Sulzer to provide the distillation equipment for the waste gas to ethanol plant of ArcelorMittal in Belgium

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Type of post: NEWS.

Last June, ArcelorMittal began the construction of a new installation to convert carbon-containing gas from its blast furnaces into bioethanol at its site in Ghent (Belgium). It is the first plant of its kind on an industrial scale in Europe (the world first is already running in China: “LanzaTech and Shougang Group announce the start-up of the world’s first commercial waste gas to ethanol plant”, 9/6/2018) and once completed, the annual production of bioethanol would reach around 80 Ml. Commissioning and start-up are expected by mid-2020.

The technology in the gas conversion process has been developed by LanzaTech, with whom ArcelorMittal has entered a long-term partnership. The scale-up of such technology in the new facility has obtained funding from various sources, including the European Union's Horizon 2020 program through the project Steelanol. This CCU concept has the potential to revolutionise blast furnace carbon emissions capture and support the decarbonisation of the transport sector. If fully deployed, it could entail the production of 2.5 Mtons of bioethanol in Europe with emission reductions of 65% compared to fossil fuels and at a competitive cost.

Figure 1. Sulzer to provide the distillation equipment for the waste gas to ethanol plant of ArcelorMittal in Belgium (taken from the press release)

The construction is currently ongoing. The first foundation pile of the plant (first of 1,800) has been driven into the ground few days ago. And, the industrial supplies are being purchased. In this sense, Sulzer has just announced that it has appointed by ArcelorMittal to provide advanced distillation equipment. Sulzer proposed and designed a first-of-its-kind solution that simplifies the process and the equipment necessary, whilst creating closed loops that can re-use key resources and dramatically reduce energy usage.
Press release: “Sulzer helps turn carbon emissions into biofuels at the ArcelorMittal Gent plant”, 8/1/2019.

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