Hi! My name is Diana, I am from Italy.

I have a background in materials engineering, so we can say that I had some basic knowledge about refractories when I decided to apply for the ATHOR project. In my case, I decided to apply for this kind of project because I was very interested in the combination of academia and industry. It gave me the opportunity to work very closely with experts in the field in both areas and to learn a lot from them. But it was not only about research, we also shared great team building moments like, Kayaking, bowling, tree climbing. We travelled to amazing countries, I will just say one… Japan. All these experiences helped build very strong relationships I am still in touch with many of them today.

Immediately after my PhD I was hired as R+D laboratory manager for a company producing 3D refractory materials. So, perfectly in line with my PhD thesis.

Now, I am working as a Materials and process engineer in the aerospace sector and I am still using many of the skills developed during the ATHOR project, but not only the technical ones, also the soft-skills. Such as problem solving, project management and also how to deal and work in an international environment.

So my advice for a Masters student is go for it. If you get the chance, don’t hesitate. It is really an amazing experience and unique chance to challenge yourself to grow professionally and personally, and to gain experience that you can use for all your career.

Diana is an Italian national and had a Master’s degree in materials engineering from University of Padua (Italy) when she applied for the ATHOR PhD position.

During her time in ATHOR she was based in Limoges, France from January 2018 – March 2021. During this time she had the opportunity to travel to training and conferences around the world and carryout secondments in Portugal. She defended her thesis on Thermo-physical properties of insulating refractory materials.

Diana is now working in the Aerospace industry as a Material & Process Engineer for SITAEL.

Diana VITIELLO, Ilona KIELIBA, Sawao HONDA, Benoit NAIT-ALI, Nicolas TESSIER-DOYEN, Hans Ulrich MARSCHALL, and David S. SMITH, Analysis of Microstructural Effects on the Thermal Conductivity of Alumina-Spinel Refractories Compared to Alumina Ceramics, Ceramics 9, no. 2: 2026.

Diana VITIELLO, Benoit NAIT-ALI, Nicolas TESSIER-DOYEN, Lionel REBOUILLAT, David SMITH, Thermal conductivity of porous refractory material after aging in service with carbon pick-up, Open Ceramics, Volume 11, 2022, 100294

Diana VITIELLO, Benoit NAIT-ALI, Nicolas TESSIER-DOYEN, Thorsten TONNESEN, Luís LAIM, Lionel REBOUILLAT, David SMITH, Thermal conductivity of insulating refractory materials: Comparison of steady-state and transient measurement methods, Open Ceramics, Volume 6, 2021, 100118

1 VITIELLO Diana, SMITH David, NAIT-ALI Benoit, TESSIER-DOYEN Nicolas, Thermo-physical properties characterisation of refractory materials (Poster), 61st International Colloquium on Refractories, 2018, Aachen, Germany.

2 VITIELLO Diana, NAIT-ALI Benoit, TESSIER-DOYEN Nicolas, TONNESEN Thorsten, LIAM Luis, REBOUILLAT Lionel, SMITH David, Thermo-physical properties characterisation of insulating materials and joints (Poster), XVI ECerS Conference, 2019, Turin, Italy.

3 VITIELLO Diana, NAIT-ALI Benoit, TESSIER-DOYEN Nicolas, TONNESEN Thorsten, REBOUILLAT Lionel, SMITH David, Thermal properties characterization of insulating refractory materials used in steel ladles, XVI ECerS Conference, 2019, Turin, Italy.

4 VITIELLO Diana, NAIT-ALI Benoit, TESSIER-DOYEN Nicolas, TONNESEN Thorsten, REBOUILLAT Lionel, SMITH David, Characterization of thermal properties of insulating refractory materials (Poster), WoCeram, 2019, Budapest, Hungary.

5 VITIELLO Diana, NAIT-ALI Benoit, TESSIER-DOYEN Nicolas, TONNESEN Thorsten, LIAM Luis, REBOUILLAT Lionel, SMITH David, Thermal properties characterization of refractory materials used in the insulation layer of steel ladles, UNITECR 2019, Yokohama, Japan.

6 VITIELLO Diana, NAIT-ALI Benoit, TESSIER-DOYEN Nicolas, TONNESEN Thorsten, LIAM Luis, REBOUILLAT Lionel, SMITH David, Thermo-physical properties characterisation of insulating materials and joints (Poster), Wuhan symposium on refractories, 2019, Wuhan, China.

