Published by: Chen Machuan   Editor: Chen Machuan

WUST News (Reporter Chen Machuan) - On the morning of May 24, the inaugural meeting of the Refractory Materials Innovation Alliance, initiated by the Wuhan University of Science and Technology (WUST), was held at the Biyuan Hall of the Qingshan Campus. WUST signed agreements with 12 leading refractory materials companies at home and abroad to jointly establish the Refractory Materials Innovation Alliance. The alliance aims to create world-class disciplines and promote innovative development in the refractory materials industry.

Key attendees included Zhou Qihong, Member of the Party Group and Deputy Director of the Hubei Provincial Department of Education; Wang Xinye, Member of the Party Group and Deputy Director of the Hubei Provincial Department of Science and Technology; Bo Jun, President of the China Refractories Industry Association; Yuan Lin, Chairman of the Refractory Materials Branch of the Chinese Ceramic Society; and Wang Wenwu, Deputy Director of the Refractory Materials Branch of the Chinese Society for Metals. Also present were Xu Yanbing, Party Secretary of WUST; Ni Hongwei, President of WUST; Li Nan, Distinguished Lifetime Member of the Unified International Technical Conference of Refractories and former Chief Professor of WUST; as well as over 300 representatives from leading refractory materials companies, faculty, and students. The meeting was chaired by Vice President Dong Lijie.

Guided by the China Refractories Industry Association, the Refractory Materials Branch of the Chinese Ceramic Society, and the Refractory Materials Branch of the Chinese Society for Metals, the Refractory Materials Innovation Alliance was initiated by WUST. It is a nationwide non-profit cooperative organization voluntarily composed of leading companies in the refractory materials industry and related universities and research institutions in the field. The founding members include: Sinosteel Luonai Materials Technology Corporation, Puyang Refractories Group Co., Ltd., Beijing LiRR High Temperature Materials Co., Ltd., Ruitai Materials Technology Co., Ltd., ACRE Coking & Refractory (Dalian) Engineering Consulting Corporation, RHI Magnesita (China) Co., Ltd., Morgan Thermal Ceramics (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., Vesuvius Advanced Ceramics China Co., Ltd., Saint-Gobain Group Beijing SEPR Refractories Co., Ltd., Zili Holding, Guangzhou Lingnan Refractory Co., Ltd., and Jiangsu Chianaref Refractory Co., Ltd.

Zhou Qihong emphasized the strategic importance of refractory materials as the "strategic underpinning " of high-temperature industries, highlighting the significance of their innovative development for national core industries. He acknowledged WUST as a major academic center in the field of refractory materials, with a comprehensive innovation system from basic research to engineering application, and a significant pool of industry-leading professionals. He expressed hope that the alliance would focus on key technological breakthroughs, acting as a “spearhead unit” to establish mechanisms for project collaboration, platform co-construction, and result-sharing; build a “new high ground” for industry-education integration, cultivating high-quality interdisciplinary talents urgently needed by the industry; and serve as a “think tank” for industry transformation and upgrading, providing scientific basis for government decision-making. He stated that the Provincial Department of Education will fully support the development of the alliance in terms of policy provision, resource integration, and mechanism innovation. By collaborating with various parties from schools and enterprises, they aim to create a virtuous cycle where “education empowers industry, and industry reciprocates to education.” This will continuously enhance the support and contribution of education to the high-quality development of the economy and society, jointly writing a magnificent chapter of using the construction of an educational powerhouse to support and lead Chinese modernization.

In his speech, Wang Xinye pointed out that WUST, with its focus on coke oven refractory materials, has earned a high reputation in the industry through years of dedicated efforts. It is not only an important base for the cultivation of talents in refractory materials but also a significant representative in the field of research and education on refractory materials. Led by WUST, the initiative to establish the Refractory Materials Innovation Alliance in collaboration with leading enterprises in the refractory industry is a pragmatic measure in response to the demands of the times and the calls from the industry. It is also a concrete action to deepen the integrated development of education, science and technology, and talent. He expressed hope that the alliance would focus on serving the major strategic needs of the nation, aligning with the requirements for the construction of the State Key Laboratory for Advanced Refractory Materials (Wuhan), strengthening original innovation and tackling key core technologies, and overcoming the "bottleneck" issues in industrial development. It should focus on supporting the pivotal construction in Hubei Province, closely aligning with the province's “51020 advanced manufacturing industry cluster” construction needs, and providing strong support for the development of industries such as low-carbon metallurgy within the province. Additionally, the alliance should focus on integrating the development of technological and industrial innovation, promoting the establishment of a collaborative mechanism for resource sharing, complementary advantages, and shared benefits, and creating a model of collaborative innovation and an industry benchmark.

In his speech, Bo Jun stated that as the "industrial cornerstone" of high-temperature industries, the innovative development of refractory materials is crucial to the nation's vital industries. Currently, the refractory materials industry faces both challenges and opportunities. The establishment of the innovation alliance, which deeply integrates the education chain, talent chain, industry chain, and innovation chain, is the key to solving the industry's "bottleneck" issues and lays a solid foundation for improving the national high-temperature materials innovation system. He expressed hope that the alliance will serve as a "task force" for tackling key technologies, build a "highway" for the transformation of achievements, and establish an "incubator" for talent cultivation. The Association of China Refractories Industry will fully support the alliance's development and suggests the alliance establish mechanisms for innovation element sharing, standard leadership, and international cooperation, deeply linking the "innovation source" of universities, the "demand side" of enterprises, and the "resource pool" of the industry, to jointly write a new chapter in the high-quality development of refractory materials.

