AIST Foundation Steel Intern Scholarship
Rodrigo Molina Martinez
My name is Rodrigo Molina. As a member of the AIST Mexico Member Chapter, this summer I had the opportunity to work on Ternium Mexico as a part of the Steel Intern Scholarship. I worked with Leandro Martorello, my direct tutor (and a great partner); and my work partners in the refractories area, where I belonged, and where I developed my project.
My project consisted of characterizing a dry-vibratable refractory powder (used as working lining in galvanizing pots) to understand its thermomechanical behavior and expand the knowledge around it, with the long-term purpose of explaining the occurrence of cracks and liquid metal infiltrations during its operation time on the premelt pots of the galvanizing line. For achieving that purpose, I conducted many experiments and lab tests, such as particle size distribution, cold crushing strength, x-ray fluorescence, scanning electron microscopy, and some other experimental methods like manufacturing a sample of sintered refractory material equipped with thermocouples inside to estimate the thermal conductivity of the refractory.
The main challenge I had to overcome was to understand and familiarize myself with topics and practices on which I had little knowledge, and doing it while working on the project, topics like refractories in general, types and composition of refractories, applicable procedures for testing refractories, etc. Fortunately, I could move forward quickly with the development of the project, as the refractories team provided me with the necessary training and gave me the trust of working on my own in their laboratory and workshop. Most of the project was an on-the-job learning experience, learning from handbooks, articles, the internet and from my work team about the industrial process, equipment, technical info, and of course, about their experiences.
Finally, what I liked the most about the internship was the laboratory work. I always wanted to dedicate my studies to the research field, but I didn’t know in which specific area. Fortunately, this year, and thanks to this internship, I had a recent but intense interest in the refractories area, mainly because even today the existing knowledge about refractories is small in comparison with the knowledge about metals, so it will be quite interesting to continue learning about it and maybe contribute to the field in the future.