Application Status and Prospect of Biomass Straw in Metallurgical Industry

Abstract

The application of biomass straw as a renewable resource in the metallurgical industry is a key pathway to promote the green and low-carbon transformation of the steel industry. This paper systematically reviews the physicochemical properties of biomass straw and its current applications in the metallurgical field, with a focus on analyzing the core mechanisms, practical effects, and bottleneck issues of four major technological directions: injection of reducing agents, combustion heat supply substitution, gasification for synthetic gas, and pyrolysis biochar. Industrial practices have shown that injecting biomass straw can reduce fossil fuel consumption by 23 kg per ton of steel and decrease the iron oxide content in slag by 1.8 percentage points; pyrolysis biochar can replace fossil reducing agents in electric arc furnace steelmaking; and combustion heating technology has been successfully implemented in small and medium-sized metallurgical enterprises. However, challenges remain for large-scale promotion, including alkali metal corrosion, equipment adaptability, raw material supply costs, and process stability. In the future, efficient and intensive utilization of biomass straw resources for achieving carbon neutrality in the metallurgical industry should be facilitated by optimizing pyrolysis processes, developing intelligent control systems, constructing regional supply chains, and aligning policy support with carbon market mechanisms.