The Materials Processing Institute (MPI) has entered a long-term collaboration with machine learning specialists Intellegens to cut carbon emissions from the next generation of Electric Arc Furnaces (EAFs).
Through the use of machine learning, MPI aims to optimise EAF design, enhance scrap steel recycling, and advance the development of essential materials produced by the foundation industries, including concrete and plastic.
MPI, which operates an EAF plant at its Green Steel Centre on Teesside, will deploy Intellegens' advanced Alchemite™ machine learning suite. Alchemite™ supports process, material, chemical, and formulation design, enabling R&D teams to reduce repetitive, costly, and time-intensive experiments by an estimated 50-80%. The tool has already seen success across various industries, from alloy development in automotive to additive manufacturing and drug pharmacokinetics.
With the UK’s steel industry moving toward lower carbon production methods, MPI’s project is timely. British Steel, for instance, has received approval to build two EAFs at Teesside and Scunthorpe, while Tata Steel plans an EAF at Port Talbot in South Wales.
This collaboration falls under the UK Research and Innovation-funded EconoMISER programme, the Foundation Industry Sustainability Consortium’s (FISC) first initiative, allowing MPI to significantly boost its research capabilities and support industry stakeholders in advancing sustainability and net-zero goals.
Dr Gareth Conduit, CSO at Cambridge-based Intellegens, commented: “The programme with MPI offers a great opportunity at a time of transition for the UK steelmaking industry to Electric Arc Furnaces. We are excited to see how Alchemite™ machine learning can drive steelmaking to a green future.”
Terry Walsh, CEO of MPI, added: "Our collaboration with Intellegens is a crucial step in supporting the UK’s steel industry to transition to a more sustainable future. Applying machine learning to EAF technology will allow us to create new efficiencies and accelerate our capacity to innovate.”
Nick Parry, MPI’s Group Leader for Industrial Digitalisation, highlighted: “We have accumulated decades of process knowledge and data, but to meet the necessary innovation timelines and achieve cost savings while reducing carbon emissions, research must be conducted at a significantly faster pace. Such innovations are crucial as the steel industry shifts towards using more scrap feedstocks to meet the rising demand for new, high-performance steel products.”
Photo caption: (L-R) Ben Pellegrini, CEO of Intellegens, and Nick Parry, MPI’s Group Manager – Industrial Digitalisation.