7 VITIELLO Diana, NAIT-ALI Benoit, TESSIER-DOYEN Nicolas, REBOUILLAT Lionel, SMITH David, Evaluation of heat conduction through insulating refractory bricks and joints: material thermal conductivity and interface resistance, 63rd International Colloquium on Refractories, 2020, Aachen, Germany.

8 VITIELLO Diana, Thermo-physical properties of insulating refractory materials, Gustav Eirich Award, 64th International Colloquium on Refractories, 2021, Aachen, Germany.

Hi, I’m Sina. I’m from Iran. As a former Early Stage Researcher (ESR) in ATHOR project, I think that I should give you some tips on why you should apply for this project. The first thing first is that you are going to build your career even during your study. You are going to meet new people in an international level and you are expanding your network during your study so you have lots of opportunity to go for it after your graduation and you are not getting lost to get a job. The second and the fun thing is that you are going to travel around the world. In our case, we travel around the world like Japan, China and the United States. So do not worry because all of them are reimbursed. And the third, the most important point is that you are not going to get lost your scholarship or even to be worried about the payments of your daily basis because all of them are included in this very interesting package. So long story short, do not hesitate and do not miss this chance that comes once in a life. Go for it. Good luck.  

Sina is an Iranian national and had a Master’s degree in Materials Engineering and Ceramic from the University of Tabriz – Iran when he applied for the ATHOR PhD position. During his time in ATHOR he was based in Krakow, Poland from August 2018 – February 2022. During this time he had the opportunity to travel to training and conferences around the world and carryout secondments in France. He defended his thesis on The Influence of Corrosion of Steel Ladle Slag on The Thermomechanical Properties of Alumina-Spinel Refractory Materials. Sina is now working as a Research & Development Manager / Expert in the field of Materials Engineer.

Darban, S., Jastrzębska, I., Sayet, T., Jillibert, J., Prorok, R., Blond, E., I., Szczerba, J., (2024) High-temperature tensile strength of alumina-spinel refractory by Brazilian test at 1200°C coupled with DIC in-situ monitoring. Journal of the European Ceramic Society.

Darban, S., Reynaert, C., Ludwig, M., Prorok, R., Jastrzębska, I., & Szczerba, J. (2022). Corrosion of Alumina-Spinel Refractory by Secondary Metallurgical Slag Using Coating Corrosion Test. Materials, 15(10), 3425.

Darban, S., Madej. D., Prorok. R., Szczerba, J. (Sep. 2018). Influence of corrosion on thermomechanical linings behaviour, 61st International Colloquium on Refractories 2018, Aachen, Germany.

Darban, S., Madej. D., Prorok. R., Szczerba, J. (Jan. 2019). The effect of heat treatment on the physical and mechanical properties of alumina-spinel castable refractories, Orléans, France.

Darban, S., Madej. D., Prorok. R., Szczerba, J. (Oct. 2019). Thermal properties and thermal shock behaviour of alumina-based refractories, 1st Annual Symposium on Refractories, Wuhan, China.

Darban, S., Madej. D., Prorok. R., Szczerba, J. (June 2019). Investigation on thermal shock resistance of alumina-spinel refractory brick, XVI European Ceramic Society Conference, Turin, Italy.

Darban, S., Madej. D., Prorok. R., Szczerba, J. (Oct. 2019). Thermal Shock Resistance of Fired Corundum-Spinel Brick and Spinel-containing LCC, 16th Biennial Worldwide Conference, Unified International Technical Conference of Refractories, Yokohama, Japan.

Darban, S., Prorok, R., Szczerba, J. (Sep. 2020). Research method of corroded refractory materials for thermomechanical test: case study alumina-spinel and magnesia-carbon, 62nd International Colloquium on Refractories, Aachen, Germany.

Darban, S., Sayet, T., Prorok, R., Blond E., Szczerba, J. Sinnema, S., (June. 2021). The corroded refractory linings preparation technique at laboratory condition for thermomechanical investigation, 32nd Canadian Materials Science Conference, Kingstone, Canada.

