CSIR-NML Hosts Day 3 of One Week One Lab Event: Technology Challenge Hackathon and Workshop on Hydrogen Era Materials

Day 3 of CSIR-NML’s OWOL event features a Hackathon & a Workshop on hydrogen era materials, addressing industry challenges & promoting innovation.

Jamshedpur – The third day of CSIR-National Metallurgical Laboratory’s (NML) One Week One Lab (OWOL) event witnessed a Technology Challenge Hackathon and a workshop on unlocking the hydrogen era at NML Jamshedpur.

The Hackathon was open to students, researchers, and technocrats from various educational backgrounds, aiming to provide a platform for societal outreach.

Eleven teams participated in the final round of the Industrial Problem Solving (IPS) contest, which focused on problem statements from Tata Steel, Jindal Steel, Saint Gobain, and CSIR NML R&D projects.

Teams presented their ideas and solutions on topics such as Ferroalloys, Steel making, Industrial and E-Waste management, and Mineral processing.

The panel of senior scientists, Dr. Sanjay Agarwal, Dr. Ganesh Chalavadi, and Lalit Kumar Meena, judged the presentations.

Tata Steel’s Sovan Kumar Patra and Yashraj Kanaskar won the First Award for their solution on reducing the carbon footprint in Ferroalloys. CSIR-NML’s Adhiraj Kanrar and Sambit Tripathy received the Second Award for utilizing AI-based nozzles to minimize water consumption in continuous casting operations.

The Third Award went to Sambit Tripathy and Shubendu Chaterjee for their idea on using microwaves to reduce energy consumption in Ferroalloy processing.

The Day-3 OWOL event also featured a half-day workshop on “Materials Challenges in Unlocking the Hydrogen Era.

Hydrogen plays a crucial role in decarbonizing the energy mix, but significant investment and development along the supply chain are required.

The workshop focused on materials for the storage and transportation of gaseous hydrogen. Dr. Avanish Kumar Srivastava, Director of CSIR-NML, welcomed participants and highlighted the significance of hydrogen energy for societal development.

The workshop included eight technical lectures by industry experts. Dr. Indranil Chattoraj, former Director of CSIR-NML, delivered a lecture on “Hydrogen in Steel Making – Indian Context,” emphasizing the need for increased research to make hydrogen usage economically feasible in the steel industry.

CSIR-National Metallurgical Laboratory (NML) has launched the One Week One Lab campaign, a nationwide initiative aimed at showcasing the technological innovations and achievements of the 37 Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) labs in India.

Jharkhand Governor C P Radhakrishnan inaugurated the campaign in Ranchi, emphasizing the importance of impactful research for national growth and self-reliance.

The campaign is taking place from April 24 to 28, featuring events like the Technology Challenge Hackathon, Industrial Problem Solving (IPS) contest, and a workshop on materials challenges in unlocking the hydrogen era.