"Economics of Electrowinning Iron from Ore for Green Steel Production" - Humbert et al. (2024)
Alan Duffy
The transition to green steel production is pivotal for reducing global carbon emissions. My student Matthew Humbert undertook this study on a comprehensive techno-economic analysis of various green steel production methods, including hydrogen reduction and three different electrolysis techniques: aqueous hydroxide electrolysis (AHE), molten salt electrolysis, and molten oxide electrolysis (MOE).
The analysis reveals that MOE, despite its ongoing development, offers a promising route for iron production given its ability to process a wide range of ore qualities and the potential to sell electrolyte as a cement product. However, the best balance between deployment ready technology and economic benefit is AHE.