RNS: The two-day, 2nd International Conference REFIS-4.0 on “Advances in Refractories in Iron and Steel Industry through Nanotechnology and Sustainable Solutions” began at Bokaro Steel Plant’s Human Resource Development Center on Friday.
The conference was inaugurated by Atanu Bhowmik, Director-in-charge of Rourkela Steel Plant and Additional Incharge of Bokaro Steel Plant. Birendra Kumar Tiwari, Executive Director (Operations) of Bokaro Steel Plant, along with Dr. Deepak Jain, Director General (FII), and Dr. Chacko Jacob, Professor (IIT, Kharagpur), were present as special guests. VP Upadhyay, Executive Director and Chief General Manager (Refractories) of BSL, along with other senior officers, also attended the conference.
During the inaugural session, SAIL Chairman Amarendu Prakash, Director-in-charge of Bhilai Steel Plant A Dasgupta, and Director-in-charge of Durgapur and ISP Burnpur BP Singh addressed the participants online, discussing the challenges and possibilities related to refractories.
Speaking on the occasion, Bhowmik, Tiwari, and Dr. Jain emphasized the importance of refractories in the steel industry, especially considering the country’s target to increase steel production capacity by 2030. Dr. Chacko Jacob delivered a lecture on the potential of nanotechnology in refractories.
The conference, organized jointly by the Institution of Engineers India and the Indian Ceramic Society, has attracted more than 350 delegates, including refractory experts, manufacturers, and users.
About 40 technical papers will be presented during the event. After the inaugural session, guests visited a technical exhibition, and technical papers related to refractories were presented during the afternoon sessions. The conference will continue on April 13th as well.
Discussions at the conference will focus on the challenges facing the refractory industry, particularly in achieving the target of 300 million tonnes of steel production capacity by 2030 and making the country self-reliant in the refractory sector.
A roadmap for the future will be prepared based on discussions on constructing low-cost, high-quality refractories and the mutual interests of the steel and refractory industries. This conference is significant as refractory materials play a crucial role in the steel industry, and the use of low-cost, high-quality refractories can reduce the cost of steel production.
