Production and Technology of Iron and Steel in Japan during 2019

1. Overview of the Japanese Iron and Steel Industry

In Japan, the year 2019 was also the first year of the new Reiwa imperial era, as a new Emperor ascended the throne and the Heisei era came to an end following the Imperial Succession. Here, we review the world economy, the Japanese economy, the world steel industry and the Japanese steel in 2019, including the long-term perspective.

In the world economy, a higher growth rate had been foreseen in 2020, but downward corrections in growth rate predictions continued.¹⁾ During the last several years, a composition of globalism vs. nationalism has become apparent in various forms, including the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union, popularly known as Brexit, the birth of the Trump presidency in the United States and the emergence of populist parties Europe shaken by the issue of immigration.²⁾ Economically, a similar trend can be seen in the confrontation between free trade and protectionism. Brexit, which British voters approved in a referendum in 2016, became a reality in January 2020 based on the results of the British general election in December 2019, and no change can be seen in the “America First” philosophy of President Trump, who continues to promote domestic and international policies prioritizing America’s national interests. Following a speech by U.S. Vice President Pence in October 2018, which has also been called “the declaration of a new Cold War”,³⁾ the struggle for hegemony between China and the United States moved into a new phase of full-scale, multifront competition. In trade friction between the two countries, agreement was reached in the first phase of negotiations in December 2019,⁴⁾ but the future course is still impossible to predict. On the other hand, while the effects of the trade war between the United States and China remain as an uncertainty, the U.S. delayed implementation of sanctions against China⁴⁾ and movement toward a Brexit with a withdrawal agreement (as opposed to a “no-deal” Brexit) had been assumed. In light of those developments, the underlying tone of slowdown in the global economy is expected to have bottomed out in 2019.¹⁾ According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF),¹⁾ a growth rate of around 1.6% is estimated/predicted for the advanced nations in both 2019 and 2020, and high economic growth rates are also forecast for the emerging economies and developing nations. Based on this outlook, an increase in the world economic growth rate is predicted for 2020. Although the economic growth rate of the world as a whole is predicted to increase from +2.9% in 2019 to +3.3% in 2020, a possible downturn in growth is a concern, considering other factors: In addition to increasing instability and uncertainty in the situations in the Middle East and East Asia, there are also predictions that contagion of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) become an additional factor in an economic slowdown.

The Japanese economy slowed last year, mostly in external demand, and while domestic demand was firm in 2019, a slowdown centering on domestic demand is foreseen in FY 2020. A recovery in external demand had been expected in the present fiscal year, but the magnitude of the negative effects in economy of the COVID-19 virus is still unclear. In Japan, 2019 marked the first year of the new Reiwa imperial era, and cheerful news was a popular topic, including the change of imperial eras in May, the enthronement ceremony of the new Emperor in October and the rainbow that appeared at the time,⁵⁾ and the outstanding performance of the Japanese national team in the rugby World Cup, also in the fall of the year.⁶⁾ However, there was little good economic news. The preceding Heisei imperial era from 1988 to 2019 has also been called Japan’s “lost decades,” spanning 20 or even 30 years, and as this suggests, there were few happy topics over the long term. While the word “deflation” has disappeared from the economic assessments of the Cabinet Office of Japan,⁷⁾ the government still has not issued a declaration of escape from the deflationary cycle. Looking back on the transition of Japan’s GDP over the long term,⁸⁾ nominal GDP increased by approximately 2.2 times from 1980 to 2017, but during the same period, the nominal GDPs of the advanced counties of Europe and North America (i.e., the G7 countries except Japan) grew by 4.3 to 8.1 times. From 1995, that is, a quarter of a century ago, until 2017, Japan’s GDP grew by about 1.06 times, while the GDPs of the other G7 countries grew by approximately 1.8 to 2.6 times. In terms of the average real growth rate from 1995 to 2017, Japan’s real growth rate was about +1%, while the other G7 countries recorded growth of about +1.8% as a 6-country average. Although commentators continue to call the period from December 2012 to the present Japan’s “longest expansion of the postwar period,” this lacks a “feeling of reality”.⁹⁾ Considering Japan’s low growth rate, which can be seen as minus growth in relative terms, as described above, the assessment that “Japan is declining country” cannot be completely denied. In real terms, Japan’s growth rate was +0.3% in 2018¹⁰⁾ and +0.7% in calendar year 2019¹¹⁾ (and about 0.4% in FY 2019 ending March 31, 2020¹¹⁾). Moreover, real growth is forecast at +0.7% for calendar year 2020¹⁾ (and about +0.3% for fiscal year 2020¹¹⁾). Even compared with the other advanced countries, which have low growth rates in the world as a whole, this condition of low growth rates in Japan is expected to continue. In all cases, these 2020 predictions were made based on the data until January 2020, before considering the effects of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.

Table 1 shows the top ten countries in crude steel production by country in 2019.¹²⁾ There was no change from 2018 in the order of the top three, No. 1 China, No. 2 India, and No. 3 Japan, and for the third consecutive year, world total crude steel production set a new record at 1869.92 million tons (+3.4% in comparison with the previous year). Among the advanced countries/regions, the only country that has recorded exclusively increases in crude steel production is the United States. Nevertheless, the countries that attracted great interest in connection with trends in the global steel industry in 2019 were, as expected, China and India.

Table 1. Top 10 crude steel production countries (Unit: Thousand tons).¹²⁾

Order	1990	1995	2000	2005	2010	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	Change rate (%) 2019/2018
1	USSR	Japan	China	China	China	China	China	China	China	China	China
	154436	101640	128500	355790	638743	803825	807609	870855	920027	996342	8.3
2	Japan	China	Japan	Japan	Japan	Japan	Japan	Japan	India	India	India
	110339	95360	106444	112471	109599	105134	104775	104661	109272	111246	1.8
3	USA	USA	USA	USA	USA	India	India	India	Japan	Japan	Japan
	89726	95191	101803	94897	80495	89026	95477	101455	104319	99284	▲ 4.8
4	China	Russia	Russia	Russia	India	USA	USA	USA	USA	USA	USA
	66349	51589	59136	66146	68976	78845	78475	81612	86607	87927	1.5
5	East/West Germany	Germany	Germany	South Korea	Russia	Russia	Russia	Russia	South Korea	Russia	Russia
	44000	42051	46376	47820	66942	70898	70453	71491	72464	71570	▲ 0.7
6	Italy	South Korea	South Korea	India	South Korea	South Korea	South Korea	South Korea	Russia	South Korea	South Korea
	25467	36772	43107	45780	58914	69670	68576	71030	72042	71421	▲ 1.4
7	South Korea	Italy	Ukraine	Germany	Germany	Germany	Germany	Germany	Germany	Germany	Germany
	23125	27766	31767	44524	43830	42676	42080	43297	42435	39675	▲ 6.5
8	Brazil	Brazil	Brazil	Ukraine	Ukraine	Brazil	Turkey	Turkey	Turkey	Turkey	Turkey
	20567	25076	27865	38641	33432	33256	33163	37524	37312	33743	▲ 9.6
9	France	Ukraine	India	Brazil	Brazil	Turkey	Brazil	Brazil	Brazil	Brazil	Brazil
	19016	22309	26924	31610	32948	31517	31642	34778	35407	32236	▲ 9.0
10	UK	India	Italy	Italy	Turkey	Ukraine	Ukraine	Italy	Iran*	Iran*	Iran
	17841	22003	26759	29350	29143	22968	24218	24068	24520	31900	30.1
World Total	770458	752271	848934	1147975	1433432	1621537	1629096	1732171	1808373	1869915	3.4

*  As for Iran, its data for 2018 and 2019 were not collected on the same bases. Therefore, its change rate cannot be referred to as it is.

As in the past, the Chinese steel industry continues to have excess production capacity, and little progress has been made in reducing the risk of lower profits in the world steel industry. As a result of discussions in the Ministerial meeting on Global Forum on Steel Excess Capacity (hereinafter, GFSEC), which began in November 2017, a positive attitude toward solving the problem of excess capacity could be seen briefly, including abolition of illegal operations represented by ditaiogang, a type of low-quality steel made from scrap, in China. However, as a new risk, the price of iron ore increased sharply, resulting in high raw material costs, due to stronger demand for increased production of pig iron for electric furnaces in China in 2019. The Ministerial meeting of GFSEC in October 2019 discussed extending the Forum until the end of 2019, but a consensus was not reached due to opposition from China, and the GFSEC was allowed to expire at the end of its 3-year term. Although efforts are continuing in all countries, a composition of high raw material costs and low product prices now exists due to the failure to resolve the problem of overcapacity, and in addition, the low prices of steel products, due in part to the effects of the US-China trade war. The Chinese economy had slowed as a result of the increase in import duties imposed by the United States and China’s own measures to rein in excessive investment until 2017, but signs that the growth rate had touched bottom could be seen in the Chinese economy at the end of 2019. Because the Chinese government relaxed the restraints of measures to control investment, infrastructure investment recovered in the second half of 2019. Accompanying increased production mostly in construction materials, crude steel production also increased for the fourth consecutive year, reaching 996.34 million tons, for an increase of 8.3% over 2018.¹²⁾ Some survey results indicated that China’s crude steel production capacity was 1027.00 million tons at the end of 2018.¹³⁾ Moreover, that figure does not include ditaiogang production, which was reportedly revived in the spring of 2019, and media reports that ditaiogang production capacity reached 100 and several 10 s of million tons for a time could also be seen.

The Indian economy has expanded at a high growth rate for an extended period, for example, showing growth rates at annual levels of 8% in both 2015 and 2016. The government, companies and households have all generally increased investment, and the auto market and other demand industries have also expanded. As a result, in 2018, India’s crude steel production reached 109.27 million tons, for an increase of +7.7% from the previous year, and ranked No. 2 in the world, exceeding that of Japan for the first time. Crude steel production has grown by approximately 1.6 times in the past 10 years. Although the economy slowed in the second half of 2019, annual crude steel production was 111.25 million tons, or an increase of 1.8% from 2018. Over the long term, solid economic growth is expected to continue against a backdrop of an increasing population, the progress of urbanization and further economic reforms, among other factors. While it is generally said that the above-mentioned slowdown has bottomed out, a delayed economic recovery is foreseen due to a difficult foreign trade environment, which includes exclusion from the object countries of the General System of Preferences (GSP) by the U.S. administration, a bad-debt problem, and other issues.¹⁴⁾

Japan’s crude steel production exceeded 100 million tons in 1972 and has maintained an annual level of approximately 100 million tons since that time.¹⁵⁾ During this period, the largest domestic apparent crude steel consumption was 100.47 million tons in 1990.¹⁵⁾ However, the ratio of domestic apparent crude steel consumption to crude steel production declined gradually from that time, from 89.9% in 1990 to 70.4% in 2018. Since domestic crude steel production trended at around 100 million tons per year over the same period, domestic steel production was maintained by increasing the export ratio. This trend is different from that in certain other industries; for example, in the cement industry, domestic production fell by one-half accompanying a reduction of one-half in public works investment.

