Period: 01.07.2026 – 30.06.2028

The project represents a technological upgrade of the successfully completed project ARIS L2-3173 (1.10.2021 – 30.4.2025) Advanced simulation and optimisation of the entire process path for production of topmost steels from TRL2 to TRL4. The developed multiphysics and multiscale numerical models for continuous casting, reheating, hot rolling, cooling bench, and heat treatment, which have been successfully demonstrated for specific steels, will be upgraded by connecting them with modern material properties databases (ThermoCalc, JMatPro), thus enabling the simulation of the entire spectrum of industrially relevant modern steels. In addition, these connections will provide the simulation of the relations between the microstructure and material properties of the semi-finished product. We will build important functionalities based on artificial intelligence into the through-process-modelling simulation system, enabling automatic optimisation of process parameters. The optimisation criteria will be based on quality, productivity, and environmental impact. Multiobjective optimisation will be based on genetic algorithms. These functionalities will enable direct insight into the process characteristics and material properties of the product after each process step and at the end of production. By incorporating artificial intelligence, it will also be possible to automatically find the reverse: process parameters corresponding to a predetermined process state and material properties. The project will use the following key enabling technologies: advanced computerised manufacturing based on numerical simulations and artificial intelligence, which will allow systematic informatised development of new types of premium steels, make production more efficient and environmentally friendly, and thus provide a research and industrial advantage. The project aims to demonstrate all of the listed new functionalities of process modelling for the production process at Štore Steel company.

GOALS

The project is based on the developed basic process model for multi-physics and multi-level modelling of microstructure evolution across different steps of steel processing (project result L2-3173) at the TRL2 level.

The objectives of the project, which upgrade the state of research from TRL2 to TRL4, are:

1) Coupling macroscopic, mesoscopic and microscopic models with modern databases of steel material properties (JMatPro, Thermocalc). Simulation of relations between microstructure and product properties.

2) Development of quality, productivity and environmental impact indicators of individual process steps and the entire process.

3) Development of automatic process modelling manipulators.

4) Development of multi-criteria optimisation methods for the process and material properties of semi-finished products based on artificial intelligence.

5) Validation, industrial trials, evaluation and publications of developed new functionalities.

The total value of the  project is EUR 190.000, of which EUR 140.000 is provided by the European Regional Development Fund. The programme is co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund under the European Cohesion Policy Programme 2021–2027.

The project JEKLOSIM began on 1 July 2026 and will run until 30 June 2028. The programme is led by the University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering. The consortium also includes the company Štore Steel, d.o.o.