Home > About Us > Corporate Social Responsibility > Sustainability Report > Sustainability Report 2009 > Resource Recycling Measures

Resource Recycling Measures

The Kobe Steel Group is engaged in wide-ranging business development in such areas as materials and industrial machinery and imports iron ore, coal and other raw materials from abroad. In addition, Kobe Steel supplies environment-related equipment that is helping to build a recycling-based society. Amid its business expansion, Kobe Steel is taking steps to minimize the generation of waste at every one of its business facilities. As much as possible, the Group is also working to reuse and recycle the byproducts that it generates and is actively promoting resource recycling measures, such as the use of iron and steel slag in materials for cement.

Curbing Waste Product Generation and Promoting Recycling

In fiscal 2008, the Kobe Steel Group generated 5.24 million tons of waste byproducts, 98.6% of which was by the Iron and Steel Segment. Kobe Steel promotes the recycling of slag and dust generated as a byproduct of ironmaking. Beginning in fiscal 1992, Kobe Steel formulated an action program targeting waste and has been promoting waste reduction and recycling on an ongoing basis. In fiscal 2008, the recycle rate was 91.8% for all Kobe Steel plants and 91.5% for the entire Group.

Due to steps taken to strengthen the quality control of steel slag, a portion of the slag was disposed as landfill and not recycled in fiscal 2008. Because some dust that had been stored for recycling was also disposed as landfill, a total of about 410,000 tons of waste was finally disposed for the entire Group.

In the years ahead, the Kobe Steel Group will steadily carry out each industry association's voluntary action plan, further promote the development of recycling technologies, curb the generation of waste, and reduce the landfill volume.


Waste Byproduct Generation by Main Businesses (including Group companies)

Waste Generation by Main Businesses (including Group companies)


Amount of Waste Byproduct Generated, Amount Recycled & Recycling Rate (Parent only)

Volume of Waste, Recycled Volume & Recycling Rate (Parent only)


Voluntary Action Programs in Industry

Business sector (Industrial association)	Target
Iron and steel (The Japan Iron and Steel Federation)	1. By fiscal 2010, reduce quantity of final disposal of slag, dust, and sludge to 75% of 1990 levels, to about 500,000 metric tons. 2. Bring recycling rate of steel cans up to 85%.
Aluminum (Japan Aluminium Association)	1. By fiscal 2010 cut quantity of final disposal to about 7,000 metric tons. 2. By fiscal 2010 recycle more than 99% of aluminum dross residual ash.
Rolled copper (Japan Copper and Brass Association)	1. By fiscal 2010, reduce quantity for final disposal to 93% of fiscal 1990 levels, or to less than 1,800 metric tons. 2. By fiscal 2010, reduce consumption index of final disposal to lower than 0.084 compared with fiscal 1990 figure.
Industrial machinery (The Japan Society of Industrial Machinery Manufacturers)	1. By fiscal 2010, reduce quantity for final disposal to less than 14,500 metric tons. 2. By fiscal 2010, boost recycling rate to more than 83%.

Efforts Towards Becoming Zero-Emission Plants

All plants and works have drawn up Action Programs to cut the quantity of waste sent to landfill, and are continuing to promote reuse and recycling.

Iron and Steel Sector


	Recycling Byproducts

The Kakogawa Works has been running a zero-emission campaign to eliminate landfill disposal of wastes from the plant since 1997.

The plant is continuing efforts to achieving zero emission status by making effective use of used oil, sludge etc., and by using dust as a raw material for making cement. A facility has been installed for recycling dust with high zinc content, which was previously difficult to handle. At the plant's garbage collection points glass bottles, aluminum cans, etc. are separated for recycling.


Reuse Rate of Byproducts at the Kakogawa Works

Re-Use Rate of By-Products at the Kakogawa Works


	Slag Recycling

Every year, the Kakogawa Works and Kobe Works together generate about 2.2 million metric tons of blast furnace slag and 800,000 metric tons of steel-making slag as secondary products. This slag is reused as a raw material for cement production or as a bedding material in road construction.

Compared with usual cement, blast furnace cement containing finely powdered blast furnace slag can limit alkali-aggregate reaction. It also requires less energy consumption during production and reduces emissions of CO₂, and is therefore popular in the market. Fine aggregate for concrete made of granulated blast furnace slag helps conserve natural resources by substituting for natural sand.

By contrast, steel-making slag can expand in volume owing to its free lime content, and so is used as a road bedding material after expansion has been stabilized through an accelerated ageing process that uses steam. Steam ageing facilities have been expanded at the Kakogawa Works and newly installed at the Kobe Works. These facilities consist of a concrete pit into which the slag is dumped for steam to be driven through it from the pit floor. After steam ageing, steel-making slag shows very little expansion under normal temperatures.

Granulated slag yard

Steam aging facilities


	Dust recycling

The dust generated in steel works is recycled as a source of iron after it has been sintered and pelletized at the works, or it's dispatched as a raw material for cement production, but some has always been difficult to recycle.

To promote more recycling and move further towards the zero emissions target, in October 2008 Kobe Steel and Nippon Steel Corporation together set up a joint investment company to manufacture reduced iron using dust from both companies as a raw material. The joint investment company will build a new reduction plant that uses the FASTMET^® Process developed by Kobe Steel.

This project combines Kobe Steel's technology in rotary hearth furnace facilities and Nippon Steel Corporation's technology for recycling and reusing steel-making dust, creating a further useful outcome from the two companies' association.

The project was accredited by the Ministry of the Environment in March 2009 for reusing industrial waste.

