steelChallenge-16 Faculty Advisors of Regional Champions
Matjaž KNAP
Professor in the Department of Materials and Metallurgy, University of Ljubljana
Advisory professor of the Regional Champion – Europe and Africa – Blaž Žerjav Jereb
“I received my PhD in 2003 in the field of materials science from the Faculty of Natural Sciences and Engineering at the University of Ljubljana. After several years as an assistant in various fields of metallurgy, I was elected assistant professor in the field of materials process engineering in 2010. Today I am a university professor at the Faculty of Natural Sciences and Engineering, Department of Materials and Metallurgy, University of Ljubljana.
My pedagogical work is mainly focused on lectures from the field of steelmaking processes, steel slags and refractory materials.
The main goal of my pedagogical work is not to overwhelm students with data, but to teach them to solve the problems using different models. steelChallenge is a great tool to show students that the knowledge they acquire is at least as great as that of other students around the world, if not greater.
My research work is generally focused on steelmaking. One of the areas is the experimental study of the formation of non-metallic inclusions during steelmaking in electric arc furnaces, secondary refining processes and continuous casting to prevent nozzle clogging. In continuous casting, I am also interested in optimising the melt flow in the tundish using different dams and barriers based on physical and numerical modelling of the melt flow. Another very important area from my point of view is the intensification of the use of by-products (slag, dust) as primary or secondary raw material. And last but not least, promoting the use of artificial intelligence is one of my favorite topics.”
Youn-Bae Kang
Professor of the research group Clean Steel Laboratory, Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH)
Advisory professor of Regional Champion – Americas – Dong-Hyun KIM
Youn-Bae Kang was educated at Pohang University of Science and Technology, South Korea (Ph.D. in Materials Science and engineering).
After his postdoctoral, he worked in Ecole Polytechnique de Montreal in Canada, and joined the faculty of the Graduate Institute of Ferrous and Energy Materials Technology at Pohang University of Science and Technology. Now he is a full professor in POSTECH, and leads a research group called Clean Steel Laboratory.
His research focuses on solution thermodynamics and reaction kinetics, with particular emphasis on a high-temperature reaction between liquid steel and relevant materials (slag, inclusion, refractories, etc.).
His research interests include high-temperature chemical metallurgy to be applied to steelmaking, refining, and casting process of steel. A combination of high-temperature experiments with computational thermodynamics and reaction kinetics have been used in order to develop new refining process, recycling of ferrous scrap, improving steel cleanliness.
He has been awarded by several academic societies including TMS, ASM, ISIJ, Korean Institute of Metals and Materials, and National Academy of Engineering of Korea.
He also published over 230 scientific papers.
Sunil KUMAR
Professor in Steel Making and Fundamentals of Metallurgy, Shavak Nanavati Technical Institute
Advisory professor of the Regional Champion – Asia West – Amit KUMAR BHUYAN
Sunil Kumar is faculty at Shavak Nanavati Technical Institute where he teaches different topics of Steel Making and Fundamentals of Metallurgy. He has six years of working experience working as a faculty professor in Shavak Nanavati Technical Institute.
He has completed his B Tech degree in Metallurgy and Material Science from the Indian Institute of metals. Before joining Shavak Nanavati Technical Institute, he has worked in different departments of Tata Steel Limited like LD Furnace, Sinter Plant, Lime Plant, etc.
He has 15 years of working experience in the different Steel Manufacturing processes.
As an expert in the Steel Making area, he coaches and guides the students of Shavak Nanavati for the steelChallenge competition.
Yingli Tang
Professor of the Department of Materials Engineering, Tangshan Vocational College of Science and Technology
Professor of Regional Champion – Asia North – Qichen LI
Tang Yingli, teacher of the Department of Materials Engineering of Tangshan Vocational College of Science and Technology. From teaching until now, I hosted and participated in the completion of “Research on the Path of Vocational Quality Improvement of Higher Vocational Students under Course Ideology and Politics” and “Research on the Integration of Craftsman Spirit in a Great Country into the Training Model of High-skilled Talents”, and published a number of papers in the field of iron and steel metallurgy.
Yingli served as a student instructor in the Iron and Steel Metallurgy Competition for many times and achieved excellent results: awarded the titles of “Excellent Communist Party Member”, “Advanced Worker” and “Advanced Individual” by the college for many times. Ten years of work enthusiasm has allowed him to exert his own light and enthusiasm in ordinary positions, and dedicate his youth to the development of education.
steelChallenge16 is generously sponsored by the following companies:
