May 1, 2017 by Sonia Diaz

CIVS and AK Steel Researchers Receive the most prestigious AIST Best Paper Award

CIVS and AK Steel researchers has been selected to receive the 2017 AIST Hunt-Kelly Outstanding Paper Award (AIME) a�� First Place for their paper entitled a�?Investigation of Co-Injection of Natural Gas and Pulverized Coal in a Blast Furnace.a�? The award recipients are CIVS Director and Professor Chenn Q. Zhou, graduate student Tyamo Okosun, AK Steel Technical Manager Stuart J. Street, CIVS alumni Yan Chen, Bin Wu, and Jaiqi Zhao.

The Hunt-Kelly Outstanding Paper Award a�� First Place is the highest award given to a technical paper selected from division level best papers in 26 categories and other nominations from over 470 papers presented in the AISTech technical sessions. The selection process is very rigorous, with each paper judged for excellence, originality, relevance to the technology (applied or fundamental) of the iron and steel industry, and for the advancement of engineering and operating practice in the steel industry.

The AIST Awards and Recognition Program is an important aspect of the association and its commitment to the iron and steel industry. Its purpose is to recognize, through peer review, the active leadership and significant contributions of individuals or companies to AIST and the global iron and steel industry. The authors were nominated for this award as the recipient of the 2016 Josef S. Kapitan Award-Ironmaking from the AIST Ironmaking Technology Committee.

The authors will receive the award at the AIST Presidenta��s Award Breakfast on Tuesday, 9 May 2017 in Nashville, Tenn., USA. The event draws in excess of 1,000 attendees world-wide. The breakfast is held in conjunction with AISTech 2017 a�� the Iron & Steel Technology Conference and Exposition, representing the largest annual technological forum for the global steel industry.

Center for Innovation through Visualization and Simulation
CIVS is an interdisciplinary applied research center that combines advanced simulation techniques with 3D visualization and virtual reality technologies to produce innovative solutions in response to industrial and research challenges.

AK Steel
Headquartered in West Chester, Ohio, AK Steel is a leading producer of flat-rolled carbon and carbon and stainless tubular products, primarily for automotive, infrastructure and manufacturing, construction and electrical power generation and distribution markets.

Association for Iron & Steel Technology
AIST is a non-profit organization with 17,500 members from more than 70 countries. With 30 Technology Committees and 22 Local Members Chapters, AIST represents an incomparable network of steel industry knowledge and expertise.

Purdue University Northwest
Purdue University Northwest (PNW), a comprehensive regional university within the Purdue University system, has two Northwest Indiana campuses in Hammond and Westville. The university was established by the unification in early 2016 of the former Purdue University Calumet and Purdue University North Central. With more than 15,000 students and nearly 70 undergraduate and graduate degree programs, Purdue Northwest is Indianaa��s fifth largest public university.

July 8, 2016 by Sonia Diaz

PNW Part of National Manufacturing Initiative

The SMII will launch five regional manufacturing centers across the nation, each focused on local technology needs and workforce development. These centers will house technology testbeds designed to demonstrate the commercial potential of new smart manufacturing technologies.A�Zhou said Purdue Northwesta��s participation opens the door to possible projects relating to proven CIVS capabilities in computational fluid dynamics, visualization and workforce development.

Successful projects

a�?We were invited to participate by the Smart Manufacturing Leadership Coalition,a�? Zhou said, a�?because of successful projects we performed for the Department of Energy, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and various industries.a�?

The SMII also will enable small, medium and large manufacturers new and unparalleled access to smart tools, innovation and the ability to grow their business.A�a�?Being part of this new institute,a�? Zhou said, a�?will provide learning and partnership opportunities for our students and faculty; create relationships for CIVS with industries, national labs and other universities; and help cultivate possible external funding sources.a�?

Purdue University Northwest

Purdue University Calumet of Hammond and Purdue University North Central of Westville recently unified to become Purdue University Northwest (PNW), a comprehensive regional university of two campuses within the Purdue University system. When it welcomes its first class of students this fall, PNW will become Indianaa��s fifth largest university, enrolling some 15,000 students and offering approximately 70 undergraduate and graduate degree programs.

June 9, 2016 by Sonia Diaz

Semi-Annual Project and Board Meetings for Steel Manufacturing Consortium held at CIVS

On Monday June 6, 2016 the Steel Manufacturing Consortium (SMSVC) held its Semi-Annual project and board meetings at the Center for Innovation through Visualization and Simulation (CIVS) at Purdue University Northwest a�� Calumet Campus, in Hammond, Indiana. There were over 30 attendees from the nine consortium members representing steel producers and suppliers from the U.S and Canada.