Hi everyone, my name is Lucas, I’m from Brazil and I am a former ATHOR student. What I like the most about this kind of European project is the international aspect of it, which is very enriching both professionally and personally. We get to know lots of people from different cultures and this is always great. Just after finishing my thesis I went to Austria where I worked in the factories field for two years. and now I’m not in the refractory field anymore, I am working at Lyon, France, but what I learned during my PhD is definitely applicable in my job today because it’s about thermomechanical computations and this is not something exclusive to refractory, so even though I’m not in the field anymore, I can definitely say that the time I spent there and also and especially the time I spent writing my thesis was very very important for my career so if you like this kind of project I invite you to apply to this new project I know everybody in there and they are very nice and they take very good care of you

Lucas is a Brazilian national and had a Master’s degree in Structural Engineering from the University of Minas Gerais – Brazil when he applied for the ATHOR PhD position.

During his time in ATHOR he was based in Orleans, France from August 2018 – February 2022. During this time he had the opportunity to travel to training and conferences around the world, carryout secondments in France and feature in a short documentary with the BBC. He defended his thesis on Primary and secondary creep behaviour of refractories.

Lucas is now working as an Application Engineer specializing in fracture mechanics and welding numerical simulation.

Lucas Teixeira, Soheil Samadi, Jean Gillibert, Shengli Jin, Thomas Sayet, Dietmar Gruber, Eric Blond, Experimental Investigation of the Tension and Compression Creep Behavior of Alumina-Spinel Refractories at High Temperatures, Ceramics 3(3), (2020), 372-383, doi.org/10.3390/ceramics3030033

Lucas Teixeira, Jean Gillibert, Thomas Sayet, Eric Blond, A creep model with different properties under tension and compression – Applications to refractory materials, International Journal of Mechanical Sciences (2021), 106810

Robert Kaczmarek, Jean-Christophe Dupré, Pascal Doumalin, Octavian Pop, Lucas Teixeira, Marc Huger, High-temperature digital image correlation techniques for full-field strain and crack length measurement on ceramics at 1200°C: Optimization of speckle pattern and uncertainty assessment, Optics and Lasers in Engineering 146, (2021), 106716

1 BREDER TEIXEIRA Lucas, BLOND Eric, SAYET Thomas, GILLIBERT Jean, Inverse identification of mechanical materials’ properties using the integrated DIC technique (Poster), 61st International Colloquium on Refractories, 2018, Aachen, Germany.

2 BREDER TEIXEIRA Lucas, GILLIBERT Jean, BLOND Eric, SAYET Thomas, Creep characterization of refractory materials at high temperatures using the integrated digital image correlation technique, UNITECR 2019, Yokohama, Japan.

3 BREDER TEIXEIRA Lucas, GILLIBERT Jean, BLOND Eric, SAYET Thomas, Inverse identification of asymmetric creep parameters using the I-DIC technique, XVI ECerS Conference, 2019, Turin, Italy.

4 BREDER TEIXEIRA Lucas, GILLIBERT Jean, BLOND Eric, SAYET Thomas, Application of the Integrated Digital Image Correlation technique associated to Brazilian disc tests to identify the creep behavior of refractory materials, XVI ECerS Conference, 2019, Turin, Italy.

5 TEIXEIRA Lucas, SAYET Thomas, GILLIBERT Jean, BLOND Eric, Proposition of two asymmetric constitutive laws to model the creep behavior of refractory materials at high temperatures, UNITECR, 2022, Chicago USA.

6 TEIXEIRA Lucas, LEPLAY Paul, SAYET Thomas, GILLIBERT Jean, BLOND Eric Identification of mechanical properties of an asymmetric creep law applied to refractories using the integrated digital image correlation technique UNITECR, 2022, Chicago USA.

Hi, my name is Farid. I was the third early stage researcher, or ESR 03, within the ATHOR European project. I completed my PhD within this European innovative project, which allowed me to learn from and work with leading European universities and our industrial partners. It also gave me the opportunity to communicate my research internationally from east of the world, Yokohama, Japan, to the west of the world, Chicago, United States, through the UNITECR conferences. ATHOR was truly a launchpad for my career, both academically and professionally. Academically, it opened the door to a postdoctoral position at École des Ponts et Chaussées and University of Gustave Eiffel in Paris. And professionally, it helped me later to join a world-class steel company as a research engineer. After four years in industrial R&D, I can confidently repeat what I said in my previous ATHOR videos. If you are eligible for such a European position and doctoral opportunity, do not hesitate at all. Go ahead and apply. It’s just amazing.

