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Today, environmental protection is one of the main goals of all activities and businesses aiming at sustainability, stability and community value. In addition to ways such as limiting the use of plastic and not littering, recycling steel is also one of the solutions that many people trust, especially in the construction industry. In this article, MRS Steel will analyze efforts to reduce the environmental impact of steel products throughout its life cycle of steel, from raw material exploitation to end-of-life stage.1. Recyclability of construction steelSteel is one of the most recycled materials in the world with 93% of all structural steel capable of being recycled into new products without losing its inherent properties, while only 8% of plastic is recycled. When using recycled steel, the production process can reduce electricity consumption by 80% compared to completely new production, while also reducing environmental impact and completely eliminating the exploitation of raw materials.During the life cycle of steel, materials are recycled and used in many large and small projects with the construction method of prefabricated steel frames. This is a construction solution chosen by many investors because of its outstanding advantages such as saving time, labor costs, shortening the disassembly and assembly process,...2. What is the life cycle of steel?By understanding the life cycle of steel, we can take advantage of its infinite reusability to create sustainable economic and environmental values.Collecting raw materialsFor recycled steel, you can find sources such as factories, shipyards, large construction projects, ships,... around the world. This process also includes classifying and separating scrap steel from mixed materials so that the recycling process takes place quickly, minimizing residue. Steel productionSteel factories focus on two common production processes: producing steel from iron ore in blast furnaces or from scrap in electric arc furnaces. With advanced technological improvements in production lines, CO2 emissions are reduced during the production phase.Recycling leftover productsDuring the steel production process, there will be surplus products that can be reused such as slag, iron scrap,..., which act as a substitute for some raw materials, used for the next production stages. This both reduces waste into the environment and saves significant costs and time for production processes throughout the life cycle of steel.Production of finished productsHigh-strength steel has superior properties compared to conventional steel structures because of its extremely good durability, impact resistance and corrosion resistance. Therefore, projects that require high bearing capacity such as factory frames, warehouse steel frames, cars,... often use high-strength steel to consume less material, optimize weight while still ensuring durability, safe in use.Steel recyclingFinally, steel returns to its life cycle as post-consumer scrap. At this point, it has already finished its first life cycle and is ready to be recycled to begin the life cycle of new steel.Steel is an industrial material that is recycled many times but still retains its properties, so there is no need to worry about reducing durability and safety when used for projects. Steel recycling not only contributes to reducing industrial waste in the world and protecting the environment, but is also a cost-effective solution for investors. Thus, steel scrap can be 100% recyclable and continues to exist forever throughout the life of the steel.3. Some examples of the life cycle of steelSteel is not only an environmentally friendly material but also an economical construction solution. The structures themselves can be constructed from many different types of recycled steel. Let's consider with MRS Steel which common applications best represent the life cycle of steel.AutomobileMost of the car's structure is made from steel, so after long-term use, even though the car loses its usability, it can still be recycled. Currently, automotive steel is the largest source of recycled steel in the United States. After processing, this material continues to be used in the automobile manufacturing industry with durability and an average lifespan of up to 15 years.Packaging and containersOne of the most common uses of steel that few people know about is packaging of goods. Food, wine, paint, crude oil, etc. are often preserved and transported in steel tanks to ensure product safety and quality when it reaches the user. Recycled steel is not only used to make containers, belts, etc., but can be manufactured into large containers and then recycled during the life of the steel to make other applications.Steel structureThe use of wood as a building material can deplete natural resources, cause environmental disasters and cannot be recycled or recovered. Wood structures also generate more industrial waste, so steel structures are becoming increasingly popular in housing construction. Not only do they bring modern, sophisticated, cost-effective aesthetic beauty, but steel buildings can be completely recycled after they stop being used.Infrastructure projectBesides housing, steel is also the main material for projects such as bridges, roads, railways, silos, tanks,... Thanks to its high strength, steel is used for frames or roofing, providing high durability and ability to bear large loads. These structures, after long periods of use, may become degraded or need to be removed. At this time, steel materials can be recycled and used as materials for completely new projects, starting a circular steel life cycle.

Steel is one of the most common materials in the world as it appears everywhere from skyscrapers to a presence in consumer goods daily. There have been some questions about whether the depletion of steel raw materials will occur, in fact, steel has an endless recycling capacity and manufacturers took advantage of “steel recycling” method to produce steel for a long time.The position of steel recycling in the eco-friendly manufacturing trendingEnvironmental protection has always been a top concerned topic when the climate is clearly changing, which has seriously affected the ecosystem. In addition to some measures preventing environmental waste such as limiting the use of plastic and not littering, the application of steel recycling is a solution that brings optimized cost along with saving resources.Steel recycling brings endless value to the economy because it is conservation and is a radical solution to wasting resources. Because steel has metallurgical properties, meaning that it can be melted and solidified later. Let's think about how millions of tons of scrap steel each year, instead of being discharged into the environment, are melted down to continue to be used for the manufacturing industry. According to statistics, steel is the most recycled building material in the world with about 40% of total steel production based on scrap recycling.The benefits that steel recycling brings to eco-friendly economySteel recycling creates an endless ring An interesting fact about steel is that they can be recycled consecutively without losing their inherent durable properties. The iron elements in steel cannot be destroyed, so the manufacturer will proceed to melt the steel and add some other alloying elements to create new steel products. Just like that, the life cycle of steel repeats continuously and helps many businesses optimize costs in exploiting materials for production.Saving energy & natural resourcesRecycling steel allows people to better protect natural resources as the energy used in recycled steel will be much less than making steel by blast furnace production. For each ton of recycled steel, 1 ton of iron ore and 600 kg of coal are saved. Moreover, the energy saved from steel recycling can be used for more than 18 million households in 1 year.Reduce wasteThanks to recycled steel, the area for landfill has been significantly reduced because scrap collection is the first process to be able to recycle steel. Every year, the world produces an average of 1 billion tons of steel and without recycling methods, the world's waste will have no place to be.Decreasing emissionsAccording to research, every 1 ton of steel produced from ore is equivalent to releasing 100 kg of dust and 10,000m3 of emissions to the environment because producing steel from ore requires a lot of coal and the ore itself contains only 50% of iron. Meanwhile, scrap steel contains up to 97% of iron, so recycling through scrap steel can significantly reduce emissions to the environment and help businesses save costs of input coal.Create more jobs and income for people: the steel recycling industry has been creating jobs for hundreds of thousands of people around the world by collecting scraps or conducting sorting in recycling plants .Thanks to that, the number of unemployed people will be reduced and social evils will be limited.Currently, Vietnam is also one of the countries that have policies on greening in production and more Vietnamese businesses have begun to pay attention to the promotion of recycling. For example, Hoa Phat has built a blast furnace slag recycling plant to produce cement, they also invested in a heat-to-electricity conversion line to prolong the added value chain, reduce waste treatment costs and protect the environment.Recycling steel is now considered a very viable option for the economy because it helps to conserve energy, supports businesses in proactively having available input materials when there is no need to exploit natural materials.