Victor Yuardi Risonarta Knihy

In recent years, there has been a visible and perceptible change in climate on a global scale, rendering many parts of the world vulnerable to its negative impact. Global warming and thereby induced climate change have become one of the major challenges of this century for the international community. For Indonesia, the negative impact of global warming and climate change is many-fold. The forecast warns of an increased level of temperature as well as the rise of sea level. The archipelagic construction and the geological structure of the country makes it susceptible to an array of natural disasters related to climate such as flood, drought, storm, landslide and forest fires which have taken their toll in human losses as well as in the economic and social infrastructure. The concentration of population along the coastal line and in urban areas, high population level in urban areas, fragile ecosystems as well as economic activities still dependent on fossil fuel further aggravate the situation. Against this backdrop, the Government of the Republic of Indonesia has adopted several measures to counter the impacts of climate change. The introduction of a National Energy Policy in 2006, the National Action Plan addressing climate change in 2007, the promotion of green energy, the development of renewable energy as well as the protection and preservation of tropical rain forests are some of the concrete steps which demonstrate the strong commitment of the Government to address the threat of climate change.

Steel is produced globally through iron ore reduction and recycling steel scrap. Integrated producers use iron ore, coal, and limestone, employing coke ovens and blast furnaces (BF) to create pig iron, which is then refined into liquid steel using basic oxygen furnaces (BOF). Non-integrated producers, or minimills, melt and refine iron-containing scrap in smaller electric arc furnace (EAF) facilities. In Germany, steel production reached approximately 45.8 million tons in 2008, with the BF/BOF route accounting for about 69% and the EAF route for 31% of total crude steel output. In the EU-27, the EAF route represented roughly 40% of steel production in the same year, while globally, it accounted for around 31%. Production of stainless and heat-resistant steels surged by 48% from 2001 to 2006 before a slight decline in 2007 and 2008. Chromium-based stainless steel is produced exclusively via the EAF route. A duplex process for stainless steelmaking involves an EAF and a vacuum oxygen decarburization (VOD) unit. EAF charges include various external and internal steel scraps. The EAF melts these materials to produce liquid steel, which is then processed in the VOD to reduce carbon concentration. The ladle furnace further adjusts the temperature and chemical composition before the liquid steel moves to secondary metallurgy processes, such as wire feeding.