Farid had a Master’s degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Grenoble Alpes – France when he applied for the ATHOR PhD position.

During his time in ATHOR, he was based in Limoges, France, from 2018 – 2021. During this time, he had the opportunity to travel to training and conferences around the world, carry out his secondment in Austria, and communicate with the general public. He defended his thesis on Micro-mechanical modelling of heterogeneous materials containing microcracks with Discrete Element Method (DEM).

Farid is now working as a Research & Development Engineer for ArcelorMittal.

Farid ASADI, Damien ANDRÉ, Sacha EMAM, Pascal DOUMALIN, Marc HUGER, Advances in micro-mechanical modeling using a bonded-particle model and periodic homogenization within discrete element framework applied to heterogeneous ceramics, Journal of the European Ceramic Society,

Farid ASADI, Damien ANDRÉ, Sacha EMAM, Pascal DOUMALIN, Imad Khlifi, Marc HUGER, Investigation of different discrete modeling strategies to mimic microstructural aspects that influence the fracture energy of refractory materials, Open Ceramics, Volume 11, September 2022, 100288

Farid ASADI, Damien ANDRÉ, Sacha EMAM, Pascal DOUMALIN, Marc HUGER, Numerical Modelling of The Quasi- Brittle Behaviour of Refractory Ceramics by Considering Microcracks Effect, Journal of the European Ceramic Society, Volume 42, Issue 3, March 2022, Pages 1149-1161

1 ASADI Farid, HUGER Marc, ANDRE Damien, DOUMALIN Pascal, Micromechanical approach by Discrete Element Method (DEM) (Poster), 61st International Colloquium on Refractories, 2018, Aachen, Germany.

2 ASADI Farid, NGUYEN Truong Thi, ANDRE Damien, DOUMALIN Pascal, HUGER Marc, TESSIER-DOYEN Nicolas, Thermo-mechanical modelling of brittle continuum by Discrete Element Method (DEM) simulation, Journées annuelles du Groupe Français de la Céramique (GFC), 2018, Bordeaux, France.

3 ASADI Farid, HUGER Marc, ANDRE Damien, DOUMALIN Pascal, EMAM Sacha, Micromechanical approach by Discrete Element Method (DEM) (Poster), Wuhan symposium on refractories, 2019, Wuhan, China.

4 ASADI Farid, HUGER Marc, ANDRE Damien, DOUMALIN Pascal, EMAM Sacha, Discrete Element Method (DEM) modelling of wedge splitting test by focusing on the brittleness of quasi-brittle materials, XVI ECerS Conference, 2019, Turin, Italy.

5 ASADI Farid; HUGER Marc; ANDRE Damien; DOUMALIN Pascal; EMAM Sacha, Micromechanical approach by Discrete Element Method (DEM) Wuhan symposium on refractories, 2019, Wuhan, China.

6 ASADI Farid; HUGER Marc; ANDRE Damien; DOUMALIN Pascal; EMAM Sacha, Numerical modeling of wedge splitting test by discrete element approach: comparison between cohesive beam model and flat joint contact model UNITECR 2019, Yokohama, Japan.

7 ASADI Farid, HUGER Marc, ANDRE Damien, DOUMALIN Pascal, EMAM Sacha, Numerical Modelling of the Quasi-brittle Behaviour of Materials by Considering Microcracks Effect Fifth International Itasca Symposium, 2020, Vienna, Austria.

8 ASADI Farid, HUGER Marc, ANDRE Damien, DOUMALIN Pascal, EMAM Sacha, Modelling the elastic properties of bi-phase refractories by using periodic homogenization approach with Discrete Element Method (DEM), UNITECR, 2022, Chicago USA.

Hey, this is for you if you are curious, ambitious and ready to challenge yourself in an international research environment. I am Andrea Salerno, a former CSRF PhD candidate. What convinced me to apply was the opportunity to do more than a classic PhD.

In a Marie Sklodowska Curie doctoral network, you are not isolated. You are part of the international scientific community, working across academia and industries and exploring the full value chain from research to application. Of course, a PhD is demanding. You face uncertainties, complex problems and moments where progress is slow. But that is also where the experience becomes truly valuable. You learn to overcome obstacles with intelligence, science and method. You develop resilience, autonomy and a way of thinking that stays with you for the life.

