Purdue University Northwest’s (PNW’s) Center for Innovation through Visualization and Simulation (CIVS) has landed $7.05mn in federal grants to research energy-efficient steelmaking methods.
The funds will be applied towards exploring energy reduction methods that can improve the blast furnace steelmaking process. The three-year grant will also contribute toward developing a virtual training system.
The US Department of Energy supplied PNW, along with the Steel Manufacturing Simulation and Visualization Consortium (SMSVC), financing to build a forward-looking virtual blast furnace that will aid steelmakers in reducing emissions and energy use.
Steelmakers in Northwest Indiana and throughout the US can benefit from more energy-efficient blast furnaces that can cut energy use by 4.5-10pc. The funds allow CIVS to conduct research targeting the US steel industry for better blast furnace operations at integrated mills, along Lake Michigan’s south shore.
PNW’s research project could help the steel industry cut energy consumption in the blast furnace and downstream processes while cutting costs and lessening the carbon footprint of steel mills.
CIVS leads the SMSVC, which combines 15 companies including all US blast furnace operators, and uses simulation with visualization techniques to undertake technological issues challenging the steel industry.