Helix Carbon says it can make iron cheaper by recycling blast furnace pollution

Key points

• Helix Carbon says its electrolyzer recycles blast furnace CO2 into carbon monoxide for reuse.
• The company claims replacing 33% of coke saves $14 per ton of iron.
• Helix Carbon pitched at TechCrunch Disrupt's Startup Battlefield in San Francisco.

Helix Carbon, a startup focused on cutting emissions from iron and steel production, says it has developed a way to recycle pollution from blast furnaces rather than replace the furnaces themselves. The company presented its technology onstage Tuesday at the Startup Battlefield pitch competition at TechCrunch Disrupt in San Francisco, held October 13-15.

Blast furnaces turn iron ore into iron using coke, a processed form of coal. The burning coke supplies heat, while carbon monoxide produced from combustion strips oxygen from the ore. The process releases large amounts of carbon dioxide, which is normally released into the atmosphere.

Recycling exhaust instead of replacing furnaces

Helix Carbon's process uses an electrolyzer, a device that uses electricity and a catalyst to remove an oxygen atom from carbon dioxide, turning it into carbon monoxide that is fed back into the blast furnace. Co-founder and CEO David Brown said the startup's design can handle the entire exhaust stream, unlike most electrolyzers, which work only on purified, concentrated carbon dioxide.

Injecting carbon monoxide lets iron producers use less coke. Brown said the exact amount is still debated, with some papers suggesting as much as 90% could be eliminated and others suggesting 30% to 40%. Helix Carbon proposes starting by replacing 33% of coke, which it says would save $14 per ton of iron.

Any attempt to decarbonize the steel industry without dealing with the blast furnace is not going to work

— David Brown

Market and early revenue plans

Grand View Research values the combined iron and steel industries at $2 trillion, according to the article. Brown noted the sector moves slowly because its equipment lasts so long, saying there are blast furnaces that have lived for over 100 years.

To bring in revenue earlier, Helix Carbon plans to target the specialty chemicals industry first. Brown said the company does not need to capture the carbon dioxide first, adding that it just utilizes it, which opens the door to making chemicals on-site from waste streams.