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Material Balance

Improving energy efficiency and recycling byproducts at every stage of the production process

 

The Kobe Steel Group is extending its environmental management to take account of the environment in all of its diverse business activities.
Improving energy efficiency and turning byproducts into recycled resources are ongoing activities that form part of this.


Utilization of Energy and Raw Materials at Kobe Steel

Iron & Steel Sector

The Iron and Steel Sector accounts for about 95% of all energy used by Kobe Steel, and consumed 183 PJ in fiscal 2009. To maximize efficiency, we take the byproduct gases generated by different stages of the manufacturing process, such as coke oven gas, blast furnace gas, and converter gas, and effectively reuse almost all of them as fuel for the reheating furnaces at the rolling mills and the in-house power generation plants. We also actively reuse recovered waste heat to generate electricity. As a result of these efforts, approximately 50% of the electricity used in the manufacturing process is generated by byproduct gases and waste-heat recovery.

We also recycle 97% of the other byproducts of the manufacturing process, such as slag, dust and sludge, as raw material for cement, paving material, and other applications.

We remain committed to improving the efficiency of our energy and raw material use and we will continue developing technologies that enable us to manufacture our products while reducing the environmental impact.

Use of Energy and Raw Materials by the Iron & Steel Sector in Fiscal 2009
Use of Energy and Raw Materials by the Iron & Steel Sector in Fiscal 2009

Welding Company

The Welding Company produces welding wires and welding electrodes using steel wire rods and hoops, flux and liquid glass as raw materials. In fiscal 2009, at our three plants in Fujisawa, Ibaraki, and Saijo we used a total of 110,000 metric tons of raw materials, 30,000 MWh of electricity, and 0.06 PJ of city gas for energy, and manufactured 110,000 metric tons of products. As a consequence, 3,000 metric tons of byproduct were generated, of which 79% was recycled

Energy and Raw Material Use by the Welding Company in Fiscal 2009
INPUT
Raw materials
Wire rod, hoop, flux, liquid glass, etc. 110,000 metric tons
Energy
Procured electricity 30,000 MWh
City gas, etc. 0.06 PJ
 
OUTPUT
Products
Welding electrodes, welding wires, etc 110,000 metric tons
Waste
Quantity generated 3,000 metric tons
Recycling rate 79%

Aluminum and Copper Company

The Aluminum and Copper Company uses aluminum and copper ingots, scrap metal and other materials for the production of a wide range of aluminum and copper products. In fiscal 2009, we used 370,000 metric tons of raw materials, 440,000 MWh of electricity, and 4 PJ of city gas as energy to produce 340,000 metric tons of products.

With more efficient energy use, the heat in the emission gases produced in the manufacturing processes was recovered and employed for the preheating steam and combustion air used in the plant. Of the byproducts from production processes, 95% was reused. The metal content was recovered for recycling as raw materials for both in-company and outside use, and the remainder was used as cement or roadbed material

Energy and Raw Material Use by the Aluminum and Copper Company in Fiscal 2009
INPUT
Raw materials
Aluminum ingots, copper ingots, etc. 370,000 metric tons
Energy
Procured electricity 440,000 MWh
City gas, etc. 4 PJ
 
OUTPUT
Products
Aluminum and copper products 340,000 metric tons
Waste
Quantity generated 20,000 metric tons
Recycling rate 95%