Steeluniversity.org

Last updated

steeluniversity
Steeluniversity -Logo.jpg
Type of site
E-learning
Available inEnglish, Spanish, Chinese (traditional & simplified), Korean, Russian, German
Owner World Steel Association
Created by World Steel Association, MATTER (computer-based learning project), SteelMATTER, University of Liverpool
URL https://steeluniversity.org/
CommercialNon-profit
RegistrationOptional
LaunchedOctober 2003
Current statusOnline

steeluniversity is a collection of free and non-free e-learning resources and interactive simulations covering major aspects of ironmaking and steelmaking. It provides the underlying scientific, metallurgical, and engineering principles and environmental aspects of the production, use, and recycling of steel. These internet-delivered resources are aimed at undergraduate students of metallurgy, materials science and engineering subjects as well as graduate employees in the steel industry supply chain.

Contents

Objectives

The basic objective of steeluniversity.org is to inform university students and their teachers about steel technologies and to attract young people to the global steel industry. Another major aim is to reduce the cost of in-service training at steel companies by providing them with freely available training and professional development material. In view of the decline in metallurgy-related courses in universities and the retirement of professors and steel industry experts, it aims to sustain knowledge of ferrous metallurgy by joint efforts of academia and the steel industry.

Background

A gradual decline in the number of students enrolling in science subjects such as physics and mathematics can be seen in many industrialized countries. This phenomenon has been indicated in several studies. The OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) Global Science Forum reports in a study that the relative share of science and technology graduates declined in 10 out of 16 member countries between 1993 and 2003. [1] Metallurgy is one of the most affected disciplines in this trend in terms of available courses, overall enrolments and the number of graduates. An important factor relating to this change in US universities is described as transformation in the late twentieth century of metallurgy departments into 'material sciences' departments. [2] [3] [4] A similar pattern in other Western European countries e.g. in the UK [5] is reported during the same time span. The steel industry, once an attractive career destination for metallurgy graduates is directly affected by these changes and now faces the challenge of replacing the retiring work force. The idea of preserving knowledge of metallurgy and attracting young people toward career in the steel industry was born out of this challenge.

History

In response to the declining skilled workforce in the steel industry, the World Steel Association (formerly International Iron and Steel Institute (IISI)) took the initiative by creating a collection of web-based e-learning resources on metallurgy in a pilot project named Internet Learning of Steel Applications and Processes (ILSAP). Initially two introductory modules; Secondary Steelmaking and Steel for Automotive Applications were launched in partnership with the MATTER project at the University of Liverpool on 1 August 2002 [6] Following the success of the pilot project, the board of governors approved a budget of €2.5 million for development of an extensive set of e-learning resources and the project was renamed steeluniversity.org in October 2003. [7]

E-learning resources

The e-learning modules on the website cover major aspects of iron and steelmaking in four categories:

Steel applications

The modules in this section address the selection of steels for various steel markets, such as automotive, construction, engineering, and offshore applications. Acting as the materials advisor in a multidisciplinary team, the user aims to select suitable steel in order to satisfy design specifications for a particular application. The major engineering design equations are studied during this process in order to select and compare the performance of steel and other metals and materials.

4-D Process Overview of a Steel Plant Process Overview-steeluniversity.JPG
4-D Process Overview of a Steel Plant
EAF Steelmaking simulation EAF-steeluniversity.JPG
EAF Steelmaking simulation
Secondary Steelmaking simulation Secondary steelmaking steeluniversity.JPG
Secondary Steelmaking simulation

Steel processing

This section contains a series of interactive simulations of major steelmaking processes from raw materials, basic oxygen steelmaking (BOS) and electric arc furnace (EAF) steelmaking, secondary steelmaking, continuous casting, and hot rolling. Different steel grades can be processed using two levels of operation which are suitable for students and graduates in the industry. The 'student level' provides a basic functionality enabling the user to understand and control the process principles without too many operational complications, whereas the 'industry level' has advanced functionality and the user needs to deal with practical disturbances that are not anticipated in advance. Real-time feedback is given on the composition and quality of the steel, on process time and temperature and incurred costs, to allow the process to be optimized. A user guide and more conventional supporting e-learning units are also available within each module to enable the learner to better understand the reactions. For example, in the secondary steelmaking module, there are sections on deoxidation, desulfurization, decarburization, and dehydrogenation.

Ferrous metallurgy

The section on ferrous metallurgy contains modules on thermodynamics and kinetics, including strengthening mechanisms, phase transformation, recrystallisation and grain growth, heat treatment, and steel properties. An introduction is provided on steel specifications, with exercises to ensure that they can be accurately interpreted. The learner can check mechanical properties of a given grade of steel by conducting virtual tensile, Charpy impact, and hardness tests as well.

Sustainability

This section introduces the environmental aspects of steelmaking, usage and recycling processes. The learner gets a basic idea of Life Cycle Thinking and the method of life-cycle assessment (LCA), and its practical application. In addition selected LCA scenarios facing the steel industry and its customers in the automotive and construction sectors can be explored.