That is what CESAREF gave me most, not only technical expertise, but a mindset I still use today as head of research and development at One Refractories. So, if you are considering applying to Refracteur, my message is simple: go for it! It is a demanding journey, but a deeply meaningful one.

Andrea is an Italian national and had a Master’s degree in materials science University of Milano-Bicocca (Italy) when he applied for the CESAREF PhD position.

During his time in CESAREF he was based in Limoges, France and Vesuvius, Belgium from November 2022 – November 2025. During this time he had the opportunity to travel to training and conferences around the world and work in both academia and industry. He will be defending his thesis on the 7th July 2026.

Andrea is now working as the head of R+D for One Refractories.

Andrea SALERNO, Kwasi BOATENG, Jean-Michel AUVRAY, Paul LEPLAY, Amelie BIGEARD, Joerg SAUER, Bart BOLLEN and Marc HUGER, Improving resonant frequency and damping analysis at high temperatures via laser Doppler vibrometer sensor, Measurement Science and Technology, 36(12), December 2025.

Andrea SALERNO, Martiniano PICICCO, Elsa THUNE, Nicolas TESSIER-DOYEN, Severine ROMERO-BAIVIER, Lionel
REBOUILLAT, Marc HUGER
EU Green Deal steelmaking challenges: recycling, reuse, hydrogen & artificial intelligence (Presentation)
IMFORMED Mineral Recycling Forum 2023, Dubrovnik, Croatia

Andrea SALERNO, Martiniano PICICCO, Elsa THUNE, Nicolas TESSIER-DOYEN, Severine ROMERO-BAIVIER, Lionel
REBOUILLAT, Marc HUGER
Reuse and recyclability of refractories from steel industry (Poster)
European Ceramic Society, 2023, Lyon, France

Andrea SALERNO, Martiniano PICICCO, Elsa THUNE, Nicolas TESSIER-DOYEN, Severine ROMERO-BAIVIER, Lionel
REBOUILLAT, Marc HUGER
Insights on numerical models to predict potential recyclability of spent refractories from steel making industry
(Presentation)
Unified International Technical Conference on Refractories, 2023, Frankfurt, Germany

Andrea SALERNO, Marc HUGER, Nicolas TESSIER-DOYEN, Elsa THUNE, Severine ROMERO-BAIVIER, Martiniano PICICCO, Cheng XING, Lionel REBOUILLAT
Coupled numerical simulation and post-mortem analysis to evaluate tundish lining refractories lifetime
International Colloquium on Refractories – ICR 2024, Aachen, Germany

Andrea SALERNO, Marc HUGER, Nicolas TESSIER-DOYEN, Elsa THUNE, Severine ROMERO-BAIVIER, Martiniano PICICCO, Cheng XING, Lionel REBOUILLAT
Holistic approach on reusability and recyclability determination of refractory recyclability
ECERS 2025, Dresden, Germany

Andrea SALERNO, Marc HUGER, Nicolas TESSIER-DOYEN, Elsa THUNE, Severine ROMERO-BAIVIER, Martiniano PICICCO, Cheng XING, Lionel REBOUILLAT
Recyclability evaluation through empirical and environmental criteria based on multi-criteria decision-analysis applied to tundish working lining refractories
UNITECR 2025, Cancun, Mexico

The ATHOR project, acronym for Advanced THermomechanical multiscale mOdeling of Refractory linings, was launched in 2017 as part of the European Union’s Horizon 2020 (H2020) programme, under the Marie Skłodowska‑Curie Actions (MSCA). More specifically, it was funded through the Innovative Training Network (ITN) scheme, also known as a European Training Network (ETN), which aims at structuring doctoral programmes at the European level.

ATHOR is positioned at the intersection of materials science, thermomechanics and numerical modelling, with a strong application focus on refractory materials. Refractories are a specific class of ceramic materials designed to operate under extreme conditions, typically at temperatures above 1000°C, where they ensure the containment and processing of molten materials in industrial installations such as furnaces, reactors or metallurgical vessels. These materials must withstand a combination of severe thermal gradients, mechanical stresses, chemical corrosion and wear, making their design and optimisation particularly complex.

