Dongkuk Steel to develop carbon-saving hyper electric furnace

Dongkuk Steel Mill Co. has begun its research on carbon emission-reducing hyper-electric furnace processes.

The company announced on Friday that it plans to complete the research by 2028, participating in projects of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

The core of the hyper electric furnace is speed and energy efficiency, and as the operation speed accelerates, power consumption can be reduced and carbon emissions can be diminished.

Dongkuk Steel plans to improve the power efficiency of "Eco-Arc Electric Furnace" by preheating iron scraps and improving the filling method, and perfect the hyper electric furnace technology by further improving energy efficiency.

Its Incheon plant's eco-arc electric furnace has the highest power efficiency by domestic standards and consumes 30% less power compared to general electric furnaces due to preheating and continuous filling of iron scraps.

Once the development and commercial operation of this hyper electric furnace technology is successful, additional power saving and eco-friendly technology improvement can be expected.

The electric furnace is a process that produces steel by recycling iron scraps. Although carbon emissions are low compared to blast furnaces, research and development are essential due to wide technological differences across countries.

In line with the global trend toward carbon neutrality, POSCO, a domestic blast furnace-based steelmaker, is also promoting the introduction of one electric furnace each in its Pohang and Gwangyang works, and Hyundai Steel is also planning to build an electric furnace called "Hy-cube" by 2030.

Dongkuk Steel started running an electric furnace for the first time in Korea in 1966 and owns the Eco-Arc, Korea's only eco-friendly electric furnace.

Write to Kyung-Min Kang at kkm1026@hankyung.com