Dear Colleagues,

It is once again our pleasure and privilege to host the Research Council members. On behalf of my colleagues at NM and my own personal behalf, I extend a very warm welcome to all the members of the Research Council. I take this opportunity to share with you our significant achievements during the last few months since the last Council meeting, as well as various other activities and contributions of our laboratory. On the advice of the Research Council, we have carried out the exercise of identifying the various NML’s technologies that are ripe for commercialization and require only a small boost to see them through. We shall be presenting a few of them today. I look forward to the RC’s help and guidance in this effort in today’s deliberations.

11^th Five Year Plan Projects Funded by CSIR

I had informed you in my earlier newsletter about our substantial participation in various network projects for the 11^th Plan period. We are presently participating in six network, one Inter-agency and one rural sector projects in addition to coordinating one network project and one supra-institutional project. The period under review saw the various 11^th Plan projects initiate their technical and scientific investigations as per their respective mandates. I am happy to note that a large majority of the scientists of this laboratory are involved in these 11^th Five year plan programmes, which are now in full swing.

In the Supra-institutional Project on “Development and Forming of Performance Driven Special Steels” studies on deformation behavior of TWIP steels have been initiated. Additionally melting of Quenched & Partitioned steel has been carried out. This project has also produced two types of filler alloys for joining steels having low weldability. Under the programme, ESR steel has been produced at IIT Mumbai and is presently being characterized. A number of activities for establishing virtual platforms are in progress which includes generic heat transfer modelling and Artificial Neural Network Modelling for prediction of mechanical properties.

The networked project “Technology for Assessment & Refurbishment of Engineering Materials & Technology” (TAREMaC) under NML’s nodal leadership has received its first installment of funds in this period. The first Task Force meeting of the project has been completed only recently. The meeting helped to define the substantive deliverables for the project and the milestones for the various activities. The micro-planning exercise will benefit the execution of the project.

The other network projects in which NML is one of the participating laboratories are

• Development of speciality inorganic materials for diverse application

• Development of advanced light weight metallic materials for engineering applications

• Development of advanced eco-friendly energy efficient processes for utilisation of iron ore resources of India

• Engineering of structure against natural and other disasters

• Zero emission research initiative

• Advancement in Metrology

The title of the inter-agency project is “Development of cost effective mine water reclamation technology for providing safe drinking water”, and that for the rural sector project is “Use of natural occurring minerals for providing safe drinking water at domestic level in state of Jharkhand”.

Other High Impact Programmes

In the project “Development of Processing Technology for Recycling and Re-use of Electronic Waste” sponsored by Department of Information Technology, a protocol for disassembly of computers has been developed. It was found from modal analysis that the grind size required for good liberation was 1 mm. The scrap contained about 23% total metal and 6% copper. Preliminary bench scale beneficiation operations have also been carried out including desliming, gravity separation and flotation. The obtained yield values have been found quite encouraging. Detailed physical beneficiation studies to develop a complete flowsheet for separation of metals from the non-metallic constituents are in progress. Collaborations with Central Institute of Plastics Engineering and Technology, Bhubaneswar and Videocon Industries Limited, Bharuch has been established to address the issues related to plastics and glass, respectively. The high powered Monitoring Committee which reviewed the project on 11^th July, 2008 was very highly satisfied with the progress of the project.

Satisfied with the achievements of 10^th five year plan work of NML, the Ministry of Earth Sciences approved another four new projects during the 11^th five year plan, which are related to the Direct smelting of sea nodules for the recovery of valuable metals, Smelting of NML process leach residue/ smelted slag for recovery of manganese as ferro-silico-manganese and Development of improved solvent extraction technique like Pulse sieve column. About Rs. 10 Crores have been sanctioned by the ministry for these projects. The projects have been started from April 2008 and the work is progressing satisfactorily.

As a part of a national perspective plan for R&D in the power sector, NML has undertaken a project on “The Development of Silt Erosion Resistant Material for Turbines of Hydro-generators” sponsored by CEA. The projected cost is Rs. 299.79 lakhs over a period of three years. Through discussions with CPRI, NHPC, BHEL and IIT-Roorkee, the project deliverables have been defined as the development of a material with improved performance in terms of mechanical properties and erosive wear resistance as compared to the presently used 13Cr-4Ni stainless steel.

The Real Time Process Simulator (RTPS) developed by NML and reported briefly in the previous newsletter, provides a platform for real time monitoring and prediction of the internal state of a furnace in which the operational transients can be readily captured to guide the operator towards quick decision making and thereby improve operational practices. It has the flexibility to be synchronized with an existing plant network or operate through a designed data acquisition scheme, parallel to the plant network, without interfering with the regular operation. Being indigenous, the RTPS models can be modified/upgraded and customized as per the plant requirements. The process information from the technology can be utilized for the development of an optimal control strategy. The technology has already been installed at BF-5, Bokaro Steel Limited, SAIL and is being further up-graded for implementation at BF-6 & BF-7, Bhilai Steel Plant, SAIL .