In his speech, Yuan Lin noted that against the backdrop of accelerated global green transformation and the advancement of the "dual carbon" goals, the refractory materials industry, as the cornerstone of high-temperature industries, faces three major bottlenecks: insufficient technological innovation, weakened industrial chain collaboration, and a shortage of talent supply. The establishment of the alliance is timely, marking a new development stage for China's refractory materials industry. The alliance is expected to adhere to the principle of "open sharing," establish an international exchange platform, benchmark against international advanced standards, and enhance China's global voice in refractory materials. It should also improve the benefit-sharing mechanism to stimulate the collaborative innovation vitality of enterprises and universities, strengthen its role as a demonstration leader, and form replicable and promotable low-carbon transformation experiences, contributing industry wisdom to achieving the "dual carbon" goals. The Refractory Materials Branch of the Chinese Ceramic Society will deepen its cooperation with the alliance, providing comprehensive support to jointly write a new chapter in the high-quality development of the refractory materials industry.

On behalf of WUST, Xu Yanbing warmly welcomed the leaders, experts, and entrepreneurs attending the conference. He explained the core significance and strategic value of the alliance's establishment using three key phrases: "whole-chain resonance", "boundary-breaking integration", and "united forging". He stated that WUST is one of the pioneers and sources of independent innovation in the theoretical technology and product systems of refractory materials with Chinese characteristics. The initiation of the alliance aims to deeply integrate the education chain, industry chain, and innovation chain to create an "innovation community". With the powerful force of "whole-chain resonance," they aim to jointly open a new chapter of collaborative innovation. By breaking through the three barriers of disciplines, schools, and regions, they will construct a technological ecosystem of ‌"education empowerment—technological breakthrough—industry upgrade"‌, creating a new system for industry development with the innovative stance of "boundary-breaking integration". Through the co-creation and sharing of scientific research resources, the mutual benefit of refractory materials patents and industry standards, and the win-win cooperation of industry, academia, and research, they aim to achieve new industry breakthroughs with the sincere heart of "united forging." The alliance will be built into a source of technological innovation, a new highland for social services, and a gathering place for talent cultivation, providing strong support for high-quality economic and social development and contributing wisdom and strength to the great practice of Chinese modernization.

On behalf of the WUST, Ni Hongwei signed the Refractory Materials Innovation Alliance Co-construction Agreement with Xiong Jian, Chairman of Sinosteel Luonai Materials Technology Corporation, Liu Baikuan, Chairman of Puyang Refractories Group Co., Ltd., Zhao Wei, Chairman of Beijing Lirr High Temperature Materials Co., Ltd., and representatives of 12 companies. WUST and the enterprises will focus on technological innovation in the field of refractory materials, deepening cooperation in talent cultivation, scientific research, academic exchange, and discipline development. They will actively explore the "refractory materials talent cultivation and technological innovation" model of industry-education integration, aiming to produce world-class original, forward-looking, and systematic scientific research achievements. This effort will support the WUST in becoming a global center for talent cultivation, scientific research, and academic exchange in refractory materials, achieving breakthroughs in the "Double First-Class" initiative.

At the event, the university's refractory materials research team signed research cooperation agreements with the 12 companies. The university and enterprises will jointly tackle key strategic issues such as critical technologies for strategic safeguard refractory materials, green and low-carbon refractory materials, and AI-enabled refractory materials. Additionally, the WUST signed scholarship donation agreements with two companies. Sun Guosheng, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of the university, along with Liu Baikuan and Zhao Wei, signed the agreements on behalf of the university and the enterprises, respectively. Vice President Ma Teng awarded appointment letters to eight enterprise experts who are at the forefront of the refractory materials industry, possess rich engineering practice experience, and demonstrate outstanding professional skills, serving as corporate mentors.

With the joint efforts of Zhou Qihong, Wang Xinye, Bo Jun, Yuan Lin, Wang Wenwu, Xu Yanbing, Ni Hongwei, and others, the Refractory Materials Innovation Alliance was officially established, marking a new phase in the collaborative innovation and development of the refractory materials industry.

The second phase of the conference featured keynote reports. Lei Fengyun, former deputy director-level science diplomat of the Department of International Cooperation of the Ministry of Science and Technology and Chairman of the China-Austria Special Committee of the Science Diplomacy Expert Committee of the China Association for International Science and Technology Cooperation, and Liu Baikuan, Chairman of Puyang Refractories Group Co., Ltd., delivered special reports titled China-Austria (Europe) Scientific Research Innovation Cooperation Institutions for Mutual Benefit and Win-Win and Innovation-Driven High-Quality Development of China's Refractory Materials Industry respectively, to the attending guests and faculty and students.

Officials from relevant departments of the Provincial Department of Education and the Provincial Department of Science and Technology, leaders of refractory materials industry enterprises, and heads of relevant functional departments, colleges, and the National Key Laboratory of Advanced Refractory Materials (Wuhan) of WUST attended the event.

(Photographers: Chen Machuan, Gao Wenshuai, Sun Zhengheng, Yang Xinyi, Peng Cheng)

On the afternoon of May 23, the Refractory Materials Innovation Alliance Council held its first meeting, approving the council member list and the Refractory Materials Innovation Alliance Charter. The meeting included in-depth discussions on the alliance's development plan, industry innovation ecosystem, and scientific and technological self-reliance and self-improvement, reaching a consensus on open integration and innovative development.