If you want to build a new skyscraper, a new railway or a new anything really,
chances are you’re gonna need some of this — steel.
Even though construction has evolved a fair bit over the past century,
it’s still hooked on a material that first rose to prominence during the Industrial Revolution.
There’s a reason for that. This stuff has properties that more modern materials have
struggled to match up to and so we’ve been kinda stuck with it,
despite the damage it does to our planet.
But what if there was an alternative — one that allows us to keep producing the
high-quality steel we all know and love but without the harmful by-products?
While it may sound futuristic, it's not something we're gonna have to wait hundreds
of years for because it’s already arrived and the possibilities it offers are huge.
This is where one of the world’s most important building materials begins its journey.
That’s right, it’s the place you go to make steel … or if you’re
running from a cyborg that’s trying to kill you.
But mostly it’s for making steel.
So, what makes this stuff so great? Well, not only is it super strong; it’s also extremely versatile.
You can make a whole structure out of it. It reinforces concrete. You’ll find
it all over a building, down to the fixtures and fittings.
Stadiums, skyscrapers, airports … you won’t find many of these that haven’t
used at least some steel in their construction.
There are also many types of it in use across our built environment. We won’t list them all here,
but the most common one is known as carbon steel.
It’s made from iron and carbon in the form of coke, which is a type of coal.
If you were paying attention in chemistry class, you’ll know that if you mix those together and
add lots of heat you can separate the valuable metal from the rest of the raw material — the ore.
But that process generates a lot of carbon dioxide,
or CO2, and as we’re all aware by now, that’s not a good thing.
The steel industry accounts for around 7% of all global carbon emissions,
so we really need to find a way of bringing that down.
Fortunately, a bunch of very smart people over in
Sweden may have just cracked it with the world’s first fossil-free steel.
That means fossil fuels have been virtually eliminated all
the way from the extraction of the ore to the finished product.
This clever consortium has come up with a new version of steel that
can be made using electricity generated by renewables and the only emission is water.
They do it by using hydrogen instead of carbon in the reduction stage of the process.
Again, as you’ll no doubt remember from your school days, that’s where you remove
the oxygen from iron oxide — aka iron ore — leaving you with, well, iron.
Steel isn’t just found in construction, of course. It’s in the cars we drive,
the appliances we use every day … and in our kitchens.
Now, you might not believe this but I don't actually spend all my time making videos.
Occasionally I have to stop and eat, maybe even do some actual cooking,
and that means using something else made of steel. That’s right, a knife.
But this is no ordinary knife because it comes from today’s
video sponsor. Let’s CUT to the chase.
These are Kamikoto knives. They’re made of high-quality Japanese steel
using traditional techniques and their single bevel edge makes short
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Each one is individually inspected, comes with a lifetime guarantee and
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Now let’s cut back to the video.
So, who is responsible for this new wonder fossil-free steel material?
Back in 2016, a Swedish steel company, Europe’s largest iron ore producer and an energy producer
all came together to create HYBRIT, or Hydrogen Breakthrough Ironmaking Technology.
This is where the team is developing fossil-free steel – at a pilot plant in the city of Lulea.
It’s been up and running since 2020, and it seems the work is starting to pay off.
In October 2022, the team found that using hydrogen instead of carbon does
more than just make it better for the environment.
The new product was also easier to handle, transport and store than regular ore.
And the first applications are already starting to emerge.
Volvo has become the first to make a prototype using the material — a
load carrying vehicle for mining and quarrying.
It plans to mass produce them in the future and is looking
at how it might use fossil-free steel in the automotive sector.
With transport now responsible for around a quarter of all CO2 emissions,
adopting a greener way of manufacturing road vehicles would have a big impact.
HYBRIT’s aim is to ramp up production and fully
commercialise its fossil-free steel as soon as 2026.
If and when that happens it could open up a whole new realm of possibilities
for zero-carbon products, from tiny components to entire wind turbines and massive energy systems.
And yes, the wider construction industry is set to benefit too.
In 2021 Peab became the first construction company
to secure access to fossil-free steel, and plans to use it on future projects.
The Swedish firm specialises in building everything from homes and schools to highways
and bridges across the Nordic countries so it’s a very good place to start.
The signs certainly look promising. It seems that this carbon-intensive industry
is finally cleaning itself up, but the founding members of this new venture can’t do it alone.
To get carbon emissions as close to zero as possible, the entire steel trade is going to
have to do something similar. It’s not just a Scandinavian problem; it’s a global one.
Fortunately, the message is getting through. Other steel producers are
considering their own carbon-cutting strategies.
In just a few years, we could see the transformation of an industry
that we continue to rely on for so much, despite its outdated methods.
And with the effects of climate change becoming ever-more apparent, there's no time to waste.
We need to strike while the iron is hot.
This video was made possible by Kamikoto — you can learn more
about that and get a slice of the action at the link below.
And as always if you enjoyed this video and you want to learn more
about where construction is headed, make sure you’re subscribed to Tomorrow’s Build.