International Collaborations

A theme meeting on “Nanostructured Advanced Materials” was organized at the National Metallurgical Laboratory, Jamshedpur, India during March 27-29, 2008 as a part of CSIR-ISTAD activities on cutting edge technologies. There were 12 overseas experts from USA, UK, Spain, Slovakia, Australia and Singapore. Representatives from 10 CSIR laboratories including NML who are involved in the development of nanostructured materials attended the 3-day theme meeting. To focus CSIR activities on nanomaterials four major areas were taken up for discussion in the meeting. The areas were: i.Biomaterials; ii.Ceramics, Composites and Hard Coatings; iii.Magnetic Materials; and iv. Structural Materials. As an outcome of this theme meeting, a major International Collaborative network project with total financial outlay of Rs. Forty five crore is under active consideration of CSIR Head Quarters

A collaboration with AOARD, Japan has been initiated on “Prediction of formation of amorphous phases during annealing of Ti-binary alloys and validation of the same”.

Another collaborative programme entitled “Removal of hazardous metal elements from leach liquor of electronic scraps by solvent extraction” with KIGAM, Korea is also making satisfactory progress.

In my earlier communication, I informed about the interaction with ALCOA Inc., USA under the aegis of CSIR-ALCOA Innovation Council. This interaction has now culminated in five sponsored investigations with duration ranging from four to six months and a total funding of 130,000 US$. The title of the projects in progress are :

• Amenability of Electrochemical techniques for the treatment of wastewaters generated from aluminium industry

• Assessment of Floride removal capability of novel materials, FEOL, ALOL and ZACL from contaminated water sources

• Production of high phase pure boehmite for possible seed application

• Mechanochemical Leaching of Bauxite from ALCOA, Australia

• Use of Bauxite Residues in Geopolymer Concrete

Intellectual Property Creation

NML has applied for eight patents in diverse topics during this period and  eight copyrights have been forwarded to CSIR for registration.

Infrastructure development

A number of high-end equipment and instruments will be procured in this financial year which will see the purchase of many of the major facilities sanctioned under different 11^th Plan projects. Some of the important equipment which have been procured in the period include High Resolution & High Temperature X-Ray Diffractometer with Reflectometry, Denver type Rod Mill, Computerized High Performance Color Measurement Spectrophotometer, Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer, Total Organic Carbon Analyser, Pendulum Impact Tester, Nano Particles size Analyzer, 20 Ton Hydraulic Press, Power Compensated Differential Scanning Calorimeter, along with a number of furnaces and softwares.

Foreign deputation & visits

I am very pleased to inform you that several scientists went on foreign deputations and I am sure that their trips abroad will be very useful for the future activities of NML.

Performance Indicators

The performance indicators of the laboratory are indicated below for the appraisal of the members:

New Projects

Seventy four new sponsored and consultancy projects have been initiated during the period under review. These have a contract value of about 13.5 Crores.

Workshops/Seminars/Training

The following training  workshops were conducted during the period to disseminate our available knowledge and expertise:

• A one day training for 53 management trainees from UCIL

• A six days training on mineral processing and extractive metallurgy for twenty five executives from UCIL

Distinguished Visitors

 During the period, the following eminent personalities visited NML and interacted with our scientists. Dr. Baldev Raj, Director, Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research, Kalpakkam; Mr. B.K. Shah , Distinguished Scientist, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre; Dr. H.K.D.H Bhadeshia,  Professor of Physical Metallurgy, Material Science and Metallurgy, University of Cambridge, U.K.;  Prof. Walter Arnold, Saarland University, Saarbruecken, Germany; Prof. V.S. Raja, Corrosion Science & Engg, Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai; Dr. Serena M. Best, Reader, Department of Materials Science & Metallurgy University of Cambridge, UK ; Prof. Paul Calvert       , Department of Materials & Textile, University of Masschusetts, Dartmouth MA, USA; Prof B.Mishra, Metallurgical Engineering Division, Colorado School of Mines, Colorado, USA; Prof. Steve Bull, Head, School of Chemical Engineering and Advanced Materials, Newcastle University, Merz Court, Newcastle upon Tyne,NE1 7RU, U.K; Prof. D.C.Jiles, Director, Wolfson Centre for Magnetics, Cardiff University, UK; Prof. S. Ezaz Huq, Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Chilton, Didcot, Oxfordshire, OX11 0QX, UK; Prof. R.A. Andrievskiy, Institute of Problems of Chemical Physics, Russian Academy of Sciences, Chernogolovka, Russia; Prof. M.Vazquez, Institute of Materials Science, (CSIC), Campus Universitario, 28049 Cantoblanco, Madrid, Spain; Prof. Peter Svec, Institute of Physics, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dubravska cesta 9, 842 28 Bratislava, Slovakia; Dr. Saibal Roy, Senior Scientist, Microsystems Center, Tyndall National Institute UCC, Lee Maltings, Prospect Row, Cork, Ireland; Prof. Charles Christopher Sorrell, School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW  2052,  Australia; Prof. Sam Zhang Shanyong, Director, Thin Films Technology Program, School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue,  Singapore; Dr. Yang Hyunsoo, Asst. Professor, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, International Centre for nanoscience & Technology,  Singapore.