Available languages

The e-learning modules were initially only available in English. Currently, several modules can be found in several languages, such as Spanish, Chinese (traditional & simplified), Korean, Russian, and German. The process of translation is not yet complete and a number of modules are in various stages of proofreading.

steelChallenge

The steelChallenge is an annual competition organized by steeluniversity.org for students and steel industry employees. Using one or more of the steelmaking simulations on the steeluniversity.org website, the entrants are to produce a particular steel grade at the lowest cost. The competition runs for a 24-hour period during which multiple attempts are allowed. Awards are given for the best, one for the best industry entry and the other for the best university entry. Other local prizes sponsored by steel companies are also presented at the event. [8]

Related Research Articles

Metallurgy Domain of materials science that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metals

Metallurgy is a domain of materials science and engineering that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their inter-metallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are called alloys. Metallurgy encompasses both the science and the technology of metals; that is, the way in which science is applied to the production of metals, and the engineering of metal components used in products for both consumers and manufacturers. Metallurgy is distinct from the craft of metalworking. Metalworking relies on metallurgy in a similar manner to how medicine relies on medical science for technical advancement. A specialist practitioner of metallurgy is known as a metallurgist.

Steel Metal alloy made by combining iron with other elements

Steel is an alloy made up of iron with typically a few tenths of a percent of carbon to improve its strength and fracture resistance compared to iron. Many other elements may be present or added. Stainless steels that are corrosion- and oxidation-resistant need typically an additional 11% chromium. Because of its high tensile strength and low cost, steel is used in buildings, infrastructure, tools, ships, trains, cars, machines, electrical appliances, and weapons. Iron is the base metal of steel. Depending on the temperature, it can take two crystalline forms : body-centred cubic and face-centred cubic. The interaction of the allotropes of iron with the alloying elements, primarily carbon, gives steel and cast iron their range of unique properties.

Steelmaking Process for producing steel from iron ore and scrap

Steelmaking is the process of producing steel from iron ore and/or scrap. In steelmaking, impurities such as nitrogen, silicon, phosphorus, sulfur and excess carbon are removed from the sourced iron, and alloying elements such as manganese, nickel, chromium, carbon and vanadium are added to produce different grades of steel. Limiting dissolved gases such as nitrogen and oxygen and entrained impurities in the steel is also important to ensure the quality of the products cast from the liquid steel.

Mechatronics Combination of electronics and mechanics

Mechatronics, also called mechatronics engineering, is an interdisciplinary branch of mechanical engineering that focuses on the integration of mechanical, electronic and electrical engineering systems, and also includes a combination of robotics, electronics, computer, telecommunications, systems, control, and product engineering. As technology advances over time, various subfields of engineering have succeeded in both adapting and multiplying. The intention of mechatronics is to produce a design solution that unifies each of these various subfields. Originally, the field of mechatronics was intended to be nothing more than a combination of mechanics and electronics, hence the name being a portmanteau of mechanics and electronics; however, as the complexity of technical systems continued to evolve, the definition had been broadened to include more technical areas.

University of Science and Technology Beijing

The University of Science and Technology Beijing, formerly known as Beijing Steel and Iron Institute (北京钢铁学院) before 1988, is a national key university in Haidian District, Beijing, China. USTB's metallurgy and materials science programmes are highly regarded in China. It is a Chinese Ministry of Education Double First Class Discipline University, with Double First Class status in certain disciplines.

Scrap Recyclable materials left over from manufactured products after their use

Scrap consists of recyclable materials left over from product manufacturing and consumption, such as parts of vehicles, building supplies, and surplus materials. Unlike waste, scrap has monetary value, especially recovered metals, and non-metallic materials are also recovered for recycling.

Open hearth furnace

Open-hearth furnaces are one of several kinds of furnace in which excess carbon and other impurities are burnt out of pig iron to produce steel. Since steel is difficult to manufacture owing to its high melting point, normal fuels and furnaces were insufficient and the open-hearth furnace was developed to overcome this difficulty. Compared to Bessemer steel, which it displaced, its main advantages were that it did not expose the steel to excessive nitrogen, was easier to control, and permitted the melting and refining of large amounts of scrap iron and steel.

Electric arc furnace

An electric arc furnace (EAF) is a furnace that heats charged material by means of an electric arc.

Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining

The Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining (IOM3) is a UK engineering institution whose activities encompass the whole materials cycle, from exploration and extraction, through characterisation, processing, forming, finishing and application, to product recycling and land reuse. It exists to promote and develop all aspects of materials science and engineering, geology, mining and associated technologies, mineral and petroleum engineering and extraction metallurgy, as a leading authority in the worldwide materials and mining community.

Gaziantep University

Gaziantep University is a public university in Gaziantep, Turkey. Gaziantep University has 10 faculties, containing a total of 22 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological research.

Integrated Computational Materials Engineering (ICME) is an approach to design products, the materials that comprise them, and their associated materials processing methods by linking materials models at multiple length scales. Key words are "Integrated", involving integrating models at multiple length scales, and "Engineering", signifying industrial utility. The focus is on the materials, i.e. understanding how processes produce material structures, how those structures give rise to material properties, and how to select materials for a given application. The key links are process-structures-properties-performance. The National Academies report describes the need for using multiscale materials modeling to capture the process-structures-properties-performance of a material.

