Balanov Vasilii – 2022: Fabrication and Characterization of Potassium Niobate-basedPhotoferroelectric Ceramics (5000 €) – 2024: High-performancephoto-piezoelectric ceramics
2020: Becoming part of the solution rather than the problem: Minimizing waste and emissions through hydrogen reduction and agglomerates recycling in iron and steelmaking (5000 €) – 2021: Becoming part of the solution rather than the problem: Minimizing waste and emissions through hydrogen reduction and agglomerates recycling in iron and steelmaking (5000 €) – 2023: Towards lower CO2 emissions in iron and steelmaking – Hydrogen-assisted reduction and cement-free briquettes (5000 €) – 2025: Towards lower CO2 emissions in iron and steelmaking – Hydrogen-assisted reduction and cement-free briquettes (5000 €)
I am incredibly grateful for the Walter Ahlström Foundation’s generous and sustained support throughout my research. It has been a critical factor in my work, and I was proud to acknowledge the Foundation’s contribution during my recent keynote presentation at the ICSTI2025 congress in Beijing.
I would be delighted to provide a success story. Here is a draft that incorporates my personal journey, which I hope aligns with your goal of celebrating Finnish research excellence.
Success Story
My journey in Finland began in 2016 as an international master’s degree student. Today, I am a proud Finnish citizen and a post-doctoral researcher at the Process Metallurgy Research Unit at the University of Oulu. The support from the Walter Ahlström Foundation has been instrumental at every stage. The Foundation’s funding enabled me to focus on one of today’s biggest industrial challenges: creating sustainable, carbon-neutral steel.
My work has turned industrial waste into a valuable resource. I successfully developed novel cold-bonded briquettes that replace carbon-intensive cement with a new, sustainable binder made from ladle slag, another steel-plant by-product. This ”waste-to-value” innovation recycles materials, reduces landfill, and cuts CO2 emissions.
Concurrently, my research explored the impact of hydrogen in the blast furnace, a critical step toward decarbonizing the ironmaking process. This work has gained significant international recognition, with a 2024 paper named ’Editors’ Choice’ in Steel Research International and a keynote invitation for the 10th International Congress on the Science and Technology of Ironmaking (ICSTI2025).
The Foundation’s grants directly accelerated this experimental work, supporting a journey from student to Finnish innovator.
Regarding your request for a visual, I have attached the graphical abstract from my 2022 paper on developing sustainable briquettes. It clearly visualizes the ”waste-to-product” pipeline, from industrial side streams to the final, high-performance material, which I believe perfectly represents the innovative nature of the work. It is taken from my paper which can be found in the link below:
Abdelrahim, A., Nguyen, H., Omran, M., Kinnunen, P., Iljana, M., Illikainen, M., Fabritius, T., 2022. Development of Cold-Bonded Briquettes Using By-Product-Based Ettringite Binder from Ladle Slag. J. Sustain. Metall. 8, 468–487.
Ahmed Abdelrahim, D.Sc. (technology)
Post-Doctoral researcher
Process Metallurgy Research Unit, University of Oulu Pentti Kaiteran katu 1, 90014 Oulu, Finland
+358-417511988
Ahmed.abdelmonem@oulu.fi
