About this Abstract |
| Meeting |
2027 TMS Annual Meeting & Exhibition
|
| Symposium
|
Circular Metallurgy: Design, Technology, Application
|
| Presentation Title |
Electrolyte Design for Sustainable Ironmaking: Electrowinning of High-Purity Iron from Low-Grade Oxide Ores |
| Author(s) |
Tao Gao, Jing Liu, Induja Selvaraju |
| On-Site Speaker (Planned) |
Tao Gao |
| Abstract Scope |
Iron- and steel-making produce ~7% of global CO₂ emissions, relying on carbon reductants and high-grade ore. Electrolytic ironmaking is carbon-free, but acidic aqueous routes are limited by the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), which caps Faradaic efficiency and demands pure feedstock. We show that engineering the electrolyte removes this roadblock: concentrated, anion-rich electrolytes restructure the cation solvation shell, suppress HER, and raise Fe deposition efficiency to 99%. We develop a generalized thermodynamic model—extending beyond the Nernst equation to include metal–chloride complexation—that predicts electrodeposition potentials across transition metals and guides electrolyte design a priori. Applying these principles, AWARE (Acidic electro-Winning in Anion-Rich Electrolytes) produces >99 wt% pure iron from low-grade oxide ore (as low as 63 wt% Fe) below 100 °C, with >99% Faradaic efficiency, current densities up to 1000 mA cm⁻˛, high impurity tolerance, coupled in-situ leaching, zero reagents, and zero CO₂—a sustainable, electrified pathway for green metallurgy. |
| Proceedings Inclusion? |
Undecided |
| Keywords |
Electrometallurgy, Iron and Steel, Sustainability |