Ultralow-carbon ironmaking based on green power

In the global era of “carbon neutrality,” gradually moving away from fossil fuels and achieving low-carbon development are imperative. The utilization of renewable energy electricity is a future industrial trend due to its sustainability, low carbon, and environmental benefits. However, renewable electricity exhibits volatility and randomness, and the rapid development of the industry has brought about challenges in grid security and power absorption. It cannot adapt to the continuous production of traditional industries and has low energy utilization efficiency. In this work, the current development status of renewable energy electricity is presented, and a solution for green fluctuating power is proposed. Taking the low-carbon transformation of the steel industry as an example, the application prospects of renewable energy for electrochemical ultralow-carbon ironmaking are discussed. Moreover, a new scheme for utilizing renewable energy is proposed: integrating the utilization of renewable energy with bulk industrial processes, developing novel industrial processes suitable for fluctuating energy sources, and achieving real-time absorption of fluctuating renewable energy. This approach can mitigate the imbalances in renewable energy generation, grid, and load demands; enhance the utilization efficiency of renewable energy; act as a “peak-shaving” mechanism; stabilize the grid system; and store excess electricity in the form of metallic iron. •Summarized the development status of renewable energy power in recent years.•Summarized the characteristics, development process, and application status of energy storage.•Analyzed the ultralow-carbon ironmaking technology.•Proposed a solution for the consumption of variable renewable energy.