A joint Australia–India research collaboration has successfully demonstrated a world-first approach to reducing emissions from steelmaking by partially replacing coal with agricultural waste, marking a potential breakthrough for greener industrial production.
Researchers from Australia’s national science agency CSIRO and the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) conducted the large-scale trial at a commercial steel facility in Odisha, India. The project validated the use of rice husk pellets to generate biomass-derived synthesis gas (syngas) for iron ore reduction — a key step in steel production.
The trial, undertaken in partnership with commercial steel innovator RESCONS Solutions and Jindal Steel, confirmed that blending 5 per cent and 10 per cent rice husk pellets into existing gasifiers could sustain syngas production without affecting operational performance.
Steelmaking accounts for roughly one-tenth of global carbon emissions, making decarbonisation of the sector a major global challenge. India’s steel industry, the fastest growing in the world, currently produces around 2.55 tonnes of CO₂ per tonne of steel — significantly higher than the global average.
India is expected to double its steelmaking capacity to 300 million tonnes by 2030 and expand to 500 million tonnes by 2047, increasing the urgency to develop lower-emission production methods.
CSIRO Senior Experimental Scientist Warren Flentje said the trial demonstrated how agricultural waste could play a role in decarbonising heavy industry.
“This trial is a world-first demonstration of how agricultural waste can be harnessed to decarbonise steelmaking at scale,” Flentje said.
“By blending rice husk pellets into commercial gasifiers, we’ve shown that biomass can replace coal without compromising performance. This is a major step forward for sustainable steel production in India and globally.”
The research is supported through the Australia–India Green Steel Research Partnership and leverages India’s abundant agricultural residues, which often go unused or are burned in fields, contributing to air pollution.
If adopted widely across India’s steel industry, the biomass substitution approach could reduce emissions by as much as 50 per cent, equating to approximately 357 million tonnes of CO₂ annually.
Keith Vining, Research Group Leader for Green Metals Production at CSIRO, said the collaboration demonstrates how regional resources could support cleaner industrial processes.
“India’s steel sector is both a major employer and a significant source of emissions,” Vining said.
“Our partnership with the Indian Institute of Science and JSPL has demonstrated that biomass can be a viable alternative to coal, especially in regional areas where surplus agri-waste and coal-based direct reduced iron facilities co-exist.”
Professor Govind S. Gupta, Managing Director of RESCONS Solutions, said the project highlights the role of collaborative innovation in developing sustainable industrial solutions.
Damodar Mittal, Executive Director at Jindal Steel, added that integrating biomass and other green energy sources into production processes is helping accelerate the company’s transition toward lower-emission steel.
India’s Ministry of Steel has set a target of achieving net-zero emissions by 2070 and has outlined a roadmap that includes increased use of electric arc furnaces, greater recycling of scrap metal, carbon capture technologies, hydrogen-based steelmaking and biomass substitution.
Following the successful trial, the research team plans to expand the work to include smaller regional steel plants and test a wider range of biomass sources. Future work will also examine integrated systems that could simultaneously support agricultural productivity and steel production.
The researchers have also released an interactive map showing India’s steelmaking infrastructure alongside regional biomass availability to help identify locations where the technology could be deployed most effectively.