Chongqing University of Science and Technology

Chongqing University of Science and Technology is located in Shapingba District of Chongqing City, by the Chongqing Municipal People's government and the China National Petroleum Corporation, China Petrochemical Corporation, China National Offshore Oil Corporation, named "Excellence Engineer Education Program", "Data China 100 School Project", is a mainly, petroleum and chemical industry, metallurgy, machinery and materials with electronics, safety and environmental protection features, covering science, engineering, economics and management, law, literature and art of the multidisciplinary coordinated development of full-time public universities.

Sayed Khatiboleslam Sadrnezhaad

Sayed Khatiboleslam Sadrnezhaad is an Iranian professor of materials science and engineering, and once chancellor of Sharif University of Technology and Materials and Energy Research Center.

Adaptive learning, also known as adaptive teaching, is an educational method which uses computer algorithms as well as artificial intelligence to orchestrate the interaction with the learner and deliver customized resources and learning activities to address the unique needs of each learner. In professional learning contexts, individuals may "test out" of some training to ensure they engage with novel instruction. Computers adapt the presentation of educational material according to students' learning needs, as indicated by their responses to questions, tasks and experiences. The technology encompasses aspects derived from various fields of study including computer science, AI, psychometrics, education, psychology, and brain science.

The metallurgy branch of Russian industry involves about 5% of Russia's GDP, about 18% of industrial production and about 14% of exports. The volume of metallurgical production was 1.87 trillion rubles (2009). Investments in fixed assets in metallurgy were 280 billion rubles (2008). The average salary in the metallurgical industry was 23,258 rubles / month.

University of the Witwatersrand School of Chemical and Metallurgical Engineering

The School of Chemical and Metallurgical Engineering is one of seven schools in the University of the Witwatersrand's Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment. The School offers 4-year undergraduate degrees and post-graduate degrees in chemical and metallurgical engineering.

A Kaldo converter is a rotary vessel oxygen based metal refining method. Originally applied to the refining of iron into steel, with most installations in the 1960s, the process is (2014) used primarily to refine non ferrous metals, typically copper. In that field, it is often named TBRC, or Top Blown Rotary Converter.

John Frank Elliott (1920–1991) was an American professor of metallurgy who made significant contributions to the science of pyrometallurgy during his long career at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

Bal Raj Nijhawan, was an Indian metallurgist, author and the first Director of Indian origin of the National Metallurgical Laboratory, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR). He was a recipient of Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize, the highest Indian science award, which he received in 1964 in the Engineering sciences category. The Government of India honoured him in 1958, with the award of Padma Shri, the fourth highest Indian civilian award for his services to the nation.

Information Communications Technology is usually included in the Home Economics and Livelihood Education program in grade school and taught through the Technology and Home Economics program in high school. The recent status of ICT education in the Philippines, along with other Southeast Asian countries, was surveyed by the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO) in 2011. Using the UNESCO model of ICT Development in Education, the countries were ranked as Emerging, Applying, Infusing or Transforming. The Philippines were ranked at the Infusing stage of integrating ICT in education, indicating that the country has integrated ICT into existing teaching, learning and administrative practices and policies. This includes components such as a national vision of ICT in education, national ICT plans and policies, complementary national ICT and education policies, professional development for teachers and school leaders, community or partnership and teaching and learning pedagogies. A 2012 study reported that public high schools in Metro Manila had a computer to student ratio of 1:63. While 88 percent of schools have internet connections, half of the students claimed not to be using it.

References

  1. OECD Science Technology and Industry Outlook 2006, ISBN   978-92-64-02848-7 pp. 98
  2. Trillo E.; Stafford S. W.; Murr L. E. (1998). Recruiting and retaining students in metallurgy and materials: One university's experience. JOM: Journal of the Minerals, Metals and Materials Society. Vol. 50, No. 4. pp. 13–14. (Springer Boston). ISSN 1543-1851
  3. Flemings M. C. (2001). Why materials science and engineering is good for metallurgy. Metallurgical and Materials Transactions A. Vol. 32, No. 4. pp. 853–860 (Springer Boston). ISSN   1543-1940
  4. Mechii M. (2006). Thoughts on the Occasion of the Second Transformation in Material Science. Material Science Forum. Vol. 512. pp. 1–4 (Trans Tech Publications Switzerland). ISSN   0255-5476
  5. Cottrell A. (1976), The Task for the Educator. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London, Series A (Mathematical and Physical Sciences). Vol. 282. No. 1307. pp. 467–471.
  6. "Make advanced steels online!". IISI Newsletter 1 August 2002. Retrieved 8 May 2008.
  7. "IISI-37 / 07 / IISI Board of Directors approve €2.5 million for Internet-based 'steel university' learning facility". IISI Newsletter 6 October 2003. Retrieved 8 May 2008.
  8. "Steelmaking challenge enables simulating production online". Advanced Materials & Processes: EMERGING TECHNOLOGY, Entrepreneur.com; Dec 2007. Retrieved 22 April 2008.