Prosperity Partnership in Rapid Product Development

快速产品开发中的繁荣合作伙伴关系

• 批准号: EP/S005218/1
• 负责人: Nicholas Lavery
• 金额: $ 322.56万
• 依托单位: Swansea University
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Research Grant
• 财政年份: 2018
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2018 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=EP%2FS005218%2F1
• 关键词: Prosperity; Partnership; Rapid; Product; Development

Steel is a vitally important structural material, critical for infrastructure, transport, communications networks, water, energy and waste utilities. Future advances in key manufacturing sectors rely on new, innovative steel products. A successful steel industry must be able to deliver such innovation quickly to (i) satisfy customer requirements and (ii) grow its business. The conventional steelmaking innovation cycle is slow and iterative, requiring expensive trials using hundreds of tonnes of material, representing significant financial risk and limiting opportunities to investigate radically different alloys with disruptive solutions. Imagination and creativity are therefore inhibited.The proposed solution: This Prosperity Partnership will implement a Rapid Alloy Prototyping (RAP) process, analogous to the high-throughput methodologies used in the pharmaceutical industry. Instead of using tens of industrial scale ingots (tonnes) per alloy, large numbers (hundreds) of small laboratory scale samples (grams) of different steel alloy combinations will be tested for properties, processability and characterised using state-of-the-art imaging. In addition computer modelling will be used to design new compositions and predict through process behaviour. The efficacy of the method will be demonstrated by comparison to existing production data for established benchmark steel grades.The RAP process will provide a rapid screening and ranking methodology for promising new alloys leading to quicker promotion from lab-scale tests (grams) to progressive upscaling tests (tens of kilograms). Alloys performing in the upscaling tests can then be promoted to full scale manufacturing (tonnes) resulting in an order of magnitude speed-up in the innovation cycle for new steel products.Industry involvement from Tata Steel in the Partnership is essential at all decision points to ensure (i) the processability of new alloys on existing plant equipment, (ii) new alloys satisfy commercial requirements and (iii) to maintain research focus on commercially relevant alloys which will boost UK Prosperity. However, while this industrial 'reality check' is vital it does not preclude the investigation of more adventurous unorthodox alloys normally not considered. Indeed, the proposed RAP approach will widen the scope for discovery of new alloys at little or no risk to Tata Steel.Currently 20% of primary steel comes from scrap steel which introduces impurity elements into the final product (e.g. Sn and Cu). The global trend of increasing scrap-use means there is an urgent need to prepare the UK and identify future opportunities. It is impossible for Tata Steel to carry out conventional plant trials to investigate the influence of increasing impurity elements from scrap-use, as thousands of tonnes of unsellable material would need to be cast at a high cost and possibly damage valuable assets. The RAP process will allow a comprehensive assessment of increased impurity effects on processing and properties of current and new steel products by simulating increased scrap use, as well as developing the fundamental understanding on these effects. Benefit to the UK EconomyThe ability to manufacture steel remains essential for a modern industrial economy. Tata Steel directly employs 8000 people in the UK and makes around 15,000 different steel products. In 2017 Tata sold directly to 200 customers in the UK and indirectly to over 1000 through stockists. The UK manufacturing sector employs 2.6M people and will benefit from provision of new steel grades with enhanced and tailored properties. This Prosperity Partnership is aligned to the clean growth agenda of the Industrial Strategy and the EPSRC Prosperity Outcomes, contributing to a Productive Nation. The increased ability of Tata Steel to react to global socio-economic conditions with new and innovative steel products arising from the proposed RAP process is aligned with the Resilient Nation outcome