Due to declines in both domestic demand and external demand, crude steel production in 2019 was 99.28 million tons, a decrease of 4.8% from 2018.¹²⁾ Crude steel production was affected by declines in demand in main industries from 2018. In spite of firm demand in the civil engineering sector supported by recovery from successive natural disasters and the government’s “national resilience” policy, construction demand decreased from 2018, and in manufacturing industries, demand for automobiles decreased due to an increase in the consumption tax. Based on the above-mentioned outlook for the world economy, global steel demand in 2020 is seen as increasing by +1.7% from 2019. Although a recovery in external demand was expected,¹⁶⁾ the pandemic of the novel coronavirus will inevitably cloud any optimistic outlook. On the other hand, even though the supplementary budget for 2019 included \13 trillion yen in business stimulus measures, there is little expectation of a turn toward increasing domestic demand, given the accumulation of factors that negatively impact the business climate, including the consumption tax increase, lower incomes resulting from “workstyle reform” and the end of special demand associated with the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics.¹⁷⁾ As a result, domestic steel demand in Japan in FY 2020 is forecast as declining for the third consecutive year.¹⁸⁾

Moreover, since the outlook for a continuing composition of high raw material costs and low product prices is also high, the management condition of all Japanese steel makers has become difficult. Under this environment, Nippon Steel, which changed its company name in April 2019, announced that it will implement a merger with its wholly-owned subsidiary Nippon Steel Nisshin Co., Ltd. in April 2020, and also consolidated and reorganized its steel works as 6 works to realize higher efficiency in the operation of its production bases, aiming at reconstructing its manufacturing capabilities. Japan now has a 3-company system of integrated steel makers consisting of Nippon Steel Corporation, JFE Steel Corporation and Kobe Steel, Ltd.

Given the present condition in which growth of domestic demand is not foreseen, companies are continuously promoting overseas development and investment. Nippon Steel and ArcelorMittal, jointly completed the acquisition of Essar Steel India Limited. Also, JFE Steel decided to launch a joint venture with Guangdong Shaoguan Iron and Steel Songshan Co., Ltd., an affiliate of the China BaoWu Steel Group Corporation Limited, in the special steel bar business.

In technology-related matters, two keywords that attracted attention were “advanced IT technology” and “CO₂ reduction.” Further progress was also made in efforts to introduce advanced IT technologies in 2019, symbolized by the keywords “AI” and “IoT.” Nippon Steel introduced a new platform (NS-FIG™) that enables advanced data analysis and development of AI, aiming at deployment of advanced IT in its supply chain and engineering chain. JFE Steel introduced an AI-based system, which is capable of analyzing the temperature in the blast furnace up to 12 hours in advance and is useful in blast furnace management, at all 8 blast furnaces that it operates at its steel works in Japan.

Regarding CO₂ reduction, political sentiment demanding CO₂ reduction by all nations has increased drastically, to the point where Japan, which was responsible for about 3.5% of the world’s total CO₂ emissions in 2018, was awarded the “fossil of the day award” (given to countries that do not cooperate in global warming countermeasures) at the 25th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP25). Thus, further CO₂ reduction measures continue to be required in the Japanese iron and steel industry. In 2018, the Japan Iron and Steel Federation (JISF) announced “JISF Long-term vision for climate change mitigation: A challenge toward Zero-carbon Steel” as a long-term strategy, and technology development based on the keyword “zero carbon steel” was positioned as one Innovative Action Plan of the Progressive Environment Innovation Strategy in the supplemental budget for FY 2019 under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI). The Iron and Steel Institute of Japan (ISIJ) is also grappling with individual issues, and is also searching for collaborative, inter-industrial relationships on an academic basis. In any case, we are required to contribute to strengthening the foundations of the domestic production activities of Japan’s iron and steel industry by aiming at problem-solving through long-term efforts.

The following presents an outline of the environment surrounding the Japanese iron and steel industry in 2019 from the viewpoints of the trends in raw materials for iron and steel, trends in steel-consuming industries and the condition of crude steel production in Japan and the world.

1.1. Trends in Raw Materials for Iron and Steel

Due to the effects of a tailings dam failure in Brazil in January and shipment disruptions in Australia, total iron ore production by the Big 3 (Vale, Rio Tinto and BHP) decreased by 10.1% from 2018.^19,20,21) This heightened the feeling of pressure on the supply side, and the spot price of iron ore (CFR China Fe 62%) rose rapidly from an average of US＄67.80/ton in December of 2018 to US＄120.50/ton in July 2019. Subsequently, however, the price fell back to US＄91.00/ton in December due to the resumption of production in Brazil and a global decline in demand mainly in Europe.²²⁾ The spot price of metallurgical coal (Australian heavy coking coal FOB) fell from an average US＄98.60/ton in January 2019 to US＄66.20/ton in December due to a global decline in demand combined with weak demand for steel materials in China.²³⁾ Figure 1 shows the long-term transition of world iron and steel production and the average import prices of iron ore and metallurgical coal according to the World Steel Association (WSA), trade statistics of Japan Ministry of Finance.^12,24) According to these data, the import price of iron ore bottomed out at US＄56.50/ton in 2016 and began to rise, reaching US＄90.80/ton in 2019. On the other hand, the import price of metallurgical coal rose from US＄89.90/ton in 2016 to US＄159.00/ton in 2018, and then declined slightly to US＄148.60/ton in 2019, returning to the same level as in 2017.

Fig. 1.

Transition of world pig iron production and unit price of imported iron ore & metallurgical coal (calendar year). (Source: World Steel Association, Foreign Trade Statistics by Japan Ministry of Finance, etc.).

1.2. Trends in Steel-consuming Industries

According to the Quarterly Report of Iron and Steel Supply and Demand²⁵⁾ of the Japan Iron and Steel Federation (JISF) and the websites of the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association, Shipbuilders Association of Japan, and Japan Electrical Manufacturers Association, the trends in steel-consuming industries in 2019 were generally as described below. For details, please refer to the original Japanese text or the websites of the JISF, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) and the respective industrial associations.

[Civil engineering] In civil engineering activities in FY 2019, an increase over FY 2018 is expected based on the outlook for increases in both the public and private sectors. The value of orders received for public sector increased, mainly due to the government’s “national resilience” policy and landslide and flood control associated with recovery/reconstruction from natural disaster, and is trending at a higher level than in 2018. An increase in the amount of orders received is also expected in private sector civil construction, against the backdrop of construction of the Linear Chuo Shinkansen Line and investment in the energy infrastructure and information telecommunications fields.

[Construction] In the construction sector in FY 2019, new housing starts decreased due to a fall-off in construction of rental housing due to the fall of inheritance tax measures’ effect, and the stricter financing conditions. A decline is also expected in housing for sale due to continuing high sales prices and inventories, particularly for condominium apartments. Since a decline is also expected in nonresidential construction, centering on factories and stores, the overall construction sector is expected to fall below the previous year.

[Shipbuilding] After the reaction following the rush of demand before more stringent NOx emission regulations, global excess ship capacity remained unsolved in FY 2019, and the trend in ship prices has also been flat since calendar year 2018. Demand rise for new ship construction was not seen, as investment was largely occupied by fuel oil countermeasures to meet the new SOx regulations imposed in January 2020. A difficult order-receiving environment continued, as in past years, and there was no brake on the underlying tone of a decline in work in hand. Due to the decrease in orders received and the low level of work in hand, both the volume of keel laid and steel consumption are expected to trend below the previous year.

[Automobiles] Domestic sales in FY 2019 are expected to fall below the previous year owing to the effects of completion inspection problem and the decrease in demand accompanying the consumption tax increase in the second half.²⁶⁾ In exports of complete automobiles, there was a feeling of stagnation in automobile markets worldwide, but thanks to the strenuous efforts of Japanese automakers in the main markets in North American and China, exports are expected to be flat. As a result, both completed car production and consumption of steel materials are expected to fall below the previous year. According to the Japanese Automobile Manufacturers Association, unit production of 4-wheel vehicles in 2019 was 9684294, for a decrease of 45300 units, or about 0.5%, from the 9729594 units in 2018.²⁷⁾

[Industrial machinery] In industrial machinery production activities in FY 2019, there was a firm tone in domestic demand, but external demand was sluggish. In the construction machinery field, domestic demand was strong, but demand for construction machinery declined in Asia and Australia due to a slowdown in overseas economies, and the effects of typhoons forced some makers to stop some production. Production is expected to decrease in comparison with the previous year. Machine tools also showed a firm tone in domestic demand, supported by investment for labor-saving, but external demand fell sharply, affected by trade friction between the United States and China.

[Electrical machinery] Looking at the trends in electrical machinery in FY 2019, in spite of a slowdown in the smartphone market, electronic machinery for industrial use (hereinafter, industrial electronics) and telecommunications machinery trended at a high level, centering on industrial electronics, supported by the fact that the end of support for Windows 7 arose replacement demand for personal computers. On the other hand, heavy electrical machinery decreased as a result of the stagnation in capital investment caused by the slowdown in overseas economies, and this area was particularly affected by reviews of coal-fired thermal power plant projects due to a heightened awareness of environmental issues, with the aim of reducing emissions of greenhouse gases. Although replacement demand for household electricals with higher added value products was strong, this sector decreased due to the effect of the consumption tax increase and the reaction from the high level of the previous fiscal year. As a result, steel consumption in the area of electrical machinery as a whole is expected to fall below the level of FY 2018.

1.3. Crude Steel Production in Japan

Crude steel production in Japan in calendar year 2019 was 99.28 million tons, or a 4.8% decrease from the previous year; this was the first time that crude steel production has fallen below the 100 million ton level since 2009, immediately after the financial crisis of 2007–2008.¹²⁾ The main causes of this decline were the emergence of a trend toward a slowdown in the global economy due to the background of US-China trade friction and a slowdown in the Chinese economy, greater uncertainty about the future in domestic demand and decreases in equipment operating rates caused by natural disasters and equipment problems.^28,29)

By furnace type, converter steel production was 74.98 million tons (decrease of 4.1% from previous year), electric furnace steel production was 24.30 million (decrease of 6.9% from previous year) and the ratio of electric furnace steel was 24.5% (decrease of 0.5% from previous year) (Figs. 2, 3).³⁰⁾ By steel type, production of plain carbon steel was 75.60 million tons (decrease of 4.0% from previous year), and production of special steel was 23.68 million tons (decrease of 7.5% from previous year) (Figs. 2, 3).³⁰⁾ The continuous casting ratio of special steel is basically constant at around 95%, but increased slightly from 94.8% in 2018 to 95.2% in 2019 (Fig. 3).³⁰⁾

Fig. 2.

Transition of crude steel production in Japan (calendar year).³⁰⁾

Fig. 3.

Crude steel production and continuous casting ratio for ordinary steel and special steel.³⁰⁾

1.4. World Crude Steel Production

World crude steel production in calendar year 2019 was 1869.92 million tons, for an increase of 3.4% in comparison with the 1808.37 million tons of the previous year.¹²⁾ Looking at crude steel production in the main steel-producing countries, China’s production was 996.34 million tons (8.3% increase from 2018), and India, which overtook Japan in 2018 to become the world’s No. 2 crude steel producer, increased production to 111.25 million tons (1.8% increase), while Japan recorded a decrease of 4.8% from 2018, with production of 99.28 million tons (Table 1). In the top 9 countries excluding Iran, which changed its statistical method, all countries except China, India and the United States posted minus results for crude steel production from the previous fiscal year, and in particular, large decreases in production could be seen in the EU and Central and South American countries.

2. Technology and Equipment

2.1. Technical Environment of the Japanese Iron and Steel Industry

In 2015, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) compiled “Plans on Competitiveness Improvement of Metallic Materials” as a policy for strengthening the competitiveness of the metallic materials industry, and proposed three strategies: I. Strategy for technology development, II. Strategy for strengthening domestic manufacturing infrastructure and III. Global strategy.³¹⁾ In this plan, the followings were mentioned as issues confronting the metallic materials industry: i) Sophistication and diversification of user needs for materials; ii) Threat of overseas competitors’ catching up; iii) Decrease of domestic demand, and limiting factors in business, such as energy and environmental restrictions, and human resource and equipment restrictions; and iv) Impact of digitalization on reform. As I. Strategy for technology development, the plan presents development of material design technologies, development of manufacturing technologies, development of analysis and evaluation techniques, training of human resources, preventive maintenance utilizing digital data, development of effective utilization technologies for resources and energy, and development of materials considering environmental loads. For II. Strengthening domestic manufacturing infrastructure, the strategies include prevention of industrial accidents, strengthening of competitiveness by business reorganization, response to energy and environmental problems and response to the impact of digitalization on reform. As one item of III. Global strategy, the plan mentions resource circulation, including recycling, as a response to raw material supply risks. All Japanese steel makers are also promoting technical development and equipment installation in line with these directions and issues.

Recently, digitalization and networks have spread rapidly at the global scale. Science and technology such as the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI), sensors, biometric authentication, and robots are progressing, and technological development utilizing those achievements is being promoted, particularly in the field of monozukuri (Japanese-style manufacturing). With efforts toward the realization of the world’s first “super smart society” as “Society 5.0,” Japan’s 5th Science and Technology Basic Plan aims to create future industries and achieve social transformation by ensuring that the results of science and technology permeate all fields and regions. Fusion of “information space” (cyber) and “real space” (physical), which also extends to “psychological space” (brain, etc.), is progressing, and acquisition, integration, analysis and platforming of information and data in cyberspace have become essential. Against this backdrop, all major integrated steel makers are grappling with operation and equipment maintenance at production sites, research and development and product development by utilizing AI technology.

Regarding global warming countermeasures, following the ratification of the Paris Agreement, implementation guidelines were agreed and full-scale operation is to begin in 2020. The Japan Iron and Steel Federation established the “JISF Long-term vision for climate change mitigation: A challenge toward Zero-carbon Steel” which looks ahead to 2030 and the years beyond. In efforts related to global warming countermeasures, research and development of revolutionary new technologies, and not simply a further extension of conventional technologies, is desired.

Against this backdrop, the Japanese steel industry is steadily promoting the development of products that answer user needs, for example, development of ultra-high strength steel with high formability, to meet increasing competition between materials, while also continuing to consider cooperation between materials through the pursuit of new value based on combinations of different materials. The following introduces the main trends in technology and technical topics at the Sustaining Member companies of the ISIJ by field of iron and steel technology.

2.2. Iron-making

Pig iron production in calendar year 2019 was 74.91 million tons, a decrease of 3.1% from 2018.¹²⁾ As of the end of 2019, 25 blast furnaces (BFs) were in operation, including 14 BFs with inner volumes of 5000 m³ or larger; both numbers were unchanged from the end of 2018. Average productivity (calendar day) was 1.80 ton/m³/day, a decrease of 0.08 ton/m³/day from the previous year.

Affected by deterioration of the business environment, Nippon Steel shut down No. 2 BF at Kure Works in February 2020. The company also announced plans to shut down Kure No. 1 BF and No. 1 and No. 2 sinter plants, aiming at the end of the first half of FY 2021, to be followed by a shutdown of all equipment at Kure by the end of the first half of FY 2023; shut down Wakayama Works No. 1 BF, No. 5-1 sinter plant and No. 4 and No. 5 coke ovens in the first half of FY 2022; and move up the shutdown of No. 2 BF at the Kokura Area of Yawata Works from the end of FY 2020 to the end of the first half of FY 2020.²⁸⁾

In the iron-making field, repair, improvement and construction of equipment are continuing, beginning with coke ovens, which are suffering ongoing deterioration with age. In 2019, Nippon Steel completed the repairs of Kimitsu Works No. 5 coke oven A battery and Hokkaido Iron & Coke Corporation Muroran Plant No. 5 coke oven: west oven, which completed the renovation of all batteries of the coke ovens at the Hokkai Muroran Plant. The company is also proceeding with repairs at Nagoya Works No. 3 coke oven.²⁸⁾ JFE Steel is carrying out repairs at No. 3 coke oven, A and B batteries at West Japan Works Fukuyama District. In the raw material pretreatment process, JFE Steel completed expansion and repair of No. 3 sinter plant at West Japan Works Fukuyama District.²⁹⁾

Regarding blast furnaces, Nippon Steel stopped No. 5 BF at Wakayama Works and started operation of No. 2 BF.²⁸⁾ JFE Steel announced plans to reline No. 4 BF at West Japan Works Kurashiki District, as well as a plan to introduce data science technology for the blast furnace (BF Cyber-Physical System: CPS) at all BFs owned by the company with the aim of converting those plants to CPS.²⁹⁾

2.3. Steelmaking

Crude steel production in Japan during calendar year 2019 was 99.28 million tons, down 4.8% from the previous year (Table 1).¹²⁾ Responding to a deteriorating business environment, Nippon Steel announced that it would stop operation of the steelmaking facilities at Kure Works around the end of the first half of 2021 and move up closure of the steelmaking facilities at Yawata Works Kokura from the end of FY 2020 to the end of the first half of FY 2020.²⁸⁾

As trends in new equipment introduction, Nippon Steel constructed a new bloom continuous caster at Yawata Works Tobata Area as part of the optimization of the iron source process at Yawata, and revealed a plan to renovate the scrap melting process at Hirohata Works as an electric furnace process.²⁸⁾ At JFE Steel, construction of a new continuous casting machine at West Japan Works Kurashiki District is currently in progress. Continuing from 2018, the global prices of submaterials rose sharply. Stricter environmental regulations in China caused a decrease in the supply of raw materials such as magnesia, which is used as a raw material for magnesia-based refractories, and as a result, the price of magnesia-based refractories rose from 2017 onward. Prices began do decrease in the second half of 2019 due to the slowing growth of the global economy, but still remain on a high level.²⁸⁾ In the electric furnace field, the price of graphite electrodes rose due to tight supplies of the needle coke used as a raw material.³²⁾ These were factors that increased steelmaking costs.

As an examples of public announcements of research results, Nippon Steel received the FY 2019 Commendation for Science and Technology (Prize for Science and Technology: Development Category) of the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) for “Development of steelmaking process achieving minimum chromium emission (YES: Yawata Environment-friendly Smelter), and JFE Steel received the FY 2019 Energy Conservation Grand Prize Energy Conservation Center Chairman’s Award in the Examples of Energy Conservation Category for “Energy conservation activities by reduction of heat loss in molten steel transportation vessels in steel works.”

2.4. Steel Products

2.4.1. Sheets

Expanded application of high strength steel sheets (Hi-Ten) in the automotive field is progressing. Hi-Ten products of 1310 MPa class developed by Nippon Steel and JFE Steel were adopted for the first time in the world in auto body frame parts for new model automobiles manufactured by Mazda Motor Corporation. Because of limitations on the press formability of conventional 1310 MPa class Hi-Ten, application had been limited to bumper parts. The development of these new products made it possible to apply 1310 MPa class Hi-Ten to body frame parts by solving the technical issues of press formability and dimensional accuracy of parts. In “Development of high strength/high formability steel sheet line by innovative microstructural control,” JFE Steel succeeded in dramatically realizing higher strength and improving formability by creating an ultrafine microstructure in nanometer units by controlling the distribution of carbon atoms in the steel. In recognition of this achievement, JFE received the FY 2019 Commendation for Science and Technology (Prize for Science and Technology: Development Category) of the Minister of MEXT.

Kobe Steel developed a galvanized steel sheet (strength after quenching: 1500 MPa class) with excellent pressing productivity for use in hot stamping, and began mass production for application to auto body frame parts. Although cold-rolled steel sheets for high productivity hot stamping had already been developed and mass produced, and pressing productivity by customers had been greatly improved, Kobe Steel developed a steel sheet in which a zinc coating is applied to those cold-rolled steel sheets. The corrosion resistance of the newly-developed sheets greatly increases the possibility of expanding the range of applicable parts.

In expanding the range of applicable parts for Hi-Ten, development of new application technologies is also underway. Nippon Steel developed a press method for forming Hi-Ten with tensile strength of 980 MPa and higher, which have low formability, into parts with complex L- and T-shaped geometries. This method enables forming Hi-Ten by reducing the elongation of the material required in forming by performing bending forming, while applying an auxiliary die (pad) under a high load to restrict the top section of the sheet and in order to prevents wrinkles. The development of this method makes it possible to apply 980 MPa and 1180 MPa class Hi-Ten to auto body frame parts such as the center pillar and front pillar, and achieves a large improvement (average 15%) in material yield in part manufacturing. In recognition of these results, this technology received the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) Prize in 8th Monodzukuri Japan Grand Awards (Manufacturing and Production Process Category).

JFE Steel has developed a variety of application technologies to extract the maximum performance from automotive Hi-Ten and systematized those technologies. The system comprises three groups, which are responsible for body design support, part forming and part joining, respectively, and makes it possible to offer proposals for optimization of forming methods and welding and joining methods suitable for Hi-Ten to auto makers and part manufacturers.

Among other sheet products, Nippon Steel developed gas soft nitrided steel sheets with excellent surface hardness and fatigue strength, which are applied to transmission torque converter parts. JFE Steel contributed to formability improvement and gauge reduction by mass production of steel sheets for can-making with a combination of high strength and high ductility, and also developed a tin-free steel for high speed welded cans and succeeded in mass production of welded beverage cans using tin-free steel for the first time in the world.

