20 Feb , 2024 By : Debdeep Gupta
JSW Steel mulling LPG gas usage in Gujarat plant amid emission goals, LPG is considered a better alternative to coal because it has a higher calorific value and does not produce smoke while being burnt.
After Tata Steel, JSW Steel has emerged as the new player to evaluate using liquified petroleum gas (LPG) to reduce its carbon emissions, pivoting away from coal, which has a higher emission intensity. The steelmaker has approached LPG major Confidence Petroleum for study plans for LPG infusion in its Anjar steel plant in Gujarat, said Rajashree Telharkar, business head for LPG, Confidence group.
JSW Steel has declined to comment.
"The LPG tankers will be brought to the plant and stored in bullets already there in the plant's existing infrastructure. We will construct the pipeline through which the LPG will reach the burner," Telharkar said, adding that the LPG infusion may be done in phases.
She further added that more companies have approached the group, taking into account the cost-effectiveness of LPG adoption.
In 2023, Tata Steel said that the company is in talks with state-owned GAIL Ltd to tie up liquified natural gas (LNG) supplies to replace a significant portion of diesel that the company uses at its mines as a part of its strategy to reduce overall carbon emission. The steelmaker is looking to replace 25-30 percent of diesel used by its Heavy Earth Moving Machinery (HEMM) at its mines.
Typically, LNG produces 20-30 percent less carbon dioxide (CO2) than diesel.
Role of LPG in steel making
So far, the gas has been used for melting and refining processes in the production of iron and steel as it facilitates precise temperature control and enables the efficient melting of raw materials. JSW Steel is looking to use LPG for smelting purposes, according to Confidence Petroleum. Smelting is the process of applying heat and a chemical-reducing agent to an ore to extract a desired base metal product.
As of now, the steel industry uses coal indirectly as coal coke to smelt iron ore into iron to make steel.
LPG is considered a better alternative to coal because it has a higher calorific value, while burning it does not product any smoke.
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