Sinks of steel in China–addition to in-use stock, export and loss

doi:10.1007/s11783-014-0696-3

Front. Environ. Sci. Eng.

2016, Vol. 10

Issue (1) : 141-149 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11783-014-0696-3

RESEARCH ARTICLE

Sinks of steel in China–addition to in-use stock, export and loss

Hua GUO^1,²(

), Tianzhu ZHANG¹

¹. School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
². Beijing Metallurgical Equipment Research Design Institute Co. Ltd., Beijing 100029, China

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Abstract

China has become the largest producer of crude steel in the world since 1996, which places the country under huge pressure in terms of resources, energy, and the environment. Examining the driver of steel demand is of great significance to the structural adjustment and sustainable development of the steel industry. The researchers calculate the steel demand in China from 2000 to 2009 based on three sinks (steel stock, export, and loss) by taking the four stages of steel life cycle (production, fabrication and manufacturing, use, and waste management and recycling) as the study object. The researchers conclude that addition to in-use stock is the main driver of steel demand and that the 10-year average addition to in-use stock accounted for 77% of the steel sinks, in which 55% of the addition occurs in the building sector, and the steel for this segment is of low strength with large consumption. Based on the analysis of existing policies, the researchers propose that the steel demand structure will develop toward diversification and that the building sector will realize the upgrade of products as soon as possible to improve construction quality. Under the pressure of rising cost for imported resources, the export ratio of steel products should be controlled appropriately. Thus, recycling economy should be developed to reduce steel losses.

Keywords steel demand driver Material Flow Analysis (MFA) Substance Flow Analysis (SFA) addition to in-use stock steel policy

Corresponding Author(s): Hua GUO

Online First Date: 23 April 2014 Issue Date: 03 December 2015

Cite this article:

Hua GUO,Tianzhu ZHANG. Sinks of steel in China–addition to in-use stock, export and loss[J]. Front. Environ. Sci. Eng., 2016, 10(1): 141-149.

URL:

https://academic.hep.com.cn/fese/EN/10.1007/s11783-014-0696-3
https://academic.hep.com.cn/fese/EN/Y2016/V10/I1/141

Fig.1 Block diagram of the steel material flow analysis

Fig.2 Structure and percentage of steel sinks in China from 2000 to 2009

Fig.3 Structure and percentage of addition to in-use stock of steel in China from 2000 to 2009

Tab.1 Aggregate quantity and structure of exported steel

Fig.4 Analysis of steel export structure

steel sinks	policy details	appraisal
steel for building purpose	deepen the reform of urban housing system and speed up the construction of residential buildings (1)	make the housing sector a new driver of economic growth in China
	the ratio of steel for building purpose in domestic consumption shall be stabilized to about 50% (5)	set roughly the ratio of steel for building purpose in the total domestic steel demand
	the usage ratio of 400?MPa and higher hot-rolled ribbed bars shall be above 60% (5)	clarify the ratio of high-quality bars and wires
	encourage the development of building steel structure, but specific standards and specifications for the design, technologies, construction, and installation of building steel structures are lacking at present (2–3)	encourage steel structure for building purpose, and emphasize problems existing for steel structure
	reduce steel consumption by promoting Level III (400?MPa) and higher hot-rolled ribbed bars, high-strength steel plates for various purposes, and H-steel (4)	encourage the extensive application of high-quality steel for building purpose to reduce the total consumption
	the building sector shall revise and consummate the specification and standard for the use and design of building steel at a suitable time and reduce the use coefficient of steel, provided that safety is ensured (4)	develop specifications and design standard to save the consumption of steel for building purpose
	revise the relevant design specification, eliminate Level II 335?MPa and lower hot-rolled ribbed bars, promote the extensive application of 400?MPa and higher reinforced bars, and facilitate the upgrade of steel for building purpose (5)	clarify the task of improving the quality of steel for building purpose
	consummate the standard system for construction in the building sector, develop rules regarding the usage ratio of steel for buildings such as industrial workshops, public buildings, and commercial facilities while boosting the antiseismic standard (5)	provide policy support to determine the ratio of steel structure for building purpose and adjust the structure of steel type
export	set limit on coke, ferrous alloy, pig iron, scrap steel, steel billet, and other primary products with high energy consumption and serious pollution (4)	reduce the export of low-level primary products
	implement measures to increase export rebate rate of some steel products (5)	adopt customs policy to improve the export structure
	rescind export rebates for some commodities, including unpacked products except for acid-washed, cold, and hot-processed ones (6)	discourage the export of non-high-level steel
loss	comprehensively utilize or recycle waste, sewage, or residual heat generated during the production process (7)	legal guarantee for the comprehensive use and recycling of waste
	comprehensive utilization ratio of industrial solid waste shall be increased to above 60%; the recycling ratio of major renewable resources shall be increased to above 65%; and the stored and disposed volume of industrial solid waste shall be controlled to approximately 450?million tons (8)	the state passes laws to guarantee the recycling of renewable resources, reutilization of solid waste as resource, and disposal of non-recyclable solid waste
	enterprises enjoy tax preference when using or developing technologies, processes, equipment, or products listed in the catalog of encouraged activities regarding clean production and comprehensive use of resources (9)	adopt the recycling economy law to guarantee the comprehensive use of resources
	support the development of recycling economy through various debt financing products and means, give importance to the fundraising role of equity investment fund and venture capital providers, and support the listing and fundraising of resource recycling enterprises (10)	provide financing support to the development of recycling economy

Tab.2 Existing policies and appraisal

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