In electrical steel sheets, a Si-gradient magnetic material (high Si concentration in the surface layer, low Si concentration in the center of sheet thickness) developed by JFE Steel received the Japan Institute for Promoting Invention and Innovation Chairman’s Award of the National Commendation for Invention and the Prime Minister’s Prize in the 8th Monodzukuri Japan Grand Awards.

“Development of temper rolling device realizing the world’s highest speed,” which was developed by JFE Steel, received the 54th Japan Society for the Promotion of Machine Industry Chairman’s Prize. The company developed an Intelligent Multivariable Control system for hot skin pass rolling by a fusion of optimization and simulation techniques and various types of sensor data in real time, enabling highly accurate automatic control of controlled variables including the steel strip shape, elongation and lateral walking in stable temper rolling at 800 m/min, which is the world’s fastest speed.

2.4.2. Pipes

Japan Steel Works, Ltd. (JSW), Koatsu Showa Cylinders Co., Ltd. and NIPPON STEEL & SUMITOMO METAL CORPORATION (NSSMC; now Nippon Steel) jointly developed and began commercial production of a new type of steel pressure accumulator for hydrogen stations. The developed accumulator has the same reliability as conventional devices, while offering lighter weight and improved durability. A NSSMC large diameter, heavy gauge seamless steel pipe with the strength and toughness to withstand high pressure (99 MPa) hydrogen was adopted in this product.

NSSMC received the 45th (FY 2018) Iwatani Naoji Memorial Prize for “Development of high strength stainless steel for use under high pressure hydrogen” in this connection. As a material for high pressure hydrogen stations that supply fuel to fuel cell vehicles, the developed steel has a combination of strength 1.6 times higher than the conventional material and excellent hydrogen embrittlement resistance, and is also the world’s first weldable stainless steel. It has been adopted in newly-constructed stationary-type hydrogen stations in Japan since sales began in 2013.

JSW was responsible for the overall design of the accumulator, which reflected its hydrogen-related material knowledge, and realized a large weight reduction and cost reduction by changing the cylinder structure from a conventional accumulator structure, in which a straight cylindrical cover is installed on the accumulator, to a structure which is drawn at both ends. By applying the excellent formed-head forging technology of Koatsu Showa Cylinders to the large diameter, heavy gauge seamless steel pipe, it was possible to draw the pipes to a cylinder structure with a large opening diameter, and to realize safety and reliability at a high level in a structure that makes it possible to remove inner surface flaws and conduct inspections of the inner surface. As a result of this joint development combining the technologies of the three companies, it was possible to realize a pressure accumulator that achieves world’s highest level life cycles and overwhelming durability.

Nippon Steel developed and began commercial production of new alloy-saving duplex stainless steel seamless tubes with the same material quality as the alloy-saving duplex stainless steel (hereinafter, Nittetsu stainless material) developed by Nippon Steel Stainless Steel Corporation. The developed material has the same chemical composition (21Cr-2Ni-3Mn-Cu-N) as the Nittetsu stainless material. Even though the new material is an alloy-saving type, in comparison with the general-purpose SUS304 (18Cr-8Ni), it possesses a combination of 2 times higher strength (proof stress) and equal or superior corrosion resistance. In particular, use of the developed seamless tubes in place of SUS304 seamless tubes can be expected to contribute to reducing life cycle costs by adoption of a thin-walled design with a maximum thickness reduction of about 50% utilizing its high strength characteristics, long equipment life owing to improved corrosion resistance, etc. The developed material is also a stainless steel product that contributes to resource saving by alloy saving (reduction of alloying elements).

Nippon Steel Titanium Low Fin Tubes were adopted for the first time in heat exchangers of marine freezers for fishing boats manufactured by Nissin Refrigeration and Engineering Ltd., a pioneer in marine freezers and refrigerators. In Titanium Low Fin Tubes, a heat transfer area about 2 to 3 times larger than that of conventional tubes is realized by forming fins on the titanium tube surface by a fin rolling process. Increasing the heating transfer area increases the heat exchange (refrigeration) capacity of the heat exchanger, contributing to heat exchanger space saving. Moreover, thanks to the outstanding corrosion resistance of titanium, application to marine freezer heat exchangers and air-conditioning equipment which uses corrosive refrigerants such as seawater or ammonia is also possible. In heat exchangers for marine freezers on fishing boats, seawater is used in the condensers that cool and liquify the refrigerant. Adoption of finned titanium tubes as heat exchange tubes for heat exchange between the refrigerant and seawater in these condensers realizes both corrosion resistance against seawater and equipment space saving, and contributes to enhanced reliability and long life in marine freezers.

Nippon Steel received the Invention Prize of the 2019 National Commendation for Invention of the Japan Institute of Invention and Innovation for “Invention of threaded joint with solid lubrication coating for oil country tubular goods.” The development and commercialization of a new solid lubrication coating with rust resistance, galling resistance, shock resistance and air-tightness as a substitute for the grease used conventionally for galling prevention in threaded joints of oil country tubular goods (OCTG) enables repeated coupling of OCTG without cleaning and recoating the grease, thereby contributing to improved work efficiency and cost reduction. This also realized zero environmental loads by eliminating leaks of grease on offshore platforms.

2.4.3. Plates

Highly ductile steel plates for shipbuilding and paint-free highly corrosion resistant steel plates developed by Nippon Steel were adopted simultaneously for the first time in the world in a state-of-the-art ultra-large crude carrier (ULCC). In comparison with conventional steel, the excellent plate ductility characteristics of the highly ductile steel plates for shipbuilding provide higher resistance to hull rupture and cracking in the event of a collision, and can also reduce the risk of serious marine pollution by leakage of the cargo oil or fuel oil. As a steel plate with extremely high ductility, more than 50% higher than the specified required value for conventional steel, it has been certified by the Nippon Kaiji Kyokai (ClassNK) and the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS). In recognition of its high performance, it received the 2018 Ichimura Prize in Industry (Contribution Prize) and the 8th Monodzukuri Nippon Grand Awards, Kyushu Bureau of Economy, Trade and Industry Director’s Award in the Manufacturing/Technology Development Category. In crude oil tankers, in which corrosion protection is legally mandated, Nippon Steel’s paint-free highly corrosion resistant steel plates (NSGP-1&2) for crude oil tankers can be used in the cargo tanks without painting. As a result, paint consumption can be reduced, the time required for construction and inspections can be shortened and environmental loads can be reduced. Since full-scale order receiving began in 2007, these products have been used in more than 10 oil tankers, and the total order amount exceeds 30000 tons.

JFE Steel developed a high-power vacuum laser welding technology with a rated output of 30 kW and installed this technology in the clad steel plate manufacturing process at the West Japan Works Fukuyama plate mill to improve the clad plate productivity. Since installation in FY 2018, this technology has been applied in the manufacture of more than 18000 tons of clad steel plates, and stable operation is continuing. JFE Steel also developed a high atmospheric-corrosion resistant steel plate which is suitable for environments with high levels of airborne salt and also provide excellent cost performance. It is extremely important to minimize corrosion in regions with high levels of airborne salt, such as environments near the sea coast and areas where road deicing agents are used. However, high cost resulting from addition of 1–3% Ni had been an issue with the Ni type high atmospheric-corrosion resistance steel plates used until now. To solve this problem, a dense protective rust layer was obtained by adding trace amounts of the corrosion resistance elements Sn and Nb, while continuing to hold down the amount of Ni addition, and not adding Cr, which is considered to reduce corrosion resistance in salt environments. As a result, good weldability and obtaining corrosion resistance comparable to that of the conventional Ni type atmospheric-corrosion resistant steel were successfully secured, while also achieving excellent cost performance. Based on these performance features, this steel was applied to bridges for the first time in Japan. A high corrosion resistance steel plate for tanker bottom plates, which was developed and commercialized by JFE Steel, now has cumulative production exceeding 10000 tons since it was applied to a ULCC in 2008. Use of this plate can greatly suppress pitting corrosion of tank bottom plates. This product contributes to a large reduction in painting costs, including elimination of initial painting and maintenance-related painting, and also reduces discharges of volatile organic compounds (VOC) from factories due to painting work.

Nippon Steel Stainless Steel developed and commercialized a duplex stainless steel (23Cr-5Ni-1Mo-N) which can be substituted for SUS316 series. The weldability of the existing alloy-saving duplex stainless steel was improved, and corrosion resistance exceeding that of SUS316 series and approximately twofold higher strength (0.2% proof stress) were achieved. This material has been commercialized in both plate and sheet forms and is suitable for applications that require higher corrosion resistance, such as food and chemical tanks and coastal infrastructure facilities such as water gates, etc.

Nippon Yakin Kogyo Co., Ltd. developed a 7.5 Mo nickel-based corrosion resistant alloy with excellent corrosion resistance in environments with high concentrations of chloride ions, sulfuric acid environments and severe corrosion environments where both exist in a mixed form. Demand for use in chemical plants and environmental pollution prevention systems such as flue gas desulfurizing equipment and SOx scrubbers for ship diesel engines can be expected.

2.4.4. Bars and Shapes

JFE Steel’s Deformed Flange H-shape was applied as a substitute for the main steel reinforcements in a reinforced concrete (RC) structure in the construction of the sluice gate piers on the body of the Yamba Dam (Naganohara, Agatsuma-gun, Gunma Prefecture). Until now, this product had mainly been used in place of the main steel reinforcements for bridges in cases where quick construction was required. This was the first adoption in a structure other than a bridge. Use of Deformed Flange H-shape realized improved earthquake resistance in preparation for a giant earthquake and also improved construction quality. In Deformed Flange H-shape higher concrete bonding performance compared to ordinary H-shapes is achieved by forming protruding transverse knots (linear shape) in flange width direction on the outer surface of the H-shape during hot rolling. In addition to having concrete bonding performance equal or superior to that of the deformed steel bars normally used in the framework of RC structures, structures using deformed bars, Deformed Flange H-shapes also have other distinctive features, such as excellent deformation characteristics and high earthquake resistance performance compared to RC structures using deformed bars.

JFE Steel received the 65th (FY 2018) Okochi Memorial Technology Prize for “Development of SP3, high wear resistant heat treatment rail for heavy haul freight railways with extreme fine pearlite structure.” This product is a railway rail in which microstructure control technology is applied to refine the pearlite structure by using JFE’s online heat treatment technology and the optimum chemical composition, and possesses wear resistance, resistance to fatigue damage and ductility. It has been applied to heavy haul freight railways in North America and Australia, where it is contributing to improvemed rail durability.

