja sakta hai, lekin is ke liye zaroori hai ke hukumatain steel supply chain ke har marhale ko nishana banayein. Recycling aur material efficiency dono physical, logistical, aur managerial complexities dalte hain, jo ke iska matlab hai ke industries inhein khud ba khud istemal nahi karegi, agar ke inhein akhir mein costs kam karne ka faida ho. Iska matlab hai ke building aur vehicle manufacturing codes ko behtar banaya jaye (baqi materials ke sath, jese ke glass, cement, aur aluminum), aur steel consumers ko scrap ko dobara istemal karne par majboor kiya jaye.
Agla pehlu iron aur steel plants ko decarbonize karne ka hukum sarkaron se aane wala hai. Is mein blast furnace aur basic oxygen furnace ko iron aur steel production ke kaam karne walay tawana jagaon ki jagah kisi naye tarah ka technology ko introduce karna shaamil hai.
Jab lohe ko steel banane ki baat aati hai, electric arc furnaces aik asar andaz hal hain, aur ab yeh United States mein steel production ka 70% se zyada hissa bana raha hai, jab ke 1970 mein yeh 15% tha aur 2000 mein yeh 50% ke qareeb tha. Coal istemal karne wale blast furnaces ko replace karne ke liye abhi do options hain: furnaces jo low-carbon hydrogen ka istemal karte hain taake oxygen ko iron ore se alag karen; aur aise novel electrochemical processes jo is kaam ko bijli ke zariye kar sakte hain.
Hydrogen-based option ke tafreeqat (jinhon ne 1970s mein istemal shuru kiya) abhi global steel production ka 5% hissa bana rahe hain, lekin yeh abhi bhi traditional blast furnaces se zyada mehnga hai. Is mein shamil izafi kharch Europe mein mojood carbon price se 2-3 guna zyada hai. Agar yeh prices climate ke hawale se justified hain, to market ko is raste mein lana ke liye policy interventions ki zarurat hai.
Steel ki decarbonization ko barqarar rakhne ke liye lambi muddat tak buland carbon prices se faida hoga, magar isko asal mein aik bara aur target-oriented policy strategy ki zarurat hai. Sab se pehla kaam yeh hai ke pehli qisam ke near-zero-emissions plants banaye jayein taake woh naya standard ban sakein.
Duniya ki pehli full-size, clean-hydrogen steel plant H2 Green Steel ne Sweden ke Boden mein banane ka kaam shuru kiya hai, jo ke kehlaye ja raha hai ke iske liye policy conditions bilkul behtareen hain. Sweden ke energy aur steel sectors European Union ke emissions-trading system se covered hain; lekin iske elawa, bade legacy hydropower plants aur naye wind farms ki wajah se northern Scandinavia mein bohot sasta aur low-carbon electricity dastiyab hai. Yeh bhi allow karta hai ke Norwegian Statkraft ke sath long-term power purchase agreement ho, jo ke kilowatt-hour ke $0.03 se kam mein power supply karega.
$0.03 ke below electricity prices, jo ke zyadatar electricity wind aur (khas kar) solar se aaye gi, Electra naam ka Colorado-based startup apne electrochemical approach ke zariye traditional iron production mein break even kar sakega. Is company ko abhi tak venture capitalists ne $85 million ka funding diya hai, jo ke average investors se zyada risk uthane ke liye tayyar hain.
Policymakers ko in technologies jese ke H2 Green Steel aur Electra ko apne paon par khada karne mein madad karni chahiye. Is mein basic economy-wide climate policies se zyada focus low-cost, low-carbon electricity aur new technologies ke liye capital costs ko kam karne par hona chahiye. US Inflation Reduction Act pahle wale ko hasil karne mein madad karta hai, lekin isme revolutionary iron-making technologies ko seedha support nahi mil raha. Agar koi cheez private finance ke liye waqar ban jati hai, to extra costs handle kiye ja sakte hain. L