It's a a big use, 14% of global coal use from memory based on a recent query.
BP's annual energy review 2014 gives total global coal use as 3,881.4 Mtoe (million tons of oil equivalent), which works out to 5.54 billion tonnes of coal. 14% of that is still a large number, 776 million tons.
I happened to look up total forestry production in the US recently, let's see if I can't find that ....
Total US lumber production is equivalent to 928 Mboe. So, yeah, applying 84% of US timber production to coking activities would supply the world with steel.
US steel production is just under 100 megatonnes (2007). Global production is 1,600 megatonnes. So US production is 6.25% of global. The US could provide for its own steel manufacture somewhat more feasibly.
Incidentally, energy use in producing construction materials is among the reasons I see a possible future not for biofuels but for biomaterials -- utilizing plants or organic processes to directly provide structural materials (or replacements for them) that we use.
Carbon separation from seawater seems another possible approach, though I haven't specced out that for coking purposes:
BP's annual energy review 2014 gives total global coal use as 3,881.4 Mtoe (million tons of oil equivalent), which works out to 5.54 billion tonnes of coal. 14% of that is still a large number, 776 million tons.
I happened to look up total forestry production in the US recently, let's see if I can't find that ....
Here: https://plus.google.com/104092656004159577193/posts/NVg1UQ5W...
Total US lumber production is equivalent to 928 Mboe. So, yeah, applying 84% of US timber production to coking activities would supply the world with steel.
(Sources: http://www.loggers.com/timber_facts.htm http://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/documnts/fplrp/fplrp615/fplrp615.pd... http://generatorjoe.net/html/energy.asp )
US steel production is just under 100 megatonnes (2007). Global production is 1,600 megatonnes. So US production is 6.25% of global. The US could provide for its own steel manufacture somewhat more feasibly.
http://www.worldsteel.org/media-centre/press-releases/2014/W... http://www.indexmundi.com/minerals/?country=us&product=raw-s...
Incidentally, energy use in producing construction materials is among the reasons I see a possible future not for biofuels but for biomaterials -- utilizing plants or organic processes to directly provide structural materials (or replacements for them) that we use.
Carbon separation from seawater seems another possible approach, though I haven't specced out that for coking purposes:
https://www.reddit.com/r/dredmorbius/comments/22k71x/us_navy...