The meeting covered technical presentations on projects selected in January by the consortium members that are focused on workplace & process safety, energy efficiency, operational efficiency, reliability and maintenance, workforce development, environmental impacts, raw materials utilization and smart manufacturing. Presentations were given in the Immersive Theater, and several other demos were given featuring computer simulation and 3-D technology such as Oculus Rift.A� To get the day started Chancellor Keon and Jean-Louis Staundenmann from NIST gave opening remarks.

The Annual meeting for the consortium will be held early November 2016.

May 31, 2016 by Sonia Diaz

CIVS Participated in a Number of Activities at AISTech 2016

CIVS participated in a number of activities at AISTech 2016 conference, held in Pittsburgh, PA. CIVS staff and students presented 7 technical papers, 3 posters, and 1 oral presentation.A� CIVS was also recognized for their paper, titled “Investigation of Co-Injection of Natural Gas and Pulverized Coal in a Blast Furnace,” and received the Association for Iron and Steel Technology’s (AIST) 2016 Josef S. Kapitan Award-Ironmaking. CIVS hosted a booth highlighting new technologies and promoted the Steel Manufacturing Simulation and Visualization Consortium.A� Among the visitors was John Brett, president and chief executive officer, ArcelorMittal USA (see in the photo below).

April 29, 2016 by Sonia Diaz

Purdue Steel Consortium to generate ideas, keep mills competitive

Article written by Joseph S. Pete, taken from the NWI Times website, published April 29, 2016

Purdue University Northwesta��s new national steel consortium is going to come up with ideas and innovations that could help make the beleaguered domestic steel industry more competitive.

The Center for Innovation through Visualization and Simulation has teamed up with steelmakers, including ArcelorMittal and U.S. Steel, and major suppliers, like Praxair and NIPSCO, to form the research consortium, which is based out of Purduea��s Hammond campus.
Founding Director Chenn Zhou and a panel of consortium members told the Lakeshore Chamber on Thursday at Dynasty Banquets in Hammond how the Steel Manufacturing Simulation and Visualization Consortium would help the industry, such as by tackling projects that would make it more energy-efficient and environmentally friendly.

a�?Ita��s been over a century since the great steel mills were built here, and they probably reached their peak in 1978, when they employed 70,000 people,a�? said Don Babcock, NIPSCOa��s director of economic development. a�?We still make 20 to 25 percent of the nationa��s best steel. But we all recognize the industry is under assault internationally. They want to eat our lunch. We have to do everything we can to maintain this phenomenal business and industry.a�?
Steel remains strong in Northwest Indiana, which has three large integrated mills, more than anywhere else in the United States, said Kelly Dallas, a prinicipal engineer with ArcelorMittal USA who was a chairperson for the Association for Iron and Steel Technology Midwest Chapter. The Region is close to rail lines that bring in steelmaking inputs, population centers that consume the finished steel, and a�� perhaps most importantly a�� the iron ore thata��s shipped down from Minnesota across the Great Lakes to fuel the blast furnaces.

Northwest Indianaa��s steel industry however has been struggling of late after a record surge of imports and wave after wave of layoffs. It supports many other companies such as NIPSCO since the mills consume so much power and Praxair, an industrial gas supplier that owes about 75 percent of its business in Northwest Indiana to the steel industry, said Mitch Day, Praxair strategic account director.
a�?What if the steel industry disappeared tomorrow,a�? Day said. a�?Wea��d be affected.a�?
Babcock estimates Northwest Indiana would suffer at least a $2 billion blow if the mills were to close.
a�?Thata��s why we have to ensure ita��s as sustainable and viable as it possibly can be,a�? he said.
David White, ArcelorMittal USA director of process research, said the consortium could help the steel industry move forward in directions ita��s headed in, such as to burn natural gas instead of coke to make iron and to have more continuous operating in finishing. Steel coil likely will be rolled, heat-treated and finished in other ways while on the same line, instead of through separate processes, he said.
a�?Ita��s true wea��re competitors, and wea��re not going to exchange product secrets or recipes or things like that,a�? he said. a�?But there are issues that are common to us all, like safety, energy efficiency and reducing the environmental footprint, that would benefit everybody.a�?
Day said ita��s necessary to make strategic investments in making the steel industry more efficient and competitive because suppliers benefit when it does well.

a�?This is the next chapter in the evolution of the steel industry,a�? he said. a�?Wea��ve investing $80 million in an expansion of our facility at Burns Harbor. We expect steel will be here for the next 100 years.a�?
Day said ita��s necessary to make strategic investments in making the steel industry more efficient and competitive because suppliers benefit when it does well.
a�?This is the next chapter in the evolution of the steel industry,a�? he said. a�?Wea��ve investing $80 million in an expansion of our facility at Burns Harbor. We expect steel will be here for the next 100 years.a�?