ultralights by voestalpine
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The Automotive Dialogue 2025 is now in the past and covered a wide range of topics from the beginnings of high-strength steels to innovative lightweight solutions and sustainable perspectives. In exciting lectures, top-class experts from voestalpine and international speakers from the field of scientific research shared their insights into the past and their visions for the future. Discussions about current challenges and opportunities created an inspiring framework for intensive exchange and new impulses. Thank you for your participation!
Steel as a material has always been the backbone of the automotive industry, but which developments have shaped the industry? In his role as host, Andreas Pichler took us on an exciting journey through the past, present and future of steel development and processing. He highlighted how high-strength steels revolutionized vehicle design, which sustainable technologies will change steel production, and why the increased use of recycled scrap will be playing a key role. Experience a fascinating view of an industry that is constantly changing and being reinvented again and again!
In the past, findings in the basic and applied research of dual-phase steels have contributed significantly to the development of new alloying and processing methods. These innovations paved the way for a new generation of advanced high-strength steels (AHSS). Thanks to their outstanding mechanical properties, these steels enable a significant reduction in vehicle weight without compromising any safety or structural integrity. At the same time, they contribute to improving energy efficiency and reducing carbon emissions.
How can high-strength steels be made even better? The answer lies in microstructure-based micromechanical modeling. This method allows the mechanical properties of steels to be analyzed and optimized at the microstructural level. From deep-drawability to stretch-formability to crack formation, a detailed investigation of microstructural mechanisms is crucial in our efforts to identify critical stress and strain ranges. Realistic stress scenarios can be identified by combining empirical observations, precise analyses and numerical simulations.
With clear objectives and concrete measures, voestalpine is resolutely meeting the challenge of green transformation in the steelmaking industry. While initial construction progress is already visible in Linz, the company remains at the forefront in the optimization of blast furnace-based steel production in the interest of reducing carbon emissions. But this is only the beginning. The first electric arc furnace (EAF) will go into operation in 2027, a feat that is expected to reduce emissions by 30% by 2029. The future of steelmaking with net zero carbon emissions lies in hydrogen technology, voestalpine has been intensively researching this key technology for several years.
The circular economy is changing steelmaking, but how exactly? The increased concentrations of trace and tramp elements alter the microstructure of the steel and require targeted countermeasures. Hybrid models that combine theoretical findings with extensive experimental data provide in-depth insights. AI methods can be used to better understand and visualize these complex relationships. The influence of various elements on recrystallization and ferrite formation was described satisfactorily in an initial project phase. Future joint projects will expand research to additional aspects.
Small elements, big effect. Increased concentrations of trace and tramp elements can change the phase transformation temperature, influence grain size and lead to changes in the microstructure. Sn and Sb present particular challenges in that they lead to an embrittlement of the grain boundaries, which can have a negative effect on the mechanical properties of steel. Using state-of-the-art techniques such as atomic probe tomography, these processes can now be precisely investigated. The objective is an in-depth understanding of the increase in trace and tramp elements and how these higher concentrations affect sustainable steel production.
