POSCO Steel Byproduct Gas to Be Used as Low-Carbon Plastic Raw Material

On the 6th, the 'Low-Carbon Chemical Process Convergence Research Group' Plaque Ceremony Held at Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology in Daejeon

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Dong-hoon] POSCO will jointly participate in the development of technology that utilizes by-product gas (BFG) generated from the steelmaking process as raw material for plastics, based on CCU (Carbon Capture and Utilization) technology.

On the 6th, industry-academia-research collaboration including POSCO, Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology (KRICT), and RIST (Research Institute of Industrial Science & Technology, Pohang) held a plaque ceremony for the 'Low-Carbon Chemical Process Convergence Research Group' at KRICT in Daejeon, attended by Jeong Seok-mo, Head of POSCO Industrial Gas Business Promotion Team, Kim Bok-cheol, Chairman of the National Research Council of Science & Technology, and Lee Mi-hye, President of KRICT.

The research group was jointly established by a total of 10 industry-academia-research institutions including domestic companies such as POSCO, LG Chem, Lotte Chemical, research institutes such as KRICT, Korea Institute of Energy Research, RIST, and universities including POSTECH and Chungnam National University. They plan to invest a total of 25.2 billion KRW in future research.

Jeong Seok-mo, Head of POSCO Industrial Gas Business Promotion Team, who attended the plaque ceremony, said, "Currently, POSCO uses by-product gas generated from steelworks as a heat source for steelmaking processes and power plants, and some of it is utilized for hydrogen production, exploring various paths for carbon neutrality. Through this research, it is even more meaningful as it can contribute to carbon reduction in the petrochemical industry by using steel resources."

Lee Mi-hye, President of KRICT, also expressed expectations for the convergence research group, saying, "This project is a cooperation model that gathers innovative core technologies from domestic research institutes and connects them to commercialization through demonstration with companies. We will actively support the success of the project so that Korea’s independent technology can lead carbon neutrality in the global petrochemical and steel industries."

The research aims to develop technology for manufacturing 'low-carbon olefins,' plastic raw materials that reduce CO2 emissions by about 15% compared to existing technologies. To this end, carbon monoxide extracted from by-product gas generated in POSCO’s blast furnace will be used to synthesize methanol, which will then be co-cracked with naphtha to produce olefins, the basic raw material for plastics. The integrated process development is planned to be carried out over three years until 2025.

Specifically, POSCO and RIST will develop technology to selectively extract carbon monoxide from blast furnace by-product gas at steelworks, while the Korea Institute of Energy Research will produce hydrogen-rich synthesis gas by reforming compressed natural gas (CNG) derived from LNG. KRICT will produce methanol using carbon monoxide and synthesis gas, and co-crack it with naphtha to manufacture olefins, ultimately establishing an integrated manufacturing process to utilize them as raw materials for plastics.

This will reduce the use of naphtha compared to the existing technology that produces olefins using 100% naphtha, thereby reducing CO2 emissions from the naphtha production process. Additionally, by capturing and utilizing carbon contained in POSCO’s by-product gas, CO2 emissions from steelworks are also expected to decrease.

The demonstration research will be conducted from 2023 at POSCO’s Gwangyang Steelworks, and technology development will be promoted on the premise of commercialization through cooperation with demand companies in the Gwangyang-Yeosu industrial complex, aiming to establish it as a successful model for domestic CCU projects.

Meanwhile, based on this technology development, POSCO plans to secure eco-friendly technological capabilities suitable for achieving carbon neutrality by 2050 and ESG management, and to target the basic materials market utilizing by-product gas.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.