FASTMET^® Plant


	Recycling of Coal Ash

The coal ash generated by coal-burning boilers is almost all used as a secondary resource either for cement-making or as a combination road bed material. At the Kakogawa Works a pellet plant consisting of pelletizing and steam curing facilities has been installed to make use of fly ash. Almost all the ash generated at the Works is processed and the pellets, called ash stone, are used for road-building. In December 2005 this process was registered with the New Technology Information System (NETIS).

Pellet plant

Ash stone

Welding Company

The Welding Company has continued working hard to cut wastes and increase the recycling rate, expanding the reuse of materials with any value. Waste oil and dust are turned into cement material, wood from discarded pallets is turned into fuel chips, and steel scrap is used at the Takasago Works as a raw material to make steel powder.

Aluminum and Copper Company

The Moka Plant has installed two melting furnaces for scrap, improved the yield ratio during melting, and reduced the volume of impurities (aluminum dross) during aluminum melting. Furthermore, the plant operates two arc furnaces to improve the recovery rate of aluminum dross. The remaining ash, as a result of R&D efforts, is effectively recycled as cement material. Most of the residual from aluminum dross is no longer disposed as landfill, resulting in a recycling rate of 92.5% in fiscal 2008.

Also the bricks and debris generated from furnace repairs are precisely sorted by machine to be recycled as road bed material.

At the Chofu Works an arc furnace is in operation for recovering aluminum dross and efforts have been made to recycle copper sludge, a material that was previously found difficult to deal with. As in fiscal 2007, the recycling rate for fiscal 2008 was 99% and over. The Chofu Works has been awarded the Chairman's Prize and Commendation for Resource Recycling Technology and Systems, sponsored by the Clean Japan Center.

At the Daian Plant, casting waste sand is recycled as a cement material.


Recycling Rate at the Moka Plant


Process for recycling copper sludge

	Topics

Clean Japan Center Chairman's Prize for Turning Wastes into New Resources

Kobe Steel's Chofu Works

Kobe Steel's Chofu Works was awarded the Chairman's Prize in the 2008 Resource Recycling Technology and Systems Award sponsored by the Clean Japan Center on behalf of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. This award recognizes outstanding efforts to reduce, reuse and recycle wastes.

The project at the Chofu Works for which the award was made was "Maximizing the use of metal resources in the non-ferrous metals processing plant." Dust and waste with metal content left from the manufacture of extruded aluminum and sheet copper had been discarded as industrial waste. The Chofu Works examined the content of these wastes and ways to process them to make effective use of metal resources contained in dust. This has contributed significantly to resource recycling. Each year 150 metric tons of metallic copper is recovered from waste water sludge, and 300 metric tons of valuable resources were recovered in 2007 from wastes containing aluminum.

Machinery and Engineering Company

All the industrial waste generated at the plants is carefully sorted for reuse, either as recycled resources or as a heat source in cement production. Also, we are promoting the use of steel or plastic returnable containers for shipping some of our products.

At the Harima Plant all industrial waste material is now turned into new resources.

Managing steel slag products

Steel slag, a byproduct of steel production, is used for a wide range of purposes, as a material for cement, as a substitute for natural resources such as marine sand, and as a material for civil engineering and harbor works. By substituting for natural materials and limiting the production of greenhouse gases, it contributes to the protection and conservation of the global environment.

With regard to the manufacture and sale of steel slag products we have drawn up a sales management manual, so that customers can make good use of these products taking advantage of their special qualities. Using this manual for quality control, checking on purchasers and checking on use of the products, we are working to manage the production and sale of steel slag products. The manual closely follows the "Guidelines for Steel Slag Products Management" produced by the Nippon Slag Association. We are striving to ensure that customers can use these products with peace of mind.

Group Companies

Group companies are working to separate wastes, reuse resources and recycle in order to reduce volumes of industrial waste for landfill disposal.


Examples of Measures Taken (Japan)

Group company	Plant location	Details
Shinko Wire Company, Ltd.	Amagasaki, Hyogo; Kakogawa. Hyogo	Less waste hydrochloric acid generated through revision of management method
Kobe Special Tube Co., Ltd.	Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi	Equipment installed to concentrate waste alkali
Shinko Bolt, Ltd.	Ichikawa, Chiba	Oily smoke recovered for reuse within plant. Transportation pallets returned for reuse.
Tesac Wirerope Co., Ltd.	Kaizuka, Osaka	Quantity of waste hydrochloric acid created in pickling processes reduced
Hanshin Yosetsu Kizai Co., Ltd.	Okayama City, Okayama	Welding slag recovered from clients for reuse. Dust pulverized for use as resource.
Kobe Welding Wire Co., Ltd.	Fukuchiyama, Kyoto	Neutralized dust recycled as cement material. Packaging containers for welding wire collected for recycling.
Shinko Metal Products Co., Ltd.	Kita Kyushu, Fukuoka	Purified lubricating oil reused. Debris containing oil and water left to dry out and reduced in volume.
Shinko Leadmikk, Ltd.	Kita Kyushu, Fukuoka	Leadframe cleaning fluid reused.
Shinko JFE Industrial Co., Ltd.	Kurayoshi, Tottori	Old LPG canisters recycled for use as planters
Twin Foods Co., Ltd.	Ichikawa, Chiba	Wrap film separated and sold off for recycling


Examples of Measures Taken (Overseas)

Group company	Plant location	Details
Grand Blanc Processing	USA	Sulfuric acid recovered for recycling and ferric sulphate sold
COMSIGUA	Venezuela	Waste oil reused in recycling equipment