In the 65th (FY 2018) Okochi Prize, Nippon Steel and Sumitomo Metals Corporation (now Nippon Steel) received the Okochi Memorial Production Prize for “Development eco-friendly type steel wire for super-high-tensile-strength bridge cables.” By applying a combination of microstructure control which makes it possible to realize high ductility in 1960 MPa class wire by addition of boron to the steel composition, and a high productivity, environment-friendly rolling process including in-line molten salt bath heat treatment, NSSMC succeed in mass production of high strength wire rod material for wires by a lead (Pb)-free heat treatment process for the first time in the world. 1770 to 1960 MPa class high strength wire rod materials produced using this technology have been shipped since 2008, and have been applied to many cable-stayed bridges and suspension bridges with long center spans.

2.4.5. Iron Powder

JFE Steel developed a nickel-free alloyed steel powder for powder metallurgy applications which displays 800 MPa class tensile strength as-sintered in a mesh belt furnace. Conventionally, materials prepared by sintering alloyed steel powder containing 4% Ni, 1.5% Cu and 0.5% Mo in a mesh belt furnace had been used in sintered parts, but large deviations in hardness after sintering caused poor machinability and increased processing costs. Moreover, the conventional Ni-added material was also susceptible to Ni market conditions. Although the compressibility of powder is generally reduced by prealloying alloying elements, JFE Steel developed an alloyed powder by prealloying 3% Cu and 1.3% Mo, in which high compressibility is achieved by control of the manufacturing process. This powder achieved high strength exceeding 800 MPa class tensile strength as-sintered in a mesh belt furnace. In the future, JFE Steel is aiming at application of the powder to automotive parts and machine parts.

2.5. Measurement/Control/Systems

In measurement-related developments, Nippon Steel’s “High accuracy production technology for high strength hot-rolled steel sheets using shape meter employing LED dot pattern projection method” received the Excellence Prize in the 8th Nippon Monodzukuri Grand Awards (Manufacturing and Production Process Category). As a distinctive feature of this technology, the newly-developed shape meter projects a dot pattern of light formed by cyclically-arrayed high-brightness LEDs as light and dark areas on the surface of steel strips at a high temperature of nearly 1000°C. Although rolling causes instant-by-instant changes in the strip shape, the developed shape meter processes this pattern image in order to capture the instantaneous shape of the strip during rolling, enabling highly accurate measurement of the distribution of elongation in the transverse direction. The development of this technology enabled automatic correction of strip flatness without the intervention of an experienced operator, and as a result, shape-related defects were reduced by approximately 30% compared to conventional automatic control, and both the productivity and quality of high strength steel sheets were improved.

In the 53rd Prize of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Machine Industry (JSPMI), JFE Steel received the JSPMI Chairman’s Prize for “Minute surface concave/convex roll defect detector for steel sheets by magnetic flux leakage testing method.” Because the minute concave/convex surface flaws that occur when defects on rolling rolls are transcribed to the surface of a steel sheet (so-called “roll defects”) have a depth of a few μm, which on the same level as the normal surface roughness of steel sheets, they are not visible on the as-rolled steel sheets, but may sometimes appear as light and dark areas after the sheet is processed or painted for automotive use, resulting in appearance defects. Conventional inspections were conducted by stopping strip travel once during the manufacture of steel sheets and grinding the surface with a grindstone, which made defects visible due to the difference in contact of the grindstone at concave and convex parts. Focusing on the mechanism by which minute roll surface defects occur, JFE Steel developed an online minute concave/convex surface flaw detection device which uses the magnetic flux leakage testing method to detect the changes in magnetic characteristics caused by strain when the unevenness in a roll is transcribed to a steel sheet. The sensor head is arranged at a position 1 mm from the steel strip and measures a width of 100 mm in one measurement. The entire width is measured by successively changing the head position in the width direction. Although inspections had depended on manual work until now, this method realized automation of minute concave/convex surface defect inspection of steel strips for the first time in the world, thereby achieving stable production and improved productivity of high quality automotive steel sheets.

JFE Steel and JFE Advantech Co. Ltd. received the Japan Machinery Federation Chairman’s Prize in the FY 2018 Outstanding Energy Saving Equipment/Systems Commendation for “Device for visualization of position of gas leaks enabling judgment of leakage amount.” The ultrasonic sound wave caused by a leak is detected by using several ultrasonic sensors arranged on a plane, and the flight direction of the sound wave is obtained from the difference in the detection time at each sensor. The location of the leak can be visualized by overlaying these results on video images recorded simultaneously with the sound wave. Because the leak visualization function and an SD memory card recording function are provided in a compact portable case in this device, it is possible to search for leaks of compressed air, steam, etc. and record this process in video. It is also possible to obtain an approximate calculated value of the leakage amount from the sound pressure of the detected ultrasonic wave and the distance to the leakage point.

In system-related developments, Nippon Steel made an announcement concerning application of advanced IT to its supply chain and engineering chain in April 2019. To support introduction of advanced IT, the company created a platform with a high computational capacity capable of advanced image analysis and deep learning in order to perform various types of data analysis and enable development and application of AI. By incorporating previously-installed AI automation tools, newly-adopted image analysis technology and deep learning tools of NS Solutions Corporation in the platform, and creating a platform that enables integrated development from data preparation to data analysis and AI development and evaluation, this project will make it possible to develop and apply large-scale AI more efficiently. Nippon Steel is promoting an “intelligent steel works” by utilizing staff who promote advanced data analysis and application of AI, beginning with data scientists. The company is also promoting employee “workstyle reform” by using advanced IT, and is grappling with advanced IT and AI education and enlightenment activities for employees.

JFE Steel, with the support of IBM Japan, introduced a control malfunction recovery support system utilizing AI at all production lines in September 2018. This has made it possible for persons in charge of maintenance to search efficiently for past cases of trouble that occurred at all production lines in each of the company’s works, as well as the information necessary in recovery. Various effects have been confirmed, including a large shortening of recovery time. The start of full-scale operation, such as linkage with other systems in the company, was announced in March of 2019.

JFE Steel is promoting implementation of a “cyber-physical system: CPS” at all 8 blast furnaces that it owns and operates in Japan, and has developed and installed technologies such as anomaly-sign detection for anomalies that may cause serious trouble in blast furnaces, which had been difficult in the past, and a technology capable of predicting the heat condition in a blast furnace, which is critical for stable operation, up to 8 to 12 hours in advance. JFE Steel has also constructed a guidance system for operators which provides advice on the optimum action at the present point in time for predicted results, and began use in operational actions for stable operation and stable production. Also during FY 2019, JFE linked its 8 blast furnaces with a data highway and is promoting centralized monitoring and standardization/automation of operating technologies by collecting all data related to operation, and is planning to raise the level of blast furnace operation in the company as a whole.

JFE Steel also decided to develop a JFE Detecting-Anomaly-Signs for steel works utilizing state-of-the-art data science (hereinafter, DS) and deploy the system company-wide. The introduction of this equipment using DS will be the first in the industry. In the developed system, the degree of deviation from standard values during normal conditions will be standardized as the anomaly degree for use in early detection of trouble. Since steel manufacturing equipment comprises a very diverse range of machinery and instruments, and the number of variables indicating the condition of operation is enormous, exceeding several hundred, big data analysis will be introduced to enable efficient, comprehensive analysis of this huge volume of data for plant equipment and facilities as a whole. For efficient monitoring, time changes in the anomaly degree will be color mapped corresponding to their magnitude and will be made easily accessible at production sites. Anomalies will be prevented in advance by taking appropriate countermeasures such as repair, etc. for parts where the anomaly degree is high and trouble is feared. Because the degree of deviation from the normal condition is controlled, this approach is effective for preventing trouble experienced in the past and unexpected trouble.

2.6. Characterization/Analysis

A research team of Nippon Steel, RIKEN, Osaka University and the Japan Synchrotron Radiation Research Institute (JASRI, which in charge of operation of the SPring-8 synchrotron radiation facility) succeeded for the first time in the world in quantitative observation of the instantaneous movement of dislocations in the ultrafast heating process of the martensite microstructure of steel at SACLA (SPring-8 Angstrom Compact Free Electron Laser), which is the state-of-the-art facility of its kind in the world. The team reported the results in the scientific journal Scientific Reports, a publication of the Nature Publishing Group. In order to capture the phase transformation kinetics of martensite under ultrafast heating, meaning a heating rate of 10⁴ °C/s, the research group used the SALCA X-ray free electron laser (XFEL), an X-ray laser that achieves even higher brightness than SPring-8, which is one of the world’s most powerful X-ray sources. Martensitic steel containing 0.1 mass% C was heated at a maximum rate of 10⁴ °C/s and the changes in the dislocation density and carbon concentration during heating were successfully evaluated by femtosecond X-ray diffraction. If fast heating is applied to steel having a martensitic structure, microstructure recovery and recrystallization can be avoided, and a fine microstructure of fine-grained austenite can be obtained through the process called massive transformation without diffusive transformation. In the future, important knowledge leading to higher performance and higher quality in steel materials is expected, based on a deeper understanding of the ultrafast microstructural changes that occur under ultrafast heating.

2.7. Construction and Civil Engineering

The following presents the main topics in the construction field. Nippon Steel and Tatsuta Co., Ltd. jointly developed metal construction fittings for wood-frame housing which is more compact and has higher strength than the conventional product using 400 MPa steel. Based on the technology using steel sheets in the steel house construction method, the companies proposed the optimum material and geometry of the construction fittings, and integrated their know-how in connection with the metal fitting construction method and hardware manufacturing technology.

The three companies Takenaka Corporation, JFE Steel and JFE Metal Products Corporation jointly developed an SC beam using hat shaped steel section that enables labor-saving by increasing construction efficiency (SC: steel-concrete composite). In this beam, a steel member is fabricated by joining two hat shaped steel sections, which are formed by bending a light-gauge steel sheet into a Z shape, only the main reinforcement is arranged on the inside of the member, and the concrete is poured inside the member. This eliminates the need for the concrete forms and stirrups that are essential in the section of conventional reinforced concrete (RC) beams, greatly reducing work related to arrangement of reinforcing steel at the site and installation of concrete forms (assembly and dismantling). In construction with the SC beam using hat shaped steel section, the hat shaped steel section plays the role of a concrete form when the concrete is poured, and after the concrete has hardened, it functions as a composite structure that effectively combines the stiffness and strength of an RC beam and S (steel frame) beam. Because the RC beam and S beam behave as a single integrated member, the habitability of the structure is improved in comparison with either a simple RC beam or S beam.

In the civil engineering field, Nippon Steel improved its road deck plates for the first time in 50 years. In order to respond to customers’ requests for shortening of the time required to recovery slip resisting performance after rain, the checkered pattern was improved, including providing drainage grooves in the product length direction, thereby improving drainage performance and the skid resistance value. This product is used in various types of road surface excavation work, such as construction of underground shopping areas and laying underground piping, and in temporary bridges, work platforms and the like. Improvement of the skid resistance value also improves the running safety of automobiles and construction machinery.

