Life Cycle Assessment of a Steel I-Beam

Recycling Steel

Steel is 100% recyclable and reusable, making it high in intrinsic value, and is easily separated from a mess of scrap due to its magnetic properties.

Outline:

The Goal Of This LCA Is:

Introduction:

Steel can be over 150 years old and can still be recycled into new products and applications today.

This helps save on energy and raw materials, reducing carbon dioxide emissions and waste generation during raw material extraction.

• Assess the different stages of the production of steel made for structural purposes

End of life of Steel

• Introduction

• Goal

• Flow diagram

• Environmental and Human Impacts

• Conceptual Interpretation

Steel is the most recycled industrial material in the world

Top Ten Steel-Producing Countries:

China, Japan, the United States, India, Russia, South Korea, Germany, Ukraine, Brazil and lastly, Turkey.

Steel Uses:

Structural purposes (buildings), cars, appliances, railways, roads, airports, pipes, common material items, etc

We are assessing the environmental impact of structural steel I-Beams.

Two main forms of structural steel production include: electric arc furnaces and basic oxygen furnaces.

• Show how the production of steel has environmental and human impacts
• Analyze different issues associated with the life cycle of steel

Raw Materials used in Electric Arc Furnace

• Ferrous scrap metal- allows steel to be made with 100% recycled ferrous material

• Milled quicklime- pulverized limestone used to achieve metallurgical qualities.

• Refractory- metals highly resistant to heat and wear, used to achieve proper qualities of steel.

• Electricity- to power the furnace

• Natural gas- to apply extreme amounts of heat for melting

Raw Materials for Basic Oxygen Furnace

• Iron scrap- used from recyclable materials

• Dolomite- calcium magnesium carbonate

• Tap water- used for cooling during an oxygen blowing process

• Coke oven gas- coal based fuel

• Natural gas- to provide high levels of heat for melting

• Electricity- to power the furnace

Structural Steel I-Beam

Continuous Casting and Rolling

Continuous Casting and Rolling Type 2

Steel Construction

TRANSPORTATION

Liquid molten metal is chemically pretreated and then poured into a ladle to be rolled into a sheet or a plate.

• Minimal waste on the construction site
• Dust-free Assembly

Modes of Transporting Steel

After production of the steel I-beams, they are transported to the construction site.

Following the raw material processes:

1. The liquid metal is then poured into a beam blank that is similar to the shape of a structural beam.

2. The beam blanks are cooled, reheated and then passed through a series of rollers forming the beam into its precise shape, which are then straightened

3. Cut into standard shipping lengths.

4. Cooled and prepared for shipment.

After the beams are assembled and the building is constructed, the use of the beams becomes solely the structure of the building which could be over 50 years until its demolition.

The environmental impact of these means of transportation is quite large. The carbon dioxide and greenhouse gas emissions from the exhaust of burning the fuel is a large factor in air pollution and global warming.

By: Deanna Cavallaro and Saadet Nur Yilmaz

Steel Usage

Conceptual Issues

Environmental and Human Concerns

Conceptual Issues

It is estimated that global steel use will need to increase by 1.5 times that of present levels in order to meet the demands of rising global population.

This demand is beneficial in many ways because steel in used in renewable energy applications, energy efficient buildings, infrastructure for clean energy vehicles, and recycle facilities.

Numerous air and gas by-products that are emitted from steel production including a variety of greenhouse gases, acidification gases, and organic emissions.

These waste products are not good for a human’s health that works in a steel production factory

The amount of waste water that comes out of both steel production processes leads to the water sources around the United States and the rest of the world to be depleted since there is pollution in this waste water.

Also, throughout all the processes of steel production, the manufacturing itself can be dangerous to humans because of the heated components of steel making that can cause physical harm to a person by burning, or the heaviness of a manufactured steel beam.

Cap and Trade: this market based solution can help limit the amount of pollution emissions that each steel factory lets out, if there is a strict limit and , monitored trading.

Therefore, steel has an essential role to play in transitioning to greener economies in both developed and developing countries to support sustainability. Also, due to its high recyclable capabilities, it is an efficient material to invest in for the sustainable future.