Selected research and development projects
In 2022, the JSW Group was implementing 15 R&D&I projects and 9 new project initiatives. The summary of major projects and project initiatives in various areas of activity that are part of the R&D&I segment is presented below:
| PROJECT NAME | Executive Entity | PROJECT DESCRIPTION | TARGET GROUP |
|---|---|---|---|
|
COKE-2-H2 – Technology to separate hydrogen from coke oven gas |
JSW KOKS JSW |
The purpose of the project is to produce and sell hydrogen with a high level of purity that is separated from coke oven gas in a newly built installation located in the Przyjaźń Coking Plant. Coke oven gas, which emerges in coke production contains roughly 55% hydrogen, which after separation and removal of the contaminants to the intended level may be used as hydrogen fuel in non-emission vehicles. Since coke oven gas is a by-product, achieving the project’s intended objective at an industrial scale would make it possible to produce hydrogen less expensively than its cost of production using competing production technologies. The project has been divided into two phases. Phase I calls for the modernization and adaptation of the current pressure swing adsorption (PSA) installation to separate gases, and also to product hydrogen, Phase II (pilot) calls for building an installation at the scale of 6 kg H2/h and optimizing it. |
Group |
|
Standardization of SCADA data and systems in JSW mines |
JSW IT Systems Sp. z o.o. |
As part of this project additional modules of our proprietary SCADA system are being built under the name HADES. This system is based on Ascom’s Asix.Evo platform. This system has been installed for production purposes in all of JSW’s units. |
JSW |
|
Reactive power compensation systems |
JSW IT Systems Sp. z o.o. |
The project involves designing and then building infrastructure and software to monitor the condition of the medium-voltage power grid in mines. |
JSW |
|
Development and construction of the Risk Management application |
JSW IT Systems Sp. z o.o. |
Digitization of the corporate risk management process. |
JSW
|
|
Development and construction of HRt (Training Management) application |
JSW IT Systems Sp. z o.o. |
Digitization of the process of managing employee training and competencies. |
JSW |
|
Development and construction of the eAbsencje system |
JSW IT Systems in cooperation with COIG S.A. | Digitization of the process of handling vacation leave requests and business trips. | JSW |
|
Optimization of roadway excavation support systems at JSW |
JSW S.A. |
Project executed under the “Efficiency” program whose level of progress is 40%. Metering devices are being installed in the Pniówek and Budryk mines and the Szczygłowice Section. The mechanical lining technology applied in JSW mines is also in progress. Project execution will make it possible, among others, to maintain pits for longer, which will improve safety in mines and reduce the production costs of the JSW mines. |
JSW |
|
Construction of an Innovative Above-ground Explosives Storage Facility at Shaft VI at JSW KWK Budryk |
JSW Nowe Projekty (formerly JSW Innowacje) |
Construction of Poland's first above-ground storage facility for Class 3 explosives on the surface of a mine, using designed and tested additional safety measures that allowed the facility to be located in close proximity to facilities located, among others, on top of the mine. Construction of the facility was completed in April 2021, and operation was completed in August 2022 - completion of R&D work. The entirety of the solution enables optimization of technical, organizational and economic processes related to the management of explosives in mines. | JSW, all other plants that store explosives |
|
Project Spoil Tip |
JSW Nowe Projekty, JSW, Agencja Rozwoju Przemysłu S.A., Ekoenergia Silesia S.A., Katowicka Specjalna Strefa Ekonomiczna S.A., Grupa CZH S.A., Instytut Technologii Paliw i Energii |
For the project, a Consortium has been established to prepare and carry out a procedure to select an entity to perform a Feasibility Study for the development of degraded post-mining sites, for RES and hydrogen production in order to develop innovative circular economy, and to finance the execution of the Feasibility Study, as well as to prepare and carry out a procedure to select a specific entity responsible for obtaining information from the European Commission on the possibility of hydrogen production based on raw materials obtained from post-industrial spoil tips. |
JSW |
|
DensiCoal |
Consortium: JSW Nowe Projekty, JSW, JSW KOKS |
Development of a technology for production of a coke charge component by compacting coal blends containing fine fractions (DFW) - DensiCoal. The project will result in a technology for producing a coke charge component by compacting coal blends containing fine fractions (DFW). |
JSW KOKS |
|
ImproStamp |
