TY - JOUR
T1 - Decarbonizing the iron and steel industry
T2 - A systematic review of sociotechnical systems, technological innovations, and policy options
AU - Kim, Jinsoo
AU - Sovacool, Benjamin K.
AU - Bazilian, Morgan
AU - Griffiths, Steve
AU - Lee, Junghwan
AU - Yang, Minyoung
AU - Lee, Jordy
N1 - Funding Information:
The authors thank the anonymous peer reviewers for very helpful comments on earlier drafts of this manuscript. They would also like to acknowledge support from the Industrial Decarbonisation Research and Innovation Centre (IDRIC) in the United Kingdom, funded by the UKRI and EPSRC via Grant Number EP/V027050/1 . Also, one of the authors of this paper (Sovacool) is the Editor-in-Chief for Energy Research & Social Science. He was not involved in managing the peer review or editorial process for this article.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 Elsevier Ltd
PY - 2022/7
Y1 - 2022/7
N2 - The iron and steel industry is the largest coal consumer and the most greenhouse gas intensive industry. It consumes about 7% of global energy supply, and conservative estimates report that it is responsible for 7–9% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Decarbonization of the iron and steel industry is thus vital to meet climate change mitigation targets and achieve a sustainable future for the industry. This paper presents a comprehensive and systematic review that considered more than 1.6 million pieces of literature and analyzes in depth a shortlist of 271 studies on the iron and steel industry's decarbonization. Applying a sociotechnical lens that investigates raw materials, iron and steel making processes, steel products making and usage, and waste and recycling, the review identifies the climate footprint of the iron and steel industry. The review also assesses current and emerging practices for decarbonization, identifying 86 potentially transformative technologies. The benefits of decarbonizing the iron and steel industry are considered through energy and carbon savings, financial savings, and other environmental and public health benefits. Barriers to decarbonization are considered across financial, organizational, and behavioral aspects. The review also discusses various financial tools and policy instruments that can help overcome the barriers. Lastly, research gaps are outlined.
AB - The iron and steel industry is the largest coal consumer and the most greenhouse gas intensive industry. It consumes about 7% of global energy supply, and conservative estimates report that it is responsible for 7–9% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Decarbonization of the iron and steel industry is thus vital to meet climate change mitigation targets and achieve a sustainable future for the industry. This paper presents a comprehensive and systematic review that considered more than 1.6 million pieces of literature and analyzes in depth a shortlist of 271 studies on the iron and steel industry's decarbonization. Applying a sociotechnical lens that investigates raw materials, iron and steel making processes, steel products making and usage, and waste and recycling, the review identifies the climate footprint of the iron and steel industry. The review also assesses current and emerging practices for decarbonization, identifying 86 potentially transformative technologies. The benefits of decarbonizing the iron and steel industry are considered through energy and carbon savings, financial savings, and other environmental and public health benefits. Barriers to decarbonization are considered across financial, organizational, and behavioral aspects. The review also discusses various financial tools and policy instruments that can help overcome the barriers. Lastly, research gaps are outlined.
KW - Climate change
KW - Climate mitigation
KW - Energy policy
KW - Industrial decarbonization
KW - iron and steel
KW - Sociotechnical system
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85125770384&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.erss.2022.102565
DO - 10.1016/j.erss.2022.102565
M3 - Review article
AN - SCOPUS:85125770384
SN - 2214-6296
VL - 89
JO - Energy Research and Social Science
JF - Energy Research and Social Science
M1 - 102565
ER -
