ArcelorMittal S.A. (MT) recently announced its investment in Electrified Thermal Solutions (based in the United States); a company that has developed innovative technology in the field of electric heating to support industrial heat production. The company is also known for its patented system called the Joule Hive Thermal Battery (JHTB). This investment was made through the XCarb Innovation Fund, which MT launched in 2021, aiming to invest in transformative innovations that support the decarbonization process in the steel industry.
The JHTB system consists of electrically and thermally conductive refractory bricks placed inside an insulated steel container. Renewable electricity passes directly through these bricks, and the system stores low-cost, carbon-free thermal energy at temperatures up to 1,700 degrees Celsius. The stored energy is released by passing air or gas through the brick channels, providing the required heat for industrial applications.
This technology has the potential to enable decarbonization by reducing the traditional steel production process’s reliance on fossil fuels. Instead of depending on thermal energy from steel plant gases or natural gas combustion, the electric thermal system based on JHTB can serve as an alternative.
Currently, a commercial demonstration unit with a capacity of 1 MW/5 MWh is under construction at the Southwest Research Institute in Texas, scheduled to be commissioned in the second half of 2025. Meanwhile, ArcelorMittal and Electrified Thermal have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to jointly validate this technology at the company’s GasLab center in Asturias, Spain, and to study potential pilot applications in its operations.