Consortium of companies: JSW Nowe Projekty - Consortium leader, JSW KOKS, Instytut Technologii Paliw i Energii |
The project aims to develop technology for stamp charging with increased mechanical strength over the stamp charges that are currently produced, which will make it possible to reduce by at least 60% the quantity of destruction of coal cakes during coke oven charging. The improvement in the mechanical strength of stamp charging will be achieved by introducing a chemical additive to the feedstock blend to affect the strength of interparticle interactions, and thereby on the process of reorganizing grains during the stamp charging operation and the mechanical strength of the stamped charge. The project will result in selecting additives for use in development work and developing guidelines and concepts for the construction of a demonstration plant for the implementation of the technology. Developmental research will be conducted at the Radlin Coking Plant, which has a PWR stamp charging system battery. |
JSW KOKS
|
| AutoInvent | JSW Nowe Projekty | The main objective of the AutoInvent project is to develop an automatic, multi-sensor unmanned aircraft system. The system’s most important task will be to automate the process of regular inventory measurements of mineral resources. The merger of innovative measurement technologies will be used: 3D laser scanning and close-range photogrammetry and integration of two methods of precise positioning: GNSS satellite measurements supported by corrections from RTN and precise TPS laser measurements. Using the merger of data and laser scanning technology with close-range photogrammetry allows for increasing significantly the data accuracy, shortening simultaneously the time needed for field work. In addition, the use of non-invasive measurement methods improves the safety of workers. | JSW |
| Sense VR |
JSW Nowe Projekty; |
The objective of the SENSE VR project is to develop the methodology of training miners based on using a VR adaptive network environment. Adaptability will consist in the ability to adapt the knowledge transfer methods and skill practice to the level of competence of the trainee, understood as the ability to proficiently operate the VR environment. The implementation of the method will lead to an increase in the effectiveness of training and increase the level of occupational safety in mines (i.e. reduce the number of accidents caused by the human factor). | JSW SIG |
| HEET II | KOMAG Institute of Mining Technology; Silesian University of Technology; Central Mining Institute; RHEINISCH-WESTFAELISCHE TECHNISCHE HOCHSCHULE AACHEN; SWE Sp z o.o.; UNIVERSITATEA DUNAREA DE JOS DIN GALATI | The purpose of the HEET II project is to enhance the standards of miners’ work and power safety in the mines as well as in other industries and public services. The four main issues implemented in the project (single line transmission of energy, wireless transmission of energy, monitoring, management and communication, integrated composite single-bar route) clearly represent an innovative solution for a highly efficient and safe system for the transmission of electricity. | JSW |
| SOWA | Jarosław Dąbrowski Military University of Technology; JSW Nowe Projekty; Vortex spółka z o.o.; Waldemar Szybicki, | Prototype of a mobile multi-sensor observation system designated for securing a border zone | Product dedicated to Border Guards |
PROJECT INITIATIVES
RAW MATERIALS
Research work to determine the potential for the presence of rare earth elements (CLP-B's analysis of water, waste and sludge samples from JSW S.A.’s units). The mining of new deposits of critical raw materials within the borders of the European Union should significantly reduce dependence on imports of finished products, semi-finished products as well as raw materials themselves. The use of resources in a closed-loop, sustainable products and innovation are among the goals of the EU Communication on Critical Raw Materials.
REDUCTION OF CO2 EMISSIONS AT THE GROUP'S PRODUCTION FACILITIES
Project initiative aimed to seek and analyze solutions for reducing CO2 emissions at the Group's units. The aim of the initiative is to perform a review of available CO2 capture and management technologies and identify the ones that are potentially applicable in the Group's units. The initiative results in a scenario-based process feasibility study of the implementation of selected, most efficient methods of capturing and managing CO2 produced and emitted at the Group's units.
METHANE VAM
The aim of the project is to test and research the VAM research installation (at KD Barbara) under industrial conditions and to obtain external funding for the construction of a catalytic installation for JSW’s needs. The implementation of the project will reduce methane emissions into the atmosphere along with extraction of methane from mine workings, which will be used as a source of energy. JSW