New Generation Pipeline and Q&T Plate Steels. If successful, the progressive reformulation of the alloy design of a new family of steels would enhance their properties, greatly reduce the complexity of manufacture, ensure more efficient steelmaking production practices and enable the full capacity of the domestic pipe mills and plate manufacturing facilities to be realised. This innovative and new approach opens up opportunities for market growth and export potential in areas of fundamental impo ....New Generation Pipeline and Q&T Plate Steels. If successful, the progressive reformulation of the alloy design of a new family of steels would enhance their properties, greatly reduce the complexity of manufacture, ensure more efficient steelmaking production practices and enable the full capacity of the domestic pipe mills and plate manufacturing facilities to be realised. This innovative and new approach opens up opportunities for market growth and export potential in areas of fundamental importance to Australia's infrastructure and mining industries and defence capability. Implementation of this newly developed technology would, for the first time, create export market opportunities for Australian pipe manufacturers.
Read moreRead less
Surface reaction kinetics of zinc gas relevant to the ZINCALUME coating process. The proposed project aims to develop a sound understanding of the mechanism and rate of condensation of zinc vapour on clean and partially oxidised steel strip surfaces. This Fundamental scientific knowledge is the key to furthering our understanding of the effect of process variables on the occurrence of pinholes and bare patches on ZINCALUME coated steel strip. Should the fundamental causes of defect formation be ....Surface reaction kinetics of zinc gas relevant to the ZINCALUME coating process. The proposed project aims to develop a sound understanding of the mechanism and rate of condensation of zinc vapour on clean and partially oxidised steel strip surfaces. This Fundamental scientific knowledge is the key to furthering our understanding of the effect of process variables on the occurrence of pinholes and bare patches on ZINCALUME coated steel strip. Should the fundamental causes of defect formation be established, product quality can be improved, process costs reduced and the Australian industry's competitive position in the market place retained. A new experimental approach will be taken; conductive to the training of the researchers involved in advanced research techniques.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0775721
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$520,000.00
Summary
Near Net Shaped Casting and Alloy Development Facility. Nearly all metal production is based around an initial casting phase, often followed by other deformation and thermal processes. This facility will allow us to study current and future advanced alloys and processing routes, including metals of strategic importance to Australia such as aluminium, titanium and magnesium. One of the major innovations for these metals is to directly cast to strip, followed by minimal processing to provide str ....Near Net Shaped Casting and Alloy Development Facility. Nearly all metal production is based around an initial casting phase, often followed by other deformation and thermal processes. This facility will allow us to study current and future advanced alloys and processing routes, including metals of strategic importance to Australia such as aluminium, titanium and magnesium. One of the major innovations for these metals is to directly cast to strip, followed by minimal processing to provide strip products with novel properties, low capital costs and short lead times. The outcomes from this research will support the development of existing and new metal industries in Australia.Read moreRead less
Effect of Chromium and Manganese on the Formations of Graphite and Carbide on the surface of Low Carbon Sheet Steels. Surface graphite and surface carbide are two surface defects observed in cold-rolled low carbon steel sheets after batch annealing under non-oxidising atmosphere. The surface defects detract from the appearance of the steel sheets and diminish the surface treatment potential of the sheets, causing significant and costly material losses. The aims of the project are to study the in ....Effect of Chromium and Manganese on the Formations of Graphite and Carbide on the surface of Low Carbon Sheet Steels. Surface graphite and surface carbide are two surface defects observed in cold-rolled low carbon steel sheets after batch annealing under non-oxidising atmosphere. The surface defects detract from the appearance of the steel sheets and diminish the surface treatment potential of the sheets, causing significant and costly material losses. The aims of the project are to study the inhibition of surface graphite formation by the additions of Chromium and Manganese and to study the mechanism of formation of surface carbide with the aim of developing an alloying / processing strategy which eliminates both the surface graphite and the surface carbide.Read moreRead less
Competitive nucleation and growth during rapid solidification of steel. This research will assist in maintaining Australia at the forefront of research into strip casting of steel. Fundamental understanding and new modelling capabilities will help to promote the take-up of this energy/emission/cost efficient revolutionary process. It will furthermore provide, through the development of a novel experimental technique, new research capabilities for Australian researchers in other fields such as ra ....Competitive nucleation and growth during rapid solidification of steel. This research will assist in maintaining Australia at the forefront of research into strip casting of steel. Fundamental understanding and new modelling capabilities will help to promote the take-up of this energy/emission/cost efficient revolutionary process. It will furthermore provide, through the development of a novel experimental technique, new research capabilities for Australian researchers in other fields such as rapid solidification of advanced materials, e.g. hard magnets and thermoelectric alloys.Read moreRead less
