Steel Industry Expert Presents Future of Blast Furnace Ironmaking

On March 1st, 2024, Joe Morey, Senior Technical Consultant at Morey Industrial Consulting, presented “A Possible Future for Blast Furnace Ironmaking” to CIVS research students, staff, and faculty in the Immersive Theater during the Friday student seminars held every semester.

“Mr. Morey’s presentation was quite an informative session for students like me who are from a non-mechanical background. I appreciated the interactive aspects of his presentation as well. It was clear that his extensive expertise led to his insightful look at the future of ironmaking.” – Gowtham Pentela

In his presentation, Joe gave valuable insight into the future of blast furnace ironmaking stemming from his almost three decades of experience in ironmaking, covering fundamental aspects of the blast furnace process and four potential solutions to reduce carbon emissions from the BF. Joe discussed the core elements of the blast furnace process, the history of blast furnace ironmaking, and changes that have been implemented to improve efficiency and increase productivity over time. He also provided a window into the future of ironmaking with an eye toward reducing and eliminating carbon emissions using methods like hydrogen injection, biofuels, and carbon capture and storage.

“Mr. Morey’s industrial experience has been immensely helpful as I have researched blast furnace ironmaking. His discussion of the energy requirements for iron reduction and potential future technologies to mitigate carbon emissions was insightful and relevant to my research. Additionally, his insight into the limitations of alternative ironmaking technologies reinforced the need to optimize the blast furnace process as much as possible to maintain the level of iron production needed to build an industrial society and reduce the levels of global poverty.” – Samuel Nielson

At Morey Industrial Consulting, the story begins with a passion for helping businesses succeed by unlocking the value buried within. Joe Morey has 20+ years of experience doing just this at one of the largest steel companies in North America and saw the need for personalized, results-driven consulting services for the metals industry, including those who service the metals industry by someone with iron and steelmaking experience.