Por: MARCOS ANTÔNIO RODRIGUES (TERNIUM BRASIL LTDA.), Marcus Vinicius da Fonseca Buarque (TERNIUM BRASIL LTDA.), Andre Luiz Pereira Frias (TERNIUM BRASIL LTDA.), Fabio Ricardo Zuege (TERNIUM BRASIL LTDA.), Pedro Henrique Muller Braga (TERNIUM BRASIL LTDA.), Ingrid Person Rocha e Pinho (TERNIUM BRASIL LTDA.)
Resumo:
The objective of this work is to present how Ternium Brasil started to introduce a biofuel, Biomethane, in partial replacement of fossil natural gas in its stationary combustion sources, that is, its use in the pig iron production processes in blast furnaces, and in the steel refining processes at the Melt Shop.
Biogas is generated at the Seropédica sanitary landfill, the largest in Latin America.
This landfill gas, rich in methane (CH4), comes from the decomposition of organic matter, which occurs under anaerobic conditions. The landfill receives 10 thousand tons of urban solid waste daily from the municipalities of Rio de Janeiro, Seropédica,
Itaguaí, a population of about 10 million people, Ternium Brasil buys Biomethane for its operations, a purified form of biogas
(>96%CH4), in which CO2, H2S and other contaminants have already been removed. This powerful biofuel has characteristics almost identical to fossil natural gas, after several analyzes and tests it was gradually introduced, without the need for any adaptation of equipment and processes for its application.
The expected replacement rate of fossil natural gas was 34% referring to 2017 consumption levels, that is, the same rate for mitigating greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions due to the use of this biofuel in stationary combustion using low pressure natural gas. This GHG reduction expectation represents 0.5% of Ternium Brasil's annual total, and its achievement depends on the operational reality of the biofuel supply.
Even with the obstacles that are imposed in the introduction of renewable energy in the energy matrix of an integrated steel mill, Ternium seeks to overcome them daily and continues towards the deep decarbonization of its processes, with robust steps
that adhere to the purpose of generating value, bringing social development while innovating with biofuel in its operations
