World Metals announced the “Top Ten Technological News in Global Steel Industry for 2024”.Here are the highlights:
1.The International Space Station Produces Its First 3D-Printed Steel Component
On May 30, 2024, inside the International Space Station’s European Columbus laboratory module, a 3D metal printer broke through orbital manufacturing methods to successfully print the first steel component. This world-first printer used liquid stainless steel to print an S-shaped curve, proving that 3D additive manufacturing of steel can be achieved in space.
2.Breakthroughs in Global Hydrogen Metallurgy R&D Projects
On January 6, China’s Central Iron & Steel Research Institute completed and operated a pure hydrogen multi-stable state shaft furnace demonstration project. The line stably operated for 2000 hours, producing 4000 tons of direct reduced iron with a normal metallization rate of 97%-99.4%.
In August, Sweden’s HYBRIT project team released its six-year (2018-2024) research results. Using green hydrogen-produced sponge iron for electric arc furnace steelmaking, CO2 emissions per ton of steel were less than 0.05 tons, nearly negligible compared to long-process procedures.
By September 23, China’s Xingguo Precision Machine Parts Co., Ltd. in Changli County launched a successful demonstration project for green electricity electrolysis water production-hydrogen storage-450 cubic meter blast furnace hydrogen-rich smelting, achieving carbon reduction of 8%-11%.
On December 20, Japan’s Nippon Steel achieved a 43% CO2 emission reduction in a 12 cubic meter experimental furnace within the Super COURSE50 project, meeting its development goals ahead of schedule.
3.A 4070m³Intelligent Blast Furnace Low-Carbon Ironmaking
Under precise data support, the Mei Steel intelligent blast furnace project formed a comprehensive data governance solution. It built an intelligent diagnostic model for smart blast furnaces, predicting changes in blast furnace conditions 1-3 hours in advance, adjusting charge recipes 6 hours ahead of raw material quality variations, extracting multidimensional information about blast furnace conditions, and providing real-time diagnostics and adjustment measures for stable operations.
4.Launch of the World’s First Hydrogen Metallurgy Green Automotive Sheet Continuous Casting Production Line
HeSteel established the world’s first hydrogen metallurgy green automotive sheet continuous casting production line, integrating advanced equipment and technologies from around the globe. Constructing one 1900mm single-stream slab continuous caster, it formed a production capacity of 1.5 million tons of high-end, green, low-carbon automotive sheet materials.
5.Successful Preparation of 5N Ultra-Pure Iron via Ultra-High Vacuum Vertical Floating Zone Melting Method
The successful production of 5N ultra-pure iron confirmed the potential of vacuum floating zone melting in preparing ultra-pure iron materials, providing theoretical basis and technical reference for the preparation and industrialization of ultra-high purity iron.
6.New Mo Micro-Alloyed Nickel-Saving Steel Used in Large LNG Ship Cargo Tanks
Nansteel, Xiangsteel and other enterprises internationally pioneered the use of Mo micro-alloyed 7Ni steel instead of 9Ni steel for manufacturing 78,900 cubic meters LNG ship cargo tanks. Compared to 9Ni steel, this new product can reduce costs by 2000-3000 yuan per ton. Compared to high-manganese steel, the new nickel-saving steel offers greener, more efficient welding processes and significantly improved weld joint safety. This technology provides a new path for strengthening and toughening steel materials at extremely low temperatures and has important theoretical and practical value for the development and application of high-performance clean energy steels.
7.Domestic Launch of Ø1000mm Super-Large Specification P92 Continuous Cast Round Billet
Maanshan Iron & Steel Co., Ltd under China Baowu Steel Group Corporation Limited, successfully produced a super-large specification P92 steel grade continuous cast round billet measuring Ø1000mm. This was the first time such steel was produced on an arc continuous caster, achieving excellent technical indicators in terms of billet center and surface quality.
8.China’s GPa-Level High-Strength Steel Continuous Heat Treatment Technology and Equipment Lead Globally
Innovations by China Metallurgical Engineering & Technology Co., Ltd. led to GPa-level thin-gauge high-strength steel continuous heat treatment technology and equipment, enabling continuous production of 1500MPa level high-strength steel plates and strips. This promoted weight reduction in engineering machinery and decreased product consumption and CO2 emissions, contributing to the realization of “dual carbon” targets.
9.High-Performance, Low-Cost Gigasteel Welding Technology PosZET®GIGA
In February 2024, POSCO successfully developed high-performance, low-cost gigasteel welding technology called PosZET®GIGA. Related research was published in Nature Communications. This welding technology uses niobium (Nb) and chromium (Cr) elements added to the welding material (welding wire), forming a complex and dense mesh structure in the weld metal while increasing strength and toughness. Compared to traditional welding methods, PosZET®GIGA can double the bending fatigue strength and increase impact toughness by approximately 15%, enhancing body safety under repeated impact or temperature changes and allowing for lighter vehicle design due to improved welding performance and reduced plate thickness. Moreover, the cost of this new process is only half that of traditional methods.
10.Successful hot trial the World’s Widest Heavy Plate Mill
On October 31, 2024, the world’s widest heavy plate mill, designed and supplied by MCC Jingcheng for Henan Zhoukou Steel, succeeded in its first hot trial. The 5600mm wide heavy plate roughing mill had a rolling force of 120,000 kN, a maximum support roll diameter of Φ2400mm, and a mill stiffness of 9500 kN/mm.
