International project: Carbon Reduction in production routes… (CROSSCUT)

Title: Carbon Reduction in production routes. Operations based on Smart Carbon Usage and digitalization Techniques.

Akronim: CROSSCUT

Start: 01.03.2025 / End: 31.08.2028

Co-financing for Łukasiewicz – GIT:

• European Commission: EUR 218 405.25
• Ministry of Science and Higher Education (co-financed from the state budget): PLN 822 407.00

Total value of the project: EUR 10 004 158.70

Executive Agency: European Commission (EREA)

Executive Agency PL: Ministry of Science and Higher Education

Programme Name: Research Fund for Coal and Steel

Date of signing the agreement: 09.09.2025

Consortium:

• Rina Consulting – Centro Sviluppo Materiali S.p.A [Coordinator]
• Laminés Marchands Européens – LME
• Sidenor Aceros Especiales Slu
• Ferriere Nord S.p.A
• Łukasiewicz Research Network – Upper Silesian Institute of Technology
• Swerim AB
• Acciaierie d’Italia S.p.A
• Vargön Alloys AB

Project Manager:
Krzysztof Radwański, BEng, PhD, DSc
Tel.: 32 2345 234
E-mail: krzysztof.radwanski@git.lukasiewicz.gov.pl

Objective:

Secondary Carbon Carriers (SCCs) – such as biomass, biochar, rubber and polymers – have been recognised as potential alternatives to fossil coal in ironmaking and steelmaking operations (CSP Roadmap, BigTicket Objective 5). These materials can serve as substitutes for fossil fuels, acting as reducing or carburising agents and as energy carriers in steel production. The utilisation of selected SCCs has been successfully demonstrated in separate projects.

However, SCCs may exhibit fluctuations in availability and degradation of properties over time. A single SCC cannot fully substitute the carbon source in steel production; therefore, an effective and flexible use of SCC mixtures is required to achieve industrial-scale decarbonisation of steelmaking.

To address this challenge, CROSSCUT demonstrates a multi-material approach aimed at replacing fossil fuels by up to 100% in various process stages. Several case studies cover different steel and ferrochromium (FeCr) production routes, namely Electric Arc Furnace (EAF), Blast Furnace (BF) and Submerged Arc Furnace (SAF) processes. CROSSCUT showcases traceability solutions, long-term industrial trials, and a digital platform for optimal material management and flexible utilisation of various SCCs.

It has been estimated that within the project, 10–12 kt of CO₂ emissions can be avoided by using 5 kt of SCCs (approximately 2 kt of CO₂ avoided per kt of SCCs used). When scaled up to the entire EU steel production level, and assuming a conservative substitution of 10 Mt of coal with 15 Mt of SCCs, an abatement of around 30 Mt of CO₂ is expected (RFCS Scope 1). Regarding FeCr, which is one of the main iron alloys used in steel production, an additional reduction in CO₂ emissions is foreseen (RFCS Scope 3).

At the EU-wide level, the utilisation of SCCs will also prevent the landfilling of approximately 15 Mt of waste through the valorisation of secondary raw materials, while simultaneously creating a market worth EUR 2–10 billion for secondary materials. These results will be assessed through Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and Life Cycle Costing (LCC) analyses.

Thanks to the CROSSCUT project’s systematic spillover, communication and dissemination strategy, the entire steel sector is expected to benefit from the results and move closer to achieving full decarbonisation.