Despite their critical role in many industrial sectors (including steel, glass, cement, aluminium or copper production), refractories remain largely unknown outside specialist communities. They nevertheless constitute a key enabling technology for modern society, as many everyday objects depend on high‑temperature processes in which refractory materials are essential. This creates a major challenge for the sector, namely the need to attract and train new highly skilled researchers capable of addressing increasingly complex industrial problems.

In this context, ATHOR was conceived as an innovative, collaborative and interdisciplinary project aiming at developing high‑level engineering methodologies for the analysis and modelling of refractory linings, while simultaneously training a new generation of experts. The project brought together a European consortium combining academic institutions and industrial partners across several countries, including France, Germany, Austria, Portugal and Poland, along with major industrial actors such as refractory producers, raw material suppliers and end‑users in the steel industry.

A fundamental characteristic of the MSCA training networks is their dual structure, which equally emphasises research and training. In ATHOR, approximately half of the effort was dedicated to scientific research, through the execution of PhD projects, while the other half focused on structured training activities, including advanced scientific courses, technical workshops, transferable skills development and international mobility. These training activities were designed to expose doctoral candidates to both academic and industrial environments, thereby strengthening their employability and their capacity to address real engineering challenges.

The project recruited a cohort of 15 Early Stage Researchers (ESRs), corresponding to doctoral candidates enrolled in PhD programmes within the participating institutions. These researchers were selected through an international competitive process, reflecting the strong global attractiveness of the MSCA schemes. Indeed, a significant proportion of candidates originated from outside Europe, highlighting the international dimension of the programme and its role in attracting world‑class talent to European research networks.

From a scientific perspective, ATHOR focused on the thermomechanical behaviour of refractory linings, using the steel ladle as a model industrial system. The steel ladle is a central component in steelmaking processes and represents one of the largest areas of refractory consumption, accounting for a significant fraction of total refractory usage in the industry. It operates under highly demanding conditions, typically in the temperature range of 1200 to 1600°C, and is subjected to complex combinations of thermal, mechanical and chemical loads.

The core scientific strategy of ATHOR relied on a multiscale approach. The objective was to bridge the gap between the microstructural characteristics of materials (such as grain morphology, phase distribution or the presence of defects) and their macroscopic behaviour at the scale of industrial structures. This required the development of advanced experimental techniques for material characterisation, as well as innovative numerical modelling approaches capable of capturing non‑linear thermomechanical behaviour, creep, fracture, corrosion effects and thermal shock resistance.

To structure these activities, the project was organised into several Work Packages (WPs), each corresponding to a coherent set of tasks. These WPs typically included the generation of experimental databases, the development of modelling tools, the validation of simulations through large‑scale measurements and the integration of industrial constraints. A central objective was to ensure a strong coupling between experimental observations and modelling efforts, in order to improve the predictive capability of the simulations and to support the design of more robust and reliable refractory linings.

Beyond research and training, dissemination activities played a major role within ATHOR. The project generated a significant number of scientific outputs, including publications in peer‑reviewed journals and presentations at international conferences. In parallel, specific efforts were dedicated to industrial dissemination and to communication towards the general public. These activities included the production of videos, participation in outreach events and the development of an interactive travelling exhibition (Cerami°K) aimed at making refractory science accessible to a wider audience.

This dissemination dimension reflects a key requirement of European projects, namely the need to ensure that publicly funded research contributes not only to scientific progress but also to societal awareness and education. In the case of ATHOR, this was particularly important given the strategic role of refractories in energy‑intensive industries and their contribution to industrial efficiency and sustainability.

Ultimately, one of the most significant outcomes of the ATHOR project lies in the successful training of 15 doctoral graduates, who are now employed in various industrial sectors, including refractory manufacturing, steel production and related high‑temperature technologies. These individuals constitute a new generation of highly skilled engineers and researchers, trained at the interface between advanced materials science, experimental techniques at high temperature and numerical modelling.

In conclusion, ATHOR illustrates the added value of European doctoral training networks, combining cutting‑edge research, structured training and strong links with industry. By addressing fundamental and applied challenges in the field of refractory materials, the project has contributed both to the advancement of scientific knowledge and to the reinforcement of the European industrial ecosystem in high‑temperature technologies.

