Global miner Rio Tinto announced on September 28 that it has commissioned an industrial-scale carbon capture trial facility with Chinese steelmaker Shougang Group, advancing their cooperation on reducing steelmaking emissions.
Annual carbon capture capacity reaches 10,000 mt
Integrated into Shougang's ironmaking operations, the facility can process up to 3,000 cubic meters of blast furnace gas per hour from its Jingtang base and capture up to 10,000 mt of carbon annually, operating on a long-term basis for research and trials.
Waste heat could lower capture costs
The project follows a smaller facility commissioned in 2024 under the companies' 2022 decarbonization agreement, which covers low-carbon sintering, furnace optimization and carbon capture technologies. Utilizing waste heat from existing operations could reduce capture costs and support wider adoption across steel mills.
Captured carbon reuse under evaluation
The partners are also exploring the conversion of captured carbon into syngas for recycling into steelmaking, potentially reducing fresh carbon requirements, while Rio Tinto has provided technical support for the development and scaling of Shougang's technology.