钢铁是一种至关重要的结构材料，对基础设施、交通、通信网络、水、能源和废物处理设施至关重要。关键制造业的未来发展依赖于新的、创新的钢铁产品。一个成功的钢铁行业必须能够快速实现这种创新，以（i）满足客户需求，（ii）发展业务。传统的炼钢创新周期缓慢且反复，需要使用数百吨材料进行昂贵的试验，这意味着巨大的财务风险，并限制了研究具有颠覆性解决方案的完全不同的合金的机会。因此，想象力和创造力受到抑制。拟议的解决方案：该繁荣合作伙伴关系将实施快速合金原型（RAP）工艺，类似于制药行业使用的高通量方法。代替使用每种合金数十个工业规模的锭（吨），将测试不同钢合金组合的大量（数百个）小实验室规模的样品（克）的性能、可加工性，并使用最先进的成像进行表征。此外，计算机建模将用于设计新的组合物，并通过过程行为进行预测。RAP工艺将为有前景的新合金提供快速筛选和排序方法，从而更快地从实验室规模试验（克级）推广到逐步升级试验（数十公斤级）。在扩大规模测试中表现良好的合金随后可被推广到全规模生产（吨），从而使新钢铁产品的创新周期加快一个数量级。塔塔钢铁在合作伙伴关系中的行业参与在所有决策点都至关重要，以确保（i）新合金在现有工厂设备上的可加工性，（ii）新合金满足商业要求，（iii）保持对商业相关合金的研究重点，这将促进英国的繁荣。然而，虽然这种工业“现实检查”是至关重要的，但它并不排除对通常不被考虑的更具冒险性的非正统合金的研究。事实上，拟议的RAP方法将扩大新合金的发现范围，而对塔塔钢铁公司的风险很小或没有风险。目前，20%的原钢来自废钢，这些废钢将杂质元素（例如Sn和Cu）引入最终产品。全球废品使用量增加的趋势意味着英国迫切需要做好准备，并确定未来的机会。塔塔钢铁不可能进行传统的工厂试验来调查废料使用中杂质元素增加的影响，因为数千吨无法销售的材料需要以高成本铸造，并可能损坏宝贵的资产。RAP工艺将允许通过模拟增加的废钢使用，以及对这些影响的基本理解，全面评估杂质增加对当前和新钢铁产品的加工和性能的影响。对英国经济的好处钢铁制造能力对现代工业经济仍然至关重要。塔塔钢铁在英国直接雇佣了8000名员工，生产大约15,000种不同的钢铁产品。2017年，塔塔直接向英国的200名客户销售，并通过零售商间接向1000多名客户销售。英国制造业雇用了260万人，并将受益于提供具有增强和定制性能的新钢种。这一“繁荣伙伴关系”与工业战略的清洁增长议程和EPSRC的“繁荣成果”相一致，有助于建设一个生产型国家。塔塔钢铁公司通过拟议的RAP流程生产新的创新型钢铁产品，应对全球社会经济状况的能力得到提高，这与“韧性国家”成果相一致

项目成果

Development of Desirable Fine Ferrite Grain Size and Random Second Phase Dual-Phase Steel Microstructures Using Composition and/or Processing Modifications

利用成分和/或工艺改进开发所需的细铁素体晶粒尺寸和随机第二相双相钢微观结构

• DOI: 10.3390/met12071158
• 发表时间: 2022
• 期刊: Metals
• 影响因子: 2.9
• 作者: Bandi B

Texture Development During Annealing in a Low-Carbon Formable Steel Containing Impurities from Increased Scrap Use

• DOI: 10.1007/s11661-022-06952-3
• 发表时间: 2023-01
• 期刊: Metallurgical and Materials Transactions A
• 作者: J. Duan;D. Farrugia;C. Davis;Zushu Li

Near Net Shape Casting: Is It Possible to Cast Too Thin?

• DOI: 10.1007/s11663-020-01964-z
• 发表时间: 2020-09
• 期刊: Metallurgical and Materials Transactions B
• 作者: C. Slater;C. Davis

Synergistic effect of residual elements on oxidation rates and oxide/metal interface characteristics in a low-carbon steel oxidized at 1180°C for 3 hours

• DOI: 10.1080/03019233.2023.2201545
• 发表时间: 2023-05
• 期刊: Ironmaking & Steelmaking
• 影响因子: 2.1
• 作者: Jiaqi Duan;D. Farrugia;C. Davis;Zhiming Yan;Zushu Li

Effect of intercritical annealing on the mechanical properties of dual-phase steel

• DOI: 10.1080/03019233.2022.2062163
• 发表时间: 2022-04
• 期刊: Ironmaking & Steelmaking
• 影响因子: 2.1
• 作者: James Ayres;D. Penney;P. Evans;R. Underhill