In this presentation, I would like to introduce the CESAREF project, which stands for Concerted European Action on Sustainable Applications of REFractories. This project is now approaching its final stage, as we are close to the end of its four-year duration, running from October 2022 to September 2026.

To properly understand CESAREF, it is important to recall the broader context in which it was conceived. The project was developed shortly after the launch of the European Green Deal, a key strategic initiative of the European Union aimed at achieving climate neutrality and supporting a deep transformation of industrial systems.

In this context, the steelmaking industry is facing major challenges. One of the most critical objectives is to drastically reduce CO₂ emissions, particularly those associated with traditional blast furnace processes. This requires a profound transformation of production routes, including the progressive introduction of new technologies such as hydrogen-based steelmaking.

It is precisely within this framework that CESAREF was designed. The ambition was to bring together both academic and industrial partners to address the challenges associated with the sustainability of refractory materials, which are essential components in high-temperature industrial processes, including steel production.

Compared to the previous ATHOR project, CESAREF represents a significant step forward. The consortium has been substantially expanded, now involving around 25 partners, including both academic institutions and industrial companies. This larger consortium was necessary to tackle a broader range of scientific and technological challenges, particularly those related to sustainability and environmental impact.

CESAREF is structured as a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Doctoral Network, more specifically under the Industrial Doctorate scheme. This is a very important aspect, as it ensures a strong integration between academic research and industrial applications. The project involves 15 PhD candidates, each of them benefiting from a dual supervision (one academic and one industrial) and spending at least 50% of their time in an industrial environment.

This structure is particularly powerful because it allows the doctoral candidates to develop both high-level scientific expertise and a deep understanding of industrial constraints and challenges. It also reinforces the interaction between academia and industry, which is essential for innovation in the refractory sector.

Another important feature of the project is its strong international dimension. Many of the recruited PhD students come from outside Europe, highlighting the attractiveness of this type of programme and its role in fostering international mobility and knowledge exchange.

From a scientific perspective, CESAREF is organised into seven work packages, combining research, training, dissemination and management activities.

While one of these work packages is still dedicated to the fundamental relationship between microstructure and thermomechanical properties of refractory materials, several others address more systemic and forward-looking challenges. In particular, significant efforts have been devoted to integrating life cycle assessment methodologies, which allow us to evaluate the environmental impact of refractory materials over their entire life cycle.

In addition, the project addresses the role of refractories in emerging steelmaking routes, especially those involving hydrogen, which is expected to play a key role in the decarbonisation of the steel industry.

Another important axis concerns the development of digital tools, including modelling approaches and the concept of digital twins, as well as the integration of sensors. These tools aim at better predicting the behaviour of refractory materials in operation and improving decision-making processes in industrial environments.

Beyond the scientific objectives, CESAREF places a strong emphasis on training. One of the particular strengths of the project is the close interplay between research activities and structured training actions. This includes numerous training sessions organised across Europe, as well as webinars, workshops and site visits in industrial and research facilities.

These activities are designed not only to strengthen the scientific skills of the doctoral candidates but also to develop their professional competencies, including communication, networking and project management. The participation of the students in international conferences is also a key component of their training, allowing them to present their work, exchange with the scientific community and gain visibility at the international level.

The scientific output of the project is already significant, with a large number of publications in international peer-reviewed journals. These publications cover a wide range of topics, from hydrogen interactions with refractory materials to thermal management in steel ladles, as well as modelling approaches and recycling strategies.

At the same time, the project has been very active in terms of dissemination and outreach. The doctoral candidates have contributed to numerous communication activities aimed at raising awareness about refractories and materials science, including participation in science festivals, researchers’ nights and other public events.

As the project is now approaching completion, several PhD students have already defended or are about to defend their theses, while others have already secured positions in industry, sometimes even before completing their PhD. This clearly demonstrates the strong employability associated with this type of training programme and its relevance for industry.

In conclusion, CESAREF has proven to be a highly effective framework for fostering collaboration between academia and industry, producing high-quality scientific results, and training a new generation of highly skilled researchers.

More broadly, the project has contributed to increasing the visibility of the refractory sector, which is often considered a “hidden” but absolutely critical component of high-temperature industries.

Finally, CESAREF illustrates how European Doctoral Networks can play a crucial role in supporting the transition towards more sustainable industrial processes, in full alignment with the objectives of the European Green Deal.