The high atmospheric-corrosion resistant steel plate for environments with high levels of airborne salt developed by JFE Steel was used in a bridge for the first time in Japan. JFE Engineering Corporation fabricated and erected the bridge, which has a length of 194 m, on an automobile highway. JFE Steel’s a rotary penetration steel pipe pile with a toe wing, obtained certification under TCCS, a public technical standard in Vietnam. Vietnam is currently experiencing rapid urbanization and industrialization, and construction of belt highways around large cities, as well as airports, ports and harbors and other basic infrastructure, is progressing at a fast pace. Urban construction methods are demanded in environments where urbanization is already advanced; these include road construction methods that minimize restrictions on traffic during the construction period, and methods that enable construction at sites with limited space. A rotary penetration steel pipe pile with a toe wing is an advanced steel pipe pile construction method which enables low noise, low vibration construction, construction at sites with limited space, and low environmental load construction with no soil discharge or groundwater pollution. Dissemination to local projects and infrastructure maintenance in the Southeast Asian nations is expected.

The three companies Obayashi Corporation, JFE Steel and Gecoss Corporation jointly developed a construction method for constructing permanent underground walls with high rigidity and strength and a thin member thickness by using sheet pipe piles for earth-retaining structures, which are normally used in temporary construction. This technique was applied for the first time in the seismic retrofit of the Kagawa Prefectural Office East Building. In this project, a seismic isolation retrofit method was adopted by constructing an underground pit at the site and installing seismic isolation devices under the building. Construction by the conventional method was difficult, as the space available for construction of an earth-retaining structure and underground wall for the underground pit was extremely limited. This problem was solved by using members created by attaching JFE’s CT shape steel for bonding with steel reinforced concrete and the reinforcing steel for fixing to steel sheet piles in advance as a temporary earth-retaining wall, and integrating that structure with the reinforced concrete after excavation to form a permanent underground wall. This method is expected to contribute to improvement of social infrastructure in open-cut construction under the difficult conditions of urban areas, for example, at overpass crossings and trench-type roads on narrow sites, or underground passages in building and subway improvement work.

2.8. Environment and Energy

2.8.1. International Negotiations and Efforts of the Japanese Government on Climate Change

In 1992, the world ratified the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) under the United Nations with the ultimate aim of stabilizing the concentration of greenhouse effect gases (GHG) in the atmosphere, and since 1995, sessions of the Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC (COP) have been held each year based on that agreement. The Kyoto Protocol, which clearly laid out binding reduction targets for the advanced nations (Annex I Parties) was agreed at the 3rd session of the Conference of the Parties (COP3) held in Kyoto in 1997. For the period after 2013, which marked the end of the First Commitment Period of the Kyoto Protocol, the Kyoto Protocol clearly stated that the provisions concerning the reduction targets of the advanced countries would be revised and new targets would be established, and study of that issue would begin in the year 2005 at the latest. Based on this, AWG-KP (Ad Hoc Working Group on Further Commitments for Annex I Parties under the Kyoto Protocol) was established in 2005. On the other hand, establishment of a more comprehensive post-2013 framework also including advanced countries that had not ratified the Kyoto Protocol, and developing countries, was considered necessary, and AWG-LCA (Ad Hoc Working Group on Long-term Cooperative Action under the Convention) was established at COP13, which was held in Bali, Indonesia in 2007, with the aim of obtaining agreement by the end of 2009. Discussions on the reduction targets of all countries and actions until 2020 were held under these two Ad Hoc Groups. Following the Copenhagen Agreement at COP15 in Copenhagen, Denmark in 2009 and the Cancun Agreements at COP16 at Cancun, Mexico in 2010, the Paris Agreement was adopted at COP21, which was held in Paris, France in 2015, establishing basic rules concerning the efforts of all countries after 2020.

The issues discussed at COP25, which was held in Madrid, Spain in December 2019 included ① Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, which was left to the future after failure to reach an agreement at COP24, ② review of the targets for 2030 and ③ the Warsaw International Mechanism (WIM) for loss and damage associated with climate change impacts. ① Article 6 of the Paris Agreement concerns the rules for market mechanisms such as emission trading between nations, but no signs of compromise could be seen between nations which are actively trying to use Article 6 and those that believe its use should be held to the absolute minimum. As a result, it was again impossible to reach agreement, and the issue was carried over to next year. Regarding ②, the Paris Agreement aimed to keep “global temperature rise this century well below 2 degrees Celsius, and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase even further to 1.5 degrees Celsius.” Because the decision of COP21 requires a review of targets for 2030 by the year 2020, discussions toward 2020 were held at COP25. However, as there are both countries that strongly demand a review of the targets for all countries, and countries that have no plans for domestic discussion of the 2030 targets, the final text of the agreement at COP25 did not use strong language, but rather, an expression limited to recommendation of a review of the targets. As for ③, a review of WIM activities established under the Framework Convention on Climate Change at COP19 was conducted. Although small island nations that are already suffering damage due to the effects of rising sea levels, etc. asked the Green Climate Fund (GCF) for support for loss and damage, study will continue within the existing framework. In addition, a 16 year old Swedish climate activist, addressed COP25, calling on those in charge of negotiations for all countries to move up countermeasures to an earlier date. On the other hand, the United States formally announced its withdrawal from the Paris Agreement in November, one month before the start of COP25. Regarding Japan’s activities, in addition to technical exchanges, Japan participated in bilateral talks between environmental ministers and in cabinet level negotiations, thereby contributing to negotiations on the policy for implementation of Article 6 of the Paris Agreement. In all forums, Japan publicized its successful record of reducing GHG gases for 5 consecutive years, as well as the proactive efforts of nongovernmental entities.³³⁾

In Japan, the government established the Plan for Global Warming Countermeasures in May 2016 based on the Act on Promotion of Global Warming Countermeasures in order to promote global warming countermeasures comprehensively and in a planned manner. The plan clearly describes the measures to be taken by various entities and the policies to be implemented by the national government in order to achieve the mid-term target of reducing greenhouse effect gases (GHG) by 26% by FY 2030 from the baseline of FY 2013. Together with laying out the route to achieving that reduction target, the plan also positions an 80% reduction of GHG emissions by 2050 as a long-term goal. In April 2018, the Japanese government adopted the 5th Basic Environmental Plan, which presents the future directions for the development of environmental policies such as Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), creation of innovation based on the Paris Agreement and simultaneous solution of environmental and socioeconomic problems. The 5th Strategic Energy Plan was also adopted in July 2018 and presented the basic directions for energy policy. That plan mentions efforts to surely realize an energy mix for a 26% reduction in GHG as a response to the target for 2030 and the challenge of energy transition and decarbonization aiming at an 80% reduction in GHG for 2050, and calls for pursuing the possibilities of all options. In June of 2019, the Cabinet Office adopted the Long-Term Strategy Under the Paris Agreement as a Growth Strategy, which aims at realizing a “decarbonized society” as early as possible in the 2nd half of the 21st century and reiterates the call for an 80% reduction in GHG by 2050. This strategy also includes realization of a “virtuous cycle of the environment and growth” through “business-led disruptive innovation,” “contributing to the world” and inspiring “action towards a bright society with hope for the future.” By sector, in the energy field, the plan mentions pursuing all options, including renewable energy as the main power source, reducing CO₂ emissions from thermal power, promoting CCS & CCU/carbon recycling and realizing a hydrogen society, storage batteries, nuclear power and energy efficiency. In the industrial field, proposals for “decarbonized manufacturing” include use of CO₂-free hydrogen, exemplified by the challenge of “zero-carbon steel”, and feedstock change (CCU including artificial photosynthesis and biomass utilization). As cross-sectoral measures for achieving a virtuous cycle of the environment and growth, the plan mentions promotion of innovation to realize a cost that allows commercialization for social application, and a “Progressive Environment Innovation Strategy” that includes setting clear goals such as costs and identifying issues, and mid-term efforts.³⁴⁾

2.8.2. Efforts of the Japanese Steel Industry

The Japan Iron and Steel Federation (JISF) is continuing the Voluntary Action Programme of the Iron and Steel Industry implemented during the First Commitment Period of the Kyoto Protocol, and is currently promoting Commitment to a Low Carbon Society – Phase I, with a target of FY 2020. In November 2014, the JISF established Phase II of the Commitment to a Low Carbon Society, targeting FY 2030, anticipating the setting of Japan’s Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC) for GHG emissions. The basic concepts of these voluntary activities are four pillars, namely, the three “eco” approaches of “Eco-Processes,” “Eco-Products” and “Eco-Solutions,” together with “Innovative Technology Development.³⁵⁾ In FY 2018, the CO₂ emissions of the companies participating in the Commitment to a Low Carbon Society were 176.42 million tons on a BAU basis, and corrected emissions for the fiscal year (considering changes in the production composition ratio and fixing the electric power emission factor) were 174.2 million tons. As a result, the reduction against the baseline year of FY 2005 was 2.21 million tons, or 790000 tons short of the achievement target of 3 million tons. Total emissions of the iron and steel industry in FY 2018 were 181.57 million tons.³⁶⁾

Eco-Processes are designed with the aim of energy-saving/CO₂ reduction efforts in iron and steel production processes, Eco-Products are designed to contribute to reductions in the product use stage by supply of high functionality steel products and Eco-Solutions contribute to reduction at the global scale through the transfer and dissemination of energy-saving technologies developed and applied practically by the Japanese steel industry. As innovative technology development, the Japanese steel industry is grappling mainly with the development of an innovative steelmaking process (COURSE50: CO₂ Ultimate Reduction in Steelmaking Process for Cool Earth 50) and the development of an innovative iron-making process (Ferrocoke). Table 2 shows the targets of the Commitment to a Low Carbon Society.³⁵⁾

Table 2. Targets of JISF Commitment to a Low Carbon Society.³⁶⁾

		Phase I	Phase II
Eco-Processes		Reduction target of 5 million t-CO2 vs BAU*2	Reduction target of 9 million t-CO2 vs BAU*1
Eco-Products		Contribute to reduction of approx. 34 million t-CO2 (estimated)	Contribute to reduction of approx. 42 million t-CO2 (estimated)
Eco-Solutions		Contribute to reduction of approx. 70 million t-CO2 (estimated)	Contribute to reduction of approx. 80 million t-CO2 (estimated)
Innovative Technology Development	Development of Innovative Steelmaking Process (COURSE50)	30% reduction of CO2 emissions in production process by reduction of iron ore by hydrogen and separation/recovery of CO2 from blast furnace gas. Start of commercial operation of No. 1 unit around 2030*3 aiming at wide adoption by around 2050, based on the timing of replacement of blast furnace-related equipment.
	Development of Innovative Iron-making Process (Ferrocoke)	Innovative technology development with the aim of satisfying both energy saving in the ironmaking process and expanded use of low grade raw materials by developing ferrocoke, which demonstrates the functions of accelerating/reducing the temperature of the reduction reaction in the blast furnace, together with its operating technology.

*1  BAU: Abbreviation of “Business as Usual”; in these target values, it means the amount of CO₂ emission assuming crude steel production in these respective phases, against the baseline year of FY 2005.

*2  Of the 5 million ton-CO₂ reduction target, while continuing the commitment to a 3 million ton-CO₂ reduction based on energy saving and other self-help activities, for waste plastic, etc., only the amount equivalent to the increased quantity of collected wastes, etc. against the FY 2005 baseline is counted as an actual reduction.

*3  Preconditioned on creation of infrastructure for CO₂ storage and securing economic rationality for commercial equipment.

The COURSE50 project, which is positioned in the project “Environmentally Harmonized Steelmaking Process Technology Development” of Japan’s New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO), has been underway since FY 2008. The purpose of the project is to develop technologies for reduction of the amount of CO₂ generated by blast furnaces and technologies for separation and recovery of generated CO₂ in order to contribute to prevention of global warming. Concretely, a technology for increasing the hydrogen content of high temperature coke oven gas (COG) generated during coke-making and reduction of iron ore by using that hydrogen as a partial substitute for coke will be developed. Innovative technologies for CO₂ separation and recovery utilizing unused waste heat in steel works will also be developed for separation of CO₂ from blast furnace gas (BFG). Reduction of CO₂ emissions by approximately 30% by these technological developments is targeted. As part of this technological development, development of element technologies was carried out in Phase I – Step 1 (FY 2008–2012), and continuing from that work, a pilot level total demonstration test integrating the various element technologies was carried out in Phase I – Step 2 (FY 2013–2017). The targets are: a) As a technology for reduction of CO₂ emissions from the blast furnace, construction of a test blast furnace with a 10 m³ scale and total verification of the laboratory-level study results obtained in Phase I – Step 1, establishment of a reaction control technology that maximizes the effect of hydrogen reduction, and obtainment data for scaling up to a demonstration blast furnace in the subsequent Phase II; and b) As a technology for CO₂ separation and recovery from BFG, development of a high functionality chemical absorption solution, etc., higher efficiency in the physical adsorption method and applied research on technologies for recovering unused waste heat, aiming at construction of a technology that achieves additional cost reductions, and the goal of this work is to develop a technology capable of performing CO₂ separation and recovery from BFG at a cost of \2000/ton-CO₂, which can also be matched with the demonstration blast furnace.²⁵⁾ As results, the possibility of reduced CO₂ operation of the blast furnace by utilizing hydrogen was demonstrated by using the test blast furnace, and the world’s top level CO₂ absorption solution and process was also realized in blast furnace CO₂ separation and recovery.

Development of hydrogen reduction, etc. process technology (Phase II – Step 1 (FY 2018–2022)) began in FY 2018. Through Phase II – Step 2 (FY 2023–2025), this technology will finally enable CO₂ reduction of approximately 30% in comparison with the total emission level in steel works at present. The final targets of Phase II – Step 1 are a) As a technology for reducing CO₂ emissions from the blast furnace, to perform test operation of “Full circumference tuyere blowing” for use in partial verification with an actual blast furnace, and to obtain the outlook for a reduction of CO₂ emissions from the blast furnace by approximately 10%; and b) As a technology for CO₂ separation and recovery from BFG, aiming at completing a technology capable of realizing separation and recovery of CO₂ from BFG at a cost of \2000/t-CO₂, to achieve separation/recovery energy of 1.6 GJ/t-CO₂, contributing to a technology for realizing a CO₂ emission reduction of approximately 20%.³⁷⁾

As the results for FY 2018, in a) Technology for utilizing hydrogen in the blast furnace, a total of 5 tests were conducted toward practical application of a technology for reducing iron ore by using hydrogen as a partial substitute for coke, and the effects of the amount of hydrogen injection from the tuyeres by blasting operation and by raw material operation on the operation of the blast furnace were confirmed. In addition, prediction of the reactions in the blast furnace using a 3-dimensional numerical model and test operation under a condition of increased hydrogen injection were also performed. In b), Technology for CO₂ separation and recovery from BFG, a high performance, low cost mixed solution chemical absorption liquid was developed, and operating conditions were optimized in order to further reduce separation and recovery energy per ton of CO₂ by the chemical absorption method. Regarding technologies for use of unused waste heat from the steel works, the properties of the flue gas were investigated and a waste heat recovery system was studied, aiming at the construction of a heat recovery system that maintains heat transfer for a long period.³⁶⁾

The ferrocoke project was originally carried out over a 3 year period beginning in FY 2006 by a joint industry-academia project of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) called “Leading Research into Innovative Ironmaking Processes.” Development was continued as the project “Technological Development of Innovative Ironmaking Process to Enhance Resource Flexibility” of NEDO and METI over a 4 year period from FY 2009, and the element technologies were developed. This process is an energy saving technology in which reduction is carried out at a low temperature utilizing the catalytic action of metallic iron by mixing, molding and carbonizing steam coke and low grade iron ore, and the amount of charged coke (i.e., amount of carbon) is reduced by using the resulting innovative agglomerated material (Ferrocoke), which dramatically increases reduction efficiency. Unified promotion of this technology with “Development of process technologies including hydrogen reduction, etc.” was judged to be appropriate from the viewpoints of optimization of the energy-saving and CO₂ reduction effects, and it was added to the NEDO Project “Environmentally Harmonized Steelmaking Process Technology Development” as “Development of Ferrocoke Technology.” The project is being carried out with a 6 year timeframe beginning from FY 2017. In this technology development, the ferrocoke production technology will be established through demonstration research with medium-scale production equipment having a ferrocoke production scale of 300 t/d, targeting a 10% reduction in the energy consumption of the iron-making process by around the year 2022.³⁷⁾ As part of the technology development project, JFE Steel is currently constructing a pilot plant with a production scale of 300 t/d on the grounds of its West Japan Works Fukuyama District.

As efforts by individual steel companies, Nippon Steel received the Excellence Award in the 2nd EcoPro Awards for “Iron-supplying materials utilizing steelmaking slag.” The materials which won the award consist of two types, an iron-supplying fertilizer for marine areas with a confirmed effect in restoring denuded seaweed beds and an artificial stone that can reduce CO₂ emissions by 80% in comparison with concrete blocks.

Nippon Steel and JFE Holdings announced their agreement with the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD), which was established by the Financial Stability Board. Based on the TCFD recommendations, the two companies decided to expand their disclosure of information concerning the effects of climate change on their business activities.

In October 2019, No. 1 Unit of the Moka Power Plant of Kobelco Moka Power, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Kobe Steel, began commercial operation. This power plant, which located inland where there is no risk of tsunamis, is supplied with city gas by Tokyo Gas and will have a total power generation capacity of 1248 MW (624 kW × 2 units). The plant boasts Japan’s highest level of efficiency using state-of-the-art gas turbine combined cycle technology. No. 2 Unit has also begun operation in March 2020.

Aichi Steel Corporation, in a joint project with Toyota Central R&D Labs, Inc. and Omi Mining Co., Ltd., developed a calcium heat storage material which has the world’s highest thermal density and can be used repeatedly. A heat storage system capable of utilizing factory waste heat with a temperature of 400 °C and higher was installed in Kariya Works, and a trial calculation showed that CO₂ emissions in assumed practical use can be reduced by approximately 80% in comparison with a conventional combustion-type boiler.

2.9. Others

Sanyo Special Steel Co., Ltd. developed a cold tool steel with a combination of high hardness of HRC64 and high toughness for use in cold forging dies. Hardness comparable to high speed steel (HSS) and toughness greatly surpassing that of HSS were realized by applying appropriate microstructure control and alloy design to prevent the formation of coarse carbides, which reduce tool toughness and fatigue strength.

NSSMC received the JSPMI Chairman’s Prize in the 53rd Prize of the JSPMI for “Development of permanent magnet-type compact, lightweight auxiliary brake device (retarder),” and Nippon Steel won the Chairman’s Prize in the 54th Prize of the JSPMI (FY2019) for “Development of low noise gear unit for railroad use.”

Nippon Steel, Aisin AW Co., Ltd. and Aichi Steel jointly received the METI Minister’s Prize in the 8th Monodzukuri Japan Grand Awards in the Manufacturing and Technology Development Category for “Development of rare metal-less next-generation high strength steel MSB20 and gear wheel.”

3. Technology Trade and Development

3.1. Technology Trade

Figure 4 shows the transition of the balance of technology trade in the steel industry up to FY 2018.³⁸⁾ Payments received for technology exports decreased by 7% in comparison with the previous fiscal year, while payments for technology imports were 2.4 times higher.

Fig. 4.

Balance of technology trade of steel.³⁸⁾

3.2. Research Expenditures and Number of Researchers

The following three items were arranged using data in Table 3, Research Activities in Companies of the statistical tables in the outline of results in Statistical Survey of Researches in Japan, which is published by the Statistics Bureau, Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications. Those results are shown in Figs. 5, 6, 7.³⁹⁾

Table 3. Examples of themes utilizing public funds in steel industry.

Class	Name of project	Managing organization	Start (FY)	End (FY)
Processes	Environmentally Harmonized Steelmaking Process Technology Development (STEP2) COURSE50:CO2 Ultimate Reduction in Steelmaking Process by Innovative Technology for Cool Earth 50	(NEDO)	2018	2022
	Innovative and integrated high-grade steel making processes coping with inevitable degradation of iron ore	NEDO	2019	2021
Element technologies	Heterogeneous Structure Control: Towards Innovative Development of Metallic Structural Materials	JST	2010	2019
	Element Strategy Initiative: To Form Core Research Centers - Structural Materials	MEXT	2012	2021
	Development of Technologies for Next-Generation Thermal Power Generation	NEDO	2016	2021
	Research, Development and Demonstration of CCS Technology	NEDO	2018	2022
Products	Research and Development of Innovative Structural Materials	METI (FY2013), NEDO (FY2014~)	2013	2022
	Development of Technologies for Hydrogen Refueling Stations	NEDO	2018	2022
Others	Project for Super-Rapid Development Infrastructure Technologies for Super-Advanced Materials	NEDO	2016	2022
	Development of Technologies for Hydrogen Refueling Stations	NEDO	2018	2022
	Materials science on mille-feuille structure (MFS) - Development of next-generation structural materials guided by a new strengthen principle -	MEXT	2018	2022

NEDO: New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (From FY 2015, National Research and Development Agency; until FY 2014, Independent Administrative Institution)

JST: Japan Science and Technology Agency (From FY 2015, National Research and Development Agency; until FY 2014, Independent Administrative Institution)

MEXT: Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology

METI: Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry

Fig. 5.

Trend of ratio of R&D expenditures to sales.³⁹⁾

Fig. 6.

Trend of the number of researchers per 10000 employees.³⁹⁾

Fig. 7.

Trend of R&D expenditure per researcher (10 M yen/person).³⁹⁾

[Ratio of Research Expenditures to Sales] In comparison with the previous fiscal year, this item increased slightly in all industries but decreased slightly in the steel industry. The results for FY 2018 were on the level of FY 2015 in all industries and on the level of FY 2009 to FY 2011 in the steel industry.

[Number of Regular Researchers per 10000 Employees] In all industries, this index turned positive in FY 2017 after showing a decreasing tendency since FY 2013, and the result for FY 2018 was on the same level as in FY 2015. In the steel industry, this index showed an increasing tendency until FY 2011, when the industry recorded its highest number, but showed a decrease in FY 2012 and is currently staying at the level.

[Research Expenditures per Regular Researcher] In FY 2018, all industries showed a slight increase in comparison with the previous fiscal year. On the other hand, the steel industry decreased in comparison with the previous fiscal year. The result for all industries was on the same level as in FY 2008, prior to the financial crisis of 2007–2008, but the steel industry was on the same level as in FY 2006.

3.3. Trends in Research and Development Utilizing Public Funds

Among iron and steel-related technical development projects, the Cabinet Office, Japan project “Innovative Structural Materials” of the “Strategic Innovation Creation Program” (SIP) and the METI project “Material innovation through development for next-generation 3-D printers, etc.” were concluded in FY 2018. A new project, “Innovative and integrated high-grade steel making processes coping with inevitable degradation of iron ore” (managing organization: NEDO) was launched during FY 2019. The main continuing projects included “Environmentally Harmonized Process Technology Development – Phase II,” “Research, Development and Demonstration of CCS Technology” and “Development of Technologies for Hydrogen Refueling Stations” (all three projects have a term of FY 2018–2022 and the managing organization is NEDO), “Project for Super-Rapid Development Infrastructure Technologies for Super-Advanced Materials” (FY2016–2021, managing organization: NEDO), the METI project “Research and Development of Innovative Structural Materials” (FY 2013–2022, managing organization: NEDO), the MEXT project “Heterogeneous Structure Control: Towards Innovative Development of Metallic Structural Materials” (FY2010–2019, managing organization: Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST)), and “Materials science on mille-feuille structure – Development of next-generation structural materials guided by a new strengthen principle –(FY2018–2022)”. The main projects on iron and steel-related research and development topics being carried out with public funds are shown in Table 3. Many of these topics are in the fields of processes, environment/energy, and materials development.

4. Development of Human Resources in Technical Fields

The Iron and Steel Institute of Japan (ISIJ) conducts corporate human resource training programs (Iron and Steel Engineering Seminars, Iron and Steel Engineering Seminar special courses, Advanced Iron and Steel Seminars) and human resource training programs for students on an on-going basis for the purpose of developing cross-industry human resources.

As human resources development programs for students, in addition to “Student Iron and Steel Seminars,” which has been conducted for many years, the ISIJ took over the Industry-Academic Partnership for Human Resources Development in FY 2011 and conducts “Introduction to Iron and Steel Engineering Seminar” for master’s level graduate students and the “Experiential Seminar on Advanced Iron and Steel” for undergraduates. The “Introduction to Iron and Steel Engineering Seminar” is a 3.5 day course consisting of lectures on the fundamentals of iron and steel engineering, and practical technology development by teachers from universities and companies, respectively, together with a plant tour on the final day (conducted at Kobe Steel Kakogawa Works in FY 2019). In FY 2019, 38 students from 19 universities participated. The “Experiential Seminar on Advanced Iron and Steel” is a 1-day course consisting of an introduction to advanced technologies related to iron and steel, the outlook for the future and a plant tour. In FY 2019, this seminar was held at three locations, Kobe Steel’s Kakogawa Works and Nippon Steel’s Kimutsu Works and Nagoya Works, with a total of 69 persons participating.

As other activities, “University Special Lectures by Top Management” by members of the top management of steel companies were held at 11 universities, and “Special Lectures on Iron and Steel Technology” by the Executive Director of the ISIJ were held at 16 universities. A total of more than 2500 students attended these lectures. The ISIJ also carried out a project supporting the cost of bus transportation for steel works tours planned by universities.

5. Technology Creation Activities in the ISIJ

The ISIJ conducts activities in which it surveys technical information related to iron and steel production technologies, identifies issues for technology development and conducts activities to solve those issues, centering on Technical Committees and Interdisciplinary Technical Committees, which are affiliated with the Technical Society (Table 4). Beginning in 2015, a Working Group for Study of Steel Building Material Use was established under Technical Society meetings and is studying the creation of new technologies related to steel structures and steel materials in cooperation with the Japan Society of Steel Construction (JSSC). The Committee for Global Warming Mitigation Technologies for the Steel Industry (abbreviation: CGS) was also established in April of 2018 and is conducting a wide study of technologies contributing to CO₂ reduction from the steel industry through information exchanges with related scientific societies.

Table 4. Main organization in technology creation activities of The Technical Society.

Class	Content of activities
Technical Committees	•Object:	Designated fields related to iron and steel production as a whole.
	•Classification of committees:	Ironmaking, Coke, Steelmaking, Electric Arc Furnace, Special Steel, Refractories, Heavy Plate, Hot Strip, Cold Strip, Coated Steel Sheet, Large Section, Bar and Wire Rod Rolling, Steel Pipe & Tubes, Rolling Theory, Heat Economy Technology, Control Technology, Plant Engineering, Quality Control, and Analysis Technology (total of 19 Technical Committees).
	•Participants:	Steel company engineers and researchers, staff of universities, etc.
	•Purpose of activities:	Technical exchanges related to iron and steel production for the purpose of improvement of production site technology levels, identification and solution of technical of technical problems in various fields, training of young engineers, improvement of technology by industry-academic collaboration, and trend survey of overseas technologies.
	•Activities:	Committee meetings (1–2 times/year), meetings of Interdisciplinary Technical Committees handling designated topics, lecture meetings for training of young personnel and various other types of plans, etc.
Interdisciplinary Technical Committees	•Object:	Interdisciplinary or inter-industry technical subjects spanning various fields of the iron and steel production process.
	•Classification of committees:	Interdisciplinary Technical Committees on “Control of inhomogeneity to enhance mechanical properties of modern structural steels,” “Desirable Steel Materials for Automobiles (7th Period),” and “Materials for Pressure Vessels (total of 3 Interdisciplinary Technical Committees).
	•Content of activities:	Technical study for technological directions and problem-solving, surveys and other types of research, information exchanges with other associations, etc.

5.1. Technical Committees

Technical Committees, which each promote activities in designated fields related to iron and steel production, hold regular Committee Meetings, where key issues at the present point in time are energetically discussed as common/important topics (Table 4). In FY 2019, a total of 34 Committee Meetings were held, comprising 17 Spring Meetings and 17 Fall Meetings. The total number of participants was 2868 (including a total of 63 researchers from universities, etc., an increase of 8 from FY 2018). The total number of participants increased by about 100 persons from the 2761 in FY 2018. Commemorative meetings for the 100th meeting of the Plant Engineering Committee and the 150th meeting of the Rolling Theory Committee were held in the spring of FY 2019, and seemed to affect the increase in the total number of participants.

In addition, various types of training programs for young persons are being actively promoted in the Technical Committees, and joint programs with the ISIJ’s Academic Division are also being actively promoted. Moreover, the number of Technical Committees participating in international conferences, surveys of overseas technology, etc. is also continuing to increase, and international exchanges activities continue to be active. Technical Subcommittees, which conduct joint studies of designated technical problems as priority issues in each Technical Committee, carried out activities on a total of 21 themes. Technical Committees are also continuing to conduct a variety of other activities, including seminars and plant tours/seminars with other industries, etc. as on-going activities from earlier years.

5.2. Interdisciplinary Technical Committees

Interdisciplinary Technical Committees (Table 4) study interdisciplinary and inter-industry technical issues. In FY 2019, three committees were active. The Interdisciplinary Technical Committee “Control of inhomogeneity to enhance mechanical properties of modern structural steels” began activities on a new topic from FY 2019.

The Interdisciplinary Technical Committee on “Desirable steel materials for automobiles” submitted topics to the Society of Automotive Engineers of Japan (JSAE), carried out activities designed to create a platform for exchanges centering on young people, etc., while continuing to explore the proper form of a new cooperative relationship with auto makers, and the JSAE, the Japan Institute of Metals and Materials and ISIJ also held a joint symposium.

In the Interdisciplinary Technical Committee on “Materials for Pressure Vessel,” the “Working Group on Study of Standards for Steel Materials” and “Working Group on Advanced Heat-Resistant Steels” carried out respective activities.

5.3. Research Grants and Research Groups

The system related to research grants of the ISIJ is shown in Table 5. In “Grants for Promotion of Iron and Steel Research,” 30 new projects (including 13 by young researchers) were selected to begin with receiving grants in FY 2019. Together with the 32 projects that began in FY 2018, a total of 62 projects were carried out based on grant topics in FY 2019.

Table 5. Research grant system of ISIJ.

Class	Content of activities
Grants for promotion of iron and steel research	•Purpose:	Activation of iron and steel research, support for basic and infrastructural research related to iron and steel, training of young researchers
	•Application process:	Selected each year based on public invitation; grant period is 2 years.
	•Features:	Object is individual researchers, establishes a framework for young researchers.
	•Number of projects:	62 (number of aid recipients in FY 2019).
Research Groups	•Purpose:	Activation of iron and steel research, creation of foundations for technical innovation, creation of human research network by industry-academic collaboration.
	•Application process:	Selected each year based on proposals, public invitation; in principle, period of activity is 3 years.
	•Features:	Establishes “Research Group I,” which treats “seed”-led basic/advanced themes from universities and other research institutions, and “Research Group II,” which treats “need”-led applied/industrial themes from iron and steel companies. Participation of industry and academia.
	•Number of projects:	23 (number in progress at end of Dec. 2019).
ISIJ Research Projects	•Purpose:	Solution of technical problems of iron and steel industry, research on areas which are both important and basic, development to National Projects, etc.
	•Application process:	Selected by public invitation; in principle, period of activity is 3 years.
	•Features:	Research and development projects of key technologies contribute to industrial applications based on needs of steel industries. Participation of industry and academia.
	•Number of projects:	1 (number in progress as of end of December, FY 2019)

In FY 2019, 23 Research Groups were active, of which 8 concluded their activities during the same fiscal year. During FY 2019, a total of 9 Research Groups began new activities, 5 in Research Group I (“Seeds type”), and 4 in Research Group II (“Needs type”). Five Groups of Research Group I began activities in FY 2020.

In ISIJ Research Projects, activities on one topic began from FY 2019, and one was selected to start activities from FY 2020.

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