National Taiwan University (NTU) yesterday opened a steel research center on its campus to develop and meet the demand for advanced technologies.
The center was founded in collaboration with China Steel Corp (中鋼), the nation’s largest steelmaker, and Brazil’s Companhia Brasileira de Metalurgia e Mineracao (CBMM), the world’s top producer of niobium — a chemical used to strengthen steel.
The university hopes that by combining local and foreign resources in the research and development (R&D) of advanced steel technologies, the center could become a pioneer in the field.
“We aim to become a world-class steel microstructure research center and to develop energy-saving steel products,” Yang Jer-ren (楊哲人), a materials science professor at the university and director of the research center, said at the opening ceremony.
David Jarreta, a CBMM consultant, said that while his company does not own labs or R&D facilities, it has been supporting more than 100 academic research programs around the world to provide cutting-edge technologies.
“We have built a network of connections and cooperation programs around the world,” Jarreta said, adding that CBMM was planning to seek more cooperation opportunities with Taiwan.
China Steel chairman Tsou Juo-chi (鄒若齊) said he hoped the center could help big carbon-emitting industries, such as steel, develop more environmentally friendly products.
Tsou said he also expected the center to cultivate knowledge and contribute to the development of the nation’s steel industry.
Additional reporting by Kevin Chen
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