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Life Cycle Assessment of an Integrated Steel Mill Using Primary Manufacturing Data: Actual Environmental Profile

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  • Jana Gerta Backes

    (Institute of Sustainability in Civil Engineering, RWTH Aachen University, 52074 Aachen, Germany)

  • Julian Suer

    (Institute of Sustainability in Civil Engineering, RWTH Aachen University, 52074 Aachen, Germany
    Competence Center Metallury Sustainable Steel Production, Thyssenkrupp Steel Europe AG, 47259 Duisburg, Germany)

  • Nils Pauliks

    (Institute of Sustainability in Civil Engineering, RWTH Aachen University, 52074 Aachen, Germany)

  • Sabrina Neugebauer

    (Institute of Sustainability in Civil Engineering, RWTH Aachen University, 52074 Aachen, Germany)

  • Marzia Traverso

    (Institute of Sustainability in Civil Engineering, RWTH Aachen University, 52074 Aachen, Germany)

Abstract

The current dependency on steel within modern society causes major environmental pollution, a result of the product’s life cycle phases. Unfortunately, very little data regarding single steel production processes have been found in literature. Therefore, a detailed analysis of impacts categorized in terms of relevance cannot be conducted. In this study, a complete life cycle assessment of steel production in an integrated German steel plant of thyssenkrupp Steel Europe AG, including an assessment of emissions from the blast furnace, the basic oxygen furnace, and casting rolling, is carried out. The functional unit is set to 1 kg hot-rolled coil, and the system boundaries are defined as cradle-to-gate. This study models the individual process steps and the resulting emitters using the software GaBi. Total emissions could be distributed into direct, upstream, and by-product emissions, where the biggest impacts in terms of direct emissions from single processes are from the power plant (48% global warming potential (GWP)), the blast furnace (22% GWP), and the sinter plant (79% photochemical ozone creation potential (POCP)). The summarized upstream processes have the largest share in the impact categories acidification potential (AP; 69%) and abiotic depletion potential fossil (ADPf; 110%). The results, including data verification, furthermore show the future significance of the supply chain in the necessary reduction that could be achieved.

Suggested Citation

  • Jana Gerta Backes & Julian Suer & Nils Pauliks & Sabrina Neugebauer & Marzia Traverso, 2021. "Life Cycle Assessment of an Integrated Steel Mill Using Primary Manufacturing Data: Actual Environmental Profile," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(6), pages 1-18, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:6:p:3443-:d:520797
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Pardo, Nicolás & Moya, José Antonio, 2013. "Prospective scenarios on energy efficiency and CO2 emissions in the European Iron & Steel industry," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 113-128.
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    Cited by:

    1. Vaishnavi Vijay Rajulwar & Tetiana Shyrokykh & Robert Stirling & Tova Jarnerud & Yuri Korobeinikov & Sudip Bose & Basudev Bhattacharya & Debashish Bhattacharjee & Seetharaman Sridhar, 2023. "Steel, Aluminum, and FRP-Composites: The Race to Zero Carbon Emissions," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(19), pages 1-30, September.
    2. Crescenzo Pepe & Giorgia Farella & Giovanni Bartucci & Silvia Maria Zanoli, 2025. "Recent Innovations in Computer and Automation Engineering for Performance Improvement in the Steel Industry Production Chain: A Review," Energies, MDPI, vol. 18(8), pages 1-41, April.
    3. Julian Suer & Marzia Traverso & Nils Jäger, 2022. "Review of Life Cycle Assessments for Steel and Environmental Analysis of Future Steel Production Scenarios," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(21), pages 1-22, October.
    4. Natalia V. Starodubets & Irina S. Belik & Natalia L. Nikulina & Tamila T. Alikberova, 2023. "Assessment and Forecasting of Metallurgical Enterprises Carbon Footprint in the Sverdlovsk Region," Journal of Applied Economic Research, Graduate School of Economics and Management, Ural Federal University, vol. 22(3), pages 572-599.
    5. Jana Gerta Backes & Laura Schmidt & Jan Bielak & Pamela Del Rosario & Marzia Traverso & Martin Claßen, 2023. "Comparative Cradle-to-Grave Carbon Footprint of a CFRP-Grid Reinforced Concrete Façade Panel," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(15), pages 1-20, July.
    6. Michele Andreotti & Carlo Brondi & Davide Micillo & Ron Zevenhoven & Johannes Rieger & Ayoung Jo & Anne-Laure Hettinger & Jan Bollen & Enrico Malfa & Claudio Trevisan & Klaus Peters & Delphine Snaet &, 2023. "SDGs in the EU Steel Sector: A Critical Review of Sustainability Initiatives and Approaches," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(9), pages 1-23, May.
    7. Davide Rovelli & Carlo Brondi & Michele Andreotti & Elisabetta Abbate & Maurizio Zanforlin & Andrea Ballarino, 2022. "A Modular Tool to Support Data Management for LCA in Industry: Methodology, Application and Potentialities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(7), pages 1-31, March.

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