Awards and Achievements

The period under consideration saw a number of awards coming to NML. I take this opportunity to congratulate them all for their contribution:

Dr. Suman K. Mishra, Vasvik Award of Smt. Chanda Ben Mohanbhai Patel Industrial Research Award for Woman Scientist -2004

Dr. R.K. Sahu, CSIR Young Scientist Award -2008 (Engg. Sc.)  

Dr. B.D. Pandey, IIME Mineral/Coal Beneficiation Award (R&D/ Academic)-2008

Dr. Ratnakar Singh, Certificate of Merit, CSIR Leadership Development Programme

S.K. Sahu, K.K. Sahu & B.D. Pandey,  IIME Best Paper Published Award – Bio-Hydro-Electro Processing

M. Sharma, A.K. Singh, N.K. Shukla, S.K. Srivastava & K.K. Bhattacharyya,  IIME Best Paper Presentation Award- Characterisation

T. Alex, R. Kumar, S.K. Ray & S.P. Mehrotra, IIME Best Paper Presentation Award - Beneficiation

Mr. J.N. Mohapatra, SRF, MST Div., Best Poster Paper Award – Young Scientist Colloquium (USC-08) organized by MRSI, Kolkata

Human Resource Development

During this period the following have joined NML in various capacities:  Dr.(Ms.) Nidhi Singh,  Dr.(Ms.) Arpita Ghosh  and Shri P Munda, all as scientists,  Shri B Mishra as F&AO, Shri N S Randhawa, Ms. Rupa Das Biswas, and  Shri Uma Chandra Oraon, all as Group III staff and Shri Shiv Shankar Kumar as Senior Steno.  I wish them all a very pleasant, exciting and fruitful professional life. Additionally NML carried out the following recruitment and career advancement activities

• Interviews for twenty two Gr. IV positions were held from 8-13^th Aug, 2008

• Ten Gr. III positions and twenty three Gr. II positions have been advertised, the applications have been received and the screening process is on.

• Three walk-in interviews were held for Project Assistants and Scientist Fellows.

• Assessment interviews for Gr. III, II, I have been completed up to 2006-2007. For the year 2007-2008, it is scheduled to be held on 25^th and 26^th Aug., 2008.

Superannuations

Ten of my colleagues, fellow employess, retired during this period. They are Shri C B S Khatri, Shri P K De, Shri Sohan Singh, Shri R K Thakur, Shri T B Singh, Shri Ram Iqbal Rai, Dr. R P Goel, Shri Nagesh Pandey, Ms. S Bansier, Ms. Shova Dutta.  I take this opportunity to wish them all A Very Happy & Healthy Retired Life.

Extra curricular activities

This laboratory hosted the “Hussain Zaheer Memorial Bridge Tournament” which was attended by the top bridge teams of CSIR and some of the best local teams of Jamshedpur. NML bridge team emerged runners-up in the event. The staff and guests were entertained with   Chou Dance performed by artistes from Seraikela and “Odissi” performed by renowned group from Cuttak headed by Mrs. Meera Das. The NML lady’s club organised a number of events including a “Ladies Cricket Match”, a Summer Mela featuring different cuisines and games and a “Sawan festival”. They have also invoked the help of Jamshedpur Cine club and plan to show films in the residential campuses, their first screening was the critically acclaimed “Blue Umbrella”. ‘Prayog Prayashi, a cultural organization of NML staff members staged a comedy in the audio- drama festival at Russi Modi Centre of Excellence, which was widely appreciated.

Before signing off, I express my sincere thanks and gratitude to our RC Chairman, Dr. Baldev Raj, and all other RC members for their keen interest in NML’s activities, and their pro-active stance with regards to NML’s endeavours. I thank all my scientist colleagues, technical staff members, all my colleagues and staff members of various sections of administration for their continuous support and cooperation. It is through their efforts and initiatives that NML hopes to set new benchmarks in research.

25 August, 2008                                                                                                                                                                              (S.P.Mehrotra)