Amid escalating global climate crises and the urgent imperative to meet the Paris Agreement’s carbon neutrality targets, the steel industry—a leading contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions—confronts unprecedented challenges in driving sustainable industrial transformation through innovative low-carbon steelmaking technologies. This paper examines decarbonization technologies across three stages (source, process, and end-of-pipe) for two dominant steel production routes: the long process (BF-BOF) and the short process (EAF). For the BF-BOF route, carbon reduction at the source stage is achieved through high-proportion pellet charging in the blast furnace and high scrap ratio utilization; at the process stage, carbon control is optimized via bottom-blowing O₂-CO₂-CaO composite injection in the converter; and at the end-of-pipe stage, CO₂ recycling and carbon capture are employed to achieve deep decarbonization. In contrast, the EAF route establishes a low-carbon production system by relying on green and efficient electric arc furnaces and hydrogen-based shaft furnaces. At the source stage, energy consumption is reduced through the use of green electricity and advanced equipment; during the process stage, precision smelting is realized through intelligent control systems; and at the end-of-pipe stage, a closed-loop is achieved by combining cascade waste heat recovery and steel slag resource utilization. Across both process routes, hydrogen-based direct reduction and green power-driven EAF technology demonstrate significant emission reduction potential, providing key technical support for the low-carbon transformation of the steel industry. Comparative analysis of industrial applications reveals varying emission reduction efficiencies, economic viability, and implementation challenges across different technical pathways. The study concludes that deep decarbonization of the steel industry requires coordinated policy incentives, technological innovation, and industrial chain collaboration. Accelerating large-scale adoption of low-carbon metallurgical technologies through these synergistic efforts will drive the global steel sector toward sustainable development goals. This study provides a systematic evaluation of current low-carbon steelmaking technologies and outlines practical implementation strategies, contributing to the industry’s decarbonization efforts.

Amid escalating global climate crises and the urgent imperative to meet the Paris Agreement’s carbon neutrality targets, the steel industry—a leading contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions—confronts unprecedented challenges in driving sustainable industrial transformation through innovative low-carbon steelmaking technologies. This paper examines decarbonization technologies across three stages (source, process, and end-of-pipe) for two dominant steel production routes: the long process (BF-BOF) and the short process (EAF). For the BF-BOF route, source-stage decarbonization employs high-proportion pelletized ore charging and elevated scrap ratios. The process stage integrates converter bottom-blowing with O2-CO2-CaO composite injection technology for optimized carbon control. The end-of-pipe treatment combines CO2 recycling with carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) for deep decarbonization. The EAF route establishes a low-carbon production system through green high-efficiency electric arc furnaces and hydrogen-based shaft furnace processes. Source-stage improvements utilize green electricity and advanced equipment for energy efficiency. Process optimization implements intelligent control systems for precise smelting, while end-of-pipe solutions incorporate waste heat recovery and slag resource utilization to form closed-loop operations. Hydrogen direct reduction ironmaking and green electricity-driven EAF technologies demonstrate significant emission reduction potential, providing crucial technological support for industrial decarbonization. Comparative analysis of industrial applications reveals varying emission reduction efficiencies, economic viability, and implementation challenges across different technical pathways. The study concludes that deep decarbonization of the steel industry requires coordinated policy incentives, technological innovation, and industrial chain collaboration. Accelerating large-scale adoption of low-carbon metallurgical technologies through these synergistic efforts will drive the global steel sector toward sustainable development goals. This research systematically evaluates current low-carbon steelmaking technologies and proposes implementation strategies, offering valuable insights for the industry's green transition—a cornerstone for building a sustainable future.

In the context of global warming and China’s “dual carbon” goals, Shanxi, as China’s main coal-producing region (accounting for 28.4% of the country’s coal production), is facing the dual challenges of carbon emission reduction and economic development. Based on the data from 1990 to 2019, this study quantitatively analysed the carbon emission driving mechanisms of seven major energy sources in Shanxi, including coal, coke, and gasoline, through the coupling analysis of the Kaya identity and the LMDI model, and explored the climate change mitigation pathways. The results show that the total carbon emissions of Shanxi’s energy sector increased significantly from 1990 to 2019, with coal being the most important emission source. Through the decomposition of the LMDI model, it is found that the effect of economic activity is the core driving force of carbon emission growth, and the improvement of energy intensity is the key inhibitor. It is worth noting that the demographic effect turned negative after 2010, which had a dampening effect on the growth of carbon emissions. In addition, the adjustment of energy structure shows the characteristics of stages: the structural effect of coal has turned from negative to positive after 2010, while the proportion of clean energy, such as natural gas, has increased, indicating that the optimisation of energy structure has achieved initial results. Based on the above findings, the study proposes three major paths for climate mitigation in Shanxi’s energy industry: (1) promote low-carbon upgrading of the industry and reduce the economy’s dependence on high-carbon energy; (2) Strengthen energy efficiency and continuously reduce energy consumption per unit of GDP through technological innovation; (3) accelerate the transformation of the energy structure and expand the proportion of clean energy such as natural gas and renewable energy. This paper innovatively provides an empirical reference for the model-based, coupling-based carbon emissions-driven analysis and climate mitigation strategy design in resource-based areas.