On July 8, a meeting bringing together the National Science and Technology Award Conference, the general assemblies of the members of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering, and the 11th National Congress of the China Association for Science and Technology was held in Beijing. The project “Development and Application of Key Technologies for the Clean Production of High-Quality Steel for Advanced Manufacturing,” led by President Zhang Lifeng and completed with the participation of Associate Professors Wang Jujin and Chen Wei, received the Second Prize of the State Scientific and Technological Progress Award. This marks another major national-level scientific and technological achievement for NCUT since 2016, and the second time since 1987 that an NCUT scholar has been listed as the lead contributor to a project receiving this award. The honor has further strengthened the confidence and resolve of faculty and students to pursue scientific research and contribute to greater self-reliance and strength in science and technology.
Led by Professor Zhang Lifeng, the project was jointly completed by seven organizations: University of Science and Technology Beijing, North China University of Technology, Shougang Group Co., Ltd., Jiangyin Xingcheng Special Steel Works Co., Ltd., China First Heavy Industries Co., Ltd., Handan Iron & Steel Group Co., Ltd., and Shanghai Meishan Iron & Steel Co., Ltd. Addressing the global challenge of controlling non-metallic inclusions that limit quality improvements in steel for advanced manufacturing, the project focused on the urgent demand for high-quality clean steel. After years of collaborative research across industry, academia, and research institutions, the team achieved a series of original breakthroughs in the near-limit removal and tailored modification of non-metallic inclusions, as well as the precise prediction and control of inclusion evolution throughout the production of high-quality steel. These advances formed a key technology system for clean steel production with independent intellectual property rights, providing important support for the high-quality development of advanced manufacturing. The technologies have been applied to more than 150 steel grades at over 30 steel enterprises, enabling domestically produced steel to replace imports in sectors including nuclear power and new energy vehicles, with significant strategic and economic value.
President Zhang Lifeng’s team has long conducted theoretical and applied research on key challenges in the development and production of high-quality steel materials, providing scientific and technological support for improving the quality of steel used in advanced manufacturing. The team currently has 17 members, with 3 selections under national young talent programs, 2 under the Postdoctoral Innovative Talent Support Program, and 1 under the Young Elite Scientists Sponsorship Program. It has published 11 monographs and textbooks, more than 500 academic papers, and secured over 40 patents. The team has received a number of honors, including recognition as one of the first National Huang Danian-Style Teacher Teams, an Outstanding Undergraduate Education Team of Beijing Universities, a Beijing Worker Pioneer, a Beijing Model Collective, and a Beijing public institution collective commended for outstanding merit.
The team has achieved a series of notable results in high-quality steel research in recent years. In 2023, the project “Key Technologies for Controlling Large Inclusions in Steel for New Energy Vehicles,” with Professor Zhang Lifeng as the lead contributor and NCUT as the lead institution, received the First Prize of the 2022 Beijing Science and Technology Progress Award. This marked the first time that an NCUT scholar had served as the lead contributor to a project receiving this award.
Also in 2023, the project “Development and Application of Key Technologies and Online Control Software for Precise Calcium Treatment of High-Quality Steel,” led by Professor Zhang Lifeng’s team, received the First Prize for Technological Invention in the 2022 Ministry of Education Outstanding Scientific Research Achievement Awards for Higher Education Institutions. It was the first time that NCUT had received this award as the lead institution.
In 2025, the team’s project “Key Technologies for the Refinement, Plasticization, and Tailored Control of Non-Metallic Inclusions in Steel” received the First Prize for Engineering Technology Research Achievements in the 2025 Ministry of Education Outstanding Scientific Research Achievement Awards, with NCUT serving as the lead institution.
The team’s receipt of the Second Prize of the State Scientific and Technological Progress Award reflects NCUT’s continued reform of its research systems and mechanisms and its efforts to stimulate scientific innovation. In recent years, the University has actively explored a research organization model built around focused directions, distinctive strengths, and coordinated resources. It has established a system for cultivating high-level research achievements, with particular emphasis on projects targeting the State Science and Technology Awards. From 2012 to the end of 2025, NCUT received 413 scientific research awards at the provincial or ministerial level and above. In 2026, the University secured approval for 8 Beijing Key Laboratories, further strengthening its research capacity.
Since first receiving the Second Prize of the State Scientific and Technological Progress Award in 1987, NCUT has received the award 9 times. Nearly four decades of sustained research efforts reflect the enduring commitment of generations of NCUT scholars to advancing industry in service of the nation. This latest honor is a fitting tribute to the University’s 80th anniversary and will inspire the entire NCUT community to move forward with renewed confidence and determination.
