The Nordic countries have rich reserves of iron-rich ores, which can be used to support the local steel industry. Depending on the source, these ores have unique properties, such as high magnesium and vanadium concentrations, whose behavior in the reduction and melting process must be studied before moving on to industrial processes.
The Interreg Aurora funded project H2NordSteel brings together the expertise of the University of Oulu, Luleå University of Technology, and Future Eco in hydrogen reduction, biochar applications, and electricity-based arc furnace melting. The purpose of this collaboration is to find an environmentally friendly way to reduce iron ores with hydrogen, to use bio-based raw materials for slag foaming, and to utilise Nordic green electricity for electric arc furnace melting of reduced ores. The main goal of the project is to find out how the Nordic steel industry can be supported with these raw materials and processes. H2NordSteel will provide valuable information for both mining and steel industry in the Nordics, in addition to the local technology developers, and biocarbon and microwave companies.
The project consists of five work packages:
1. Material characterization and phase identification,
2. Low temperature hydrogen reduction,
3. Biochar-Integrated Pellets,
4. Electric arc furnace melting experiments,
5. Slag foaming performance with biocarbon in a foaming furnace.
Contact: Henri Pauna, Project Leader, University of Oulu, henri.pauna@oulu.fi
