June 2, 2025 (press release) –
A trial of a new, greener replacement for indurated pellets in the ironmaking process has been successfully completed this week in the Queen Bess blast furnace at British Steel’s Scunthorpe head quarters.
Binding Solutions Limited (BSL), a fast-growing UK technology company, has developed a patented and proprietary process to produce blast furnace pellets with significantly reduced carbon emissions relative to standard pellets and sinter, contributing to greener steel production at scale.
Binding Solution’s cold agglomeration technology uses proprietary binders and agglomeration processes to produce Cold Agglomerated Pellets (CAPs) without using high temperatures – reducing process complexity, lowering capital requirements, and significantly cutting emissions of carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and sulphur oxides by replacing traditional technologies (induration and sintering) in ironmaking. The technology can also be used to convert milled low-grade iron ore (‘fines’) to a form that can be physically charged to the blast furnace.
One of the raw materials required to produce iron is Indurated pellets. They are created by mixing iron ore fines with additives, shaping them into ovals/balls with a pelletiser and then hardening them by heating to around 1,300°C to create pellets. In comparison, the Cold Agglomerated Pellets are cured at below 150 degrees Celsius, driving reductions of up to 80% in energy usage at the production stage and also driving down carbon dioxide (CO2e) emissions by up to 70%.
The trial proved the operational effectiveness of BSL’s CAPs in a blast furnace, with blast furnace stability maintained whilst continuing to meet the plant’s required performance parameters. BSL’s CAPs can therefore replace up to 10% of indurated pellets in a blast furnace, offering a viable and near term opportunity for the steel industry to reduce emissions from primary steel making. BSL and British Steel will publish more detailed results of the test in the coming weeks.
The successful results of this trial will enable investment in BSL’s planned commercial CAP production facilities. BSL is currently reviewing locations in the UK, Europe and Canada for its first production plant in cooperation with a range of commercial and government partners.
Jon Campbell, Health, Safety and Environment Director for British Steel said:
"We are delighted to have worked with BSL to enable this first large scale trial of BSL’s innovative, low emission Cold Agglomerated Pellets. The successful trial clearly demonstrates British Steel’s commitment to exploring new ways of reducing the carbon footprint of our ironmaking operations.
"We are excited by the results and look forward to working with BSL to review options for using their technology as and when we are able."
Jon Stewart, CEO of Binding Solutions also said:
“After a decade of development, the successful trial with British Steel is a huge milestone in BSL’s development. This collaboration validates the potential of our Cold Agglomerated Pellets and reinforces our confidence in scaling our technology to commercial production."
Binding Solutions has spent more than a decade developing its patented and proprietary process to convert primary iron ore into high value pellets. Its dedicated Technology Centre located on Teesside on the Materials Processing Institute’s campus is a world-leading European research facility. Its Technology Centre includes a sophisticated pilot plant, where it is working with leading iron ore miners and steel producers to test various iron ore types and refine its patented low-energy, cold binding process.
* All content is copyrighted by Industry Intelligence, or the original respective author or source. You may not recirculate, redistribute or publish the analysis and presentation included in the service without Industry Intelligence's prior written consent. Please review our terms of use.