EEC 2026 - 14th European Electric Steelmaking Conference & EMECR 2026 - 5th International Conference on Energy and Material Efficiency and CO2 Reduction in the Steel Industry

Session

Automation and Digitalization in Electric Steelmaking I

11 May 2026, 14:10

Parini room

Conveners

Automation and Digitalization in Electric Steelmaking I

• Bernd Kleimt (VDEh-Betriebsforschungsinstitut GmbH)

27. Optimization of electric arc furnace refining via CFD simulation of steel, slag, and freeboard dynamics

Orlando Ugarte (Purdue University Northwest)

11/05/2026, 14:10

EEC 2.A Energy efficiency and consumption reduction strategies

Keynote Presentation

In recent years, the steel industry has increasingly adopted electric arc furnaces (EAFs). Currently, more than 70% of steel production in the United States is achieved through EAFs. In addition to their energy efficiency and operational flexibility, EAFs can reduce carbon emissions by up to 55% compared with the blast furnace–basic oxygen furnace route, making them a key technology for...

133. Optimized Scheduling for Electric Steelmaking: Integrating EAF, Secondary Metallurgy, Casting and Rolling for Throughput and Energy Efficiency

Dr Michael Peintinger (Smart Steel Technologies)

11/05/2026, 14:30

EEC 1.E Automation and digitalization in electric steelmaking

Oral Presentation

In the electric steelmaking industry, short-term production planning often remains siloed, with process areas like the Electric Arc Furnace (EAF) melt shop, secondary metallurgy, and casting machine scheduled in isolation. This operational separation creates significant internal friction, manifesting as waiting times, inconsistent thermal profiles, and excessive energy consumption whenever...

138. Computer Vision-Based Copper Detection for Electric Arc Furnace Scrap Quality Enhancement

Dr Alice Petrucciani (Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna, TeCIP Institute)

11/05/2026, 14:50

EEC 3.A Sourcing and quality of scrap metal

Oral Presentation

The ongoing digital revolution across industrial sectors has positioned Deep Learning and Computer Vision as pivotal technologies for transforming conventional operations, particularly in waste management and material recycling. This transformation holds significant implications for Electric Arc Furnace steel production, where scrap metal serves as the principal feedstock. The efficiency and...

10. Innovation in weighing technologies meet growing melt shop operation requirements

Mr Martin Rudolf Brauer (Qlar Europe GmbH)

11/05/2026, 15:10

EEC 2.C Process control and quality improvement techniques

Oral Presentation

Reliable, precise, and maintenance-friendly weighing systems have always been essential for safe and efficient production in the harsh environment of steel melt shops. Today, modern technologies empower us to equip key production assets with weighing systems that are both robust and highly accurate. This enables steel producers to meet the growing demands for safety, process control and...

90. Hot Heel estimation: How system dynamics can be used for multiple purposes

Yves Van Ingelgem (Zensor)

11/05/2026, 15:30

EEC 1.E Automation and digitalization in electric steelmaking

Oral Presentation

The present work will show a technique for assessing the amount of hot heel or liquid heel using robust hardware. Additionally: the same data stream used for assessing the Hot Heel, can be used for looking at the integrity of a part of the EAF itself.

Many people still operate by the principle: 1 sensor to track 1 problem or 1 property. This sometimes needs to be adhered to strictly, but...