Low temperature carbothermal reduction of alumina. Australia is the world's largest producer of alumina and bauxite; and the aluminium industry is our second largest commodity exporter. This project targets the development of fundamentals of an advanced technology for aluminium production with advantages of low energy consumption, low production costs and being more environment-friendly. This frontier technology will enhance the competitiveness of the Australian aluminium industry and contribute ....Low temperature carbothermal reduction of alumina. Australia is the world's largest producer of alumina and bauxite; and the aluminium industry is our second largest commodity exporter. This project targets the development of fundamentals of an advanced technology for aluminium production with advantages of low energy consumption, low production costs and being more environment-friendly. This frontier technology will enhance the competitiveness of the Australian aluminium industry and contribute to making an environmentally sustainable Australia. The project will also provide high quality education to final year undergraduate students. The project will contribute to the theory of metallurgical processes, particularly to the gas-solid reactions in the reduction and carburisation processes. Read moreRead less
Model studies of the flow and thermal behaviour of non-spherical particles in fluid bed reactors. The Australian steel industry has a turnover of around $11 billion (5% of total manufacturing), being a largest manufacturing sector in Australia. Iron ore sintering and blast furnace ironmaking are two important processes in an integrated steel works. This project aims to understand and model the particle-fluid flow and thermal behaviour of non-spherical particles in the two processes, formulating ....Model studies of the flow and thermal behaviour of non-spherical particles in fluid bed reactors. The Australian steel industry has a turnover of around $11 billion (5% of total manufacturing), being a largest manufacturing sector in Australia. Iron ore sintering and blast furnace ironmaking are two important processes in an integrated steel works. This project aims to understand and model the particle-fluid flow and thermal behaviour of non-spherical particles in the two processes, formulating strategies for improving the process control and productivity and energy saving. The research outcomes (theory/model/understanding) are useful to fluid bed reactors which are widely used in mineral/metallurgical/chemical industries. Their application can improve the competitiveness of the steel and other industries in Australia.Read moreRead less
Fundamental Investigation of metal/refractory interactions in processing of non-ferrous metals: Wettability Phenomena. This project aims to develop new understanding of interfacial phenomenon during refractory/metal reactions including the influence of novel additives on wettability leading to optimisation of refractory composition during processing of non-ferrous metals. This project will allow development of advanced refractories that will enhance corrosion resistance thereby improving refract ....Fundamental Investigation of metal/refractory interactions in processing of non-ferrous metals: Wettability Phenomena. This project aims to develop new understanding of interfacial phenomenon during refractory/metal reactions including the influence of novel additives on wettability leading to optimisation of refractory composition during processing of non-ferrous metals. This project will allow development of advanced refractories that will enhance corrosion resistance thereby improving refractory life and efficiency of metal production. This can contribute in further enhancing Australia's position as a significant producer and exporter of aluminium and associated products. The project will generate scientific data on refractory/metal interactions and establish influence of non-wetting agents in improving refractory performance against metal attack. Read moreRead less
Understanding and minimising oxidation during hot rolling and metal coating of steel strip. Steel production is one of the few manufacturing industries in which Australia is internationally competitive. Annual steel exports generate about two billion dollars in national income. Substantial value is added to raw steel by hot rolling it into sheet and coating with zincalume and paint. The market for these products is intensely competitive, and continued success is critically dependent on produc ....Understanding and minimising oxidation during hot rolling and metal coating of steel strip. Steel production is one of the few manufacturing industries in which Australia is internationally competitive. Annual steel exports generate about two billion dollars in national income. Substantial value is added to raw steel by hot rolling it into sheet and coating with zincalume and paint. The market for these products is intensely competitive, and continued success is critically dependent on productivity and quality. This project will assist BlueScope Steel in understanding and controlling millscale development on hot rolled products, and avoiding scale defects in zincalume coating.Read moreRead less
Experimental and numerical studies of the packing and piling of coal. This project is oriented to the coal and steel industries, which are important to Australia. In fact, the coal industry creates a significant employment and produces 80% of electricity in Australia. Australia is also the world's biggest coal exporter. This project will develop methods to control the packing and piling processes of coal, which are of fundamental importance to many granular processes. The benefits from the proje ....Experimental and numerical studies of the packing and piling of coal. This project is oriented to the coal and steel industries, which are important to Australia. In fact, the coal industry creates a significant employment and produces 80% of electricity in Australia. Australia is also the world's biggest coal exporter. This project will develop methods to control the packing and piling processes of coal, which are of fundamental importance to many granular processes. The benefits from the project include improvements in productivity, coke quality and fuel efficiency, which will lead reduced energy consumption and pollution emission and thereby improve the competitiveness of Australia's coal and steel industries. Read moreRead less