Partners
Tata Steel
Tata Steel Nederland is one of Europe’s leading steel producers. The company supplies high-quality steel products to the most demanding markets, including construction, automotive, packaging and engineering. Tata Steel Nederland works with customers to develop new steel products that give them a competitive edge. Tata Steel Nederland has sites in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany and elsewhere in Europe and is part of the Indian Tata Steel Group, one of the world’s largest steel companies. Tata Steel Nederland recorded a turnover of 7.2 billion euros in the financial year ending 31 March, 2023. Tata Steel Nederland is working on producing steel with zero carbon emissions by 2045. Green steel in a clean environment, without the use of coal.
RWTH Aachen
The RWTH Aachen is with about 50,000 students, 570 professors and a scientific staff of about 6300 one of the largest technical universities in Germany, with a historically strong focus on engineering studies. The Steel Institute of RWTH Aachen University conducts education and research in the areas of steel production and processing as well as in the application of metallic materials. In doing so, education and advanced training are carried out on a scientific level relating to practice. The research is based on fundamental principles and is practice-oriented. It takes up current research topics and makes a scientific contribution to solve industrial problems. The institute is divided into two chairs: Chair of Materials Engineering of Metals (Prof. Ulrich Krupp) and the Chair of Sustainable Ferrous Metallurgy (Prof. Hauke Springer).
Volkswagen A.G.
The Volkswagen Group, with its headquarters in Wolfsburg, is one of the world’s leading automobile manufacturers and commercial vehicles the largest carmaker in Europe. It operates globally, with 114 production facilities in 19 European countries and ten countries in the Americas, Asia and Africa. Ten strong, independent core brands that meet every mobility need leverage synergies within the Group. They are divided into the brand groups ‘Core’, ‘Progressive’ and ‘Sport Luxury’. With our brands, business units and financial services, we are shaping the zero-emission and autonomous future of mobility. With our Group strategy we are paving the way for the biggest change process in our history. The focus is on the main multidisciplinary areas addressed by our four technology platforms – mechatronics, software, battery & charging, and mobility solutions.
RISE A.B.
RISE Corrosion Department is part of the Materials and Production division in RISE, Research Institutes of Sweden. At RISE Corrosion Department, three units and ca. 45 persons work in all fields of corrosion including advanced surface characterization and modelling; vehicles & surface protection, infrastructure & energy, and process industry & polymers. The division specializes in corrosion, chemistry, biology, medical technology and mechanics. The work involves product, production and material development for textile, polymer, composite, metal and ceramic. RISE is Sweden’s research institute and innovation partner. Through our international collaboration programmes with industry, academia and the public sector, we ensure the competitiveness of the Swedish business community on an international level and contribute to a sustainable society. Our 2,800 employees engage in and support all types of innovation processes. RISE is an independent, State-owned research institute, which offers unique expertise and over 100 testbeds and demonstration environments for future-proof technologies, products and services. This includes corrosion testing of metallic coating and testing related to hydrogen embrittlement that will be used in this project.
CSIC
The Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), represented by its metallurgy centre CENIM and its MATERIALIA- Steel Group is Spain’s largest public research institution and ranks third among Europe’s largest research organisations.
The National Centre for Metallurgical Research (CENIM-CSIC) develops its research activities in the field of metallic alloys, from the design, production and transformation to the end user analysis in different industrial sectors. The MATERIALIA- Steel Group at CENIM-CSIC aims to be Spain’s leader in the study and modelling of solid-solid phase transformations and optimisation of mechanical properties of steels, which correlates with the proposed project topic. The group maintains a close relationship with the metallurgical industry, and is funded by the Research Fund for Coal and Steel (RFCS) program, enabling it to disseminate outcomes achieved from the proposed project within the industrial sector. The group, as in July 2023, includes 1 research professor, 3 senior scientists, 3 tenured scientist, 1 COmFuturo-fellow, 8 PhD students, 2 technicians and 8 visitors from different nationalities . These members work on a variety of topics in physical metallurgy and microstructure evolution, employing a diverse set of approaches and tools.
Institut de la Corrosion (IC)
The French Corrosion Institute or Institut de la Corrosion (IC) is a research and expertise laboratory specialising in corrosion. It is established in Brest (headquarter), France since April 2002. IC is a subsidiary of Research Institute Sweden (RISE). Two other locations of IC can be found in France at Saint Etienne and Lyon. The institute is active each year in several industrial or European collaborative research projects.
The operational capacity of IC encompasses a wide range of services and facilities dedicated to understanding and mitigating corrosion across various industries. Key aspects of the capabilities include:
- Research and Development: The institute conducts R&D projects tailored to sectors such as buildings, biomaterials and implants, low-carbon energy, chemical and petrochemical industries, oil industry, offshore and coastal infrastructures, and transportation which includes automotive.
- Corrosion Testing: IC offers extensive corrosion testing services in different environments, including atmospheric conditions, seawater, aggressive media, H₂S environments, hydrogen testing, ammonia testing, high temperature testing and stress and fatigue testing.
- Natural Exposure Sites: The institute operates sites for natural exposure to study corrosion under real-world conditions, providing valuable data for material performance evaluation.
- Expertise and Consulting: IC provides expert advice and consulting services on corrosion-related issues, assisting clients in selecting materials, designing for corrosion prevention, and failure analysis.
- Training: The institute offers training programs to educate professionals about corrosion mechanisms, prevention strategies, and the latest research developments.
- Corrosion Sensors: IC develops and provides atmospheric corrosion sensors to monitor and assess corrosion rates in various environments.
These comprehensive capabilities enable the Institut de la Corrosion to support industries in addressing corrosion challenges, improving material durability, and enhancing safety and reliability.
Further details about IC can be found in: https://www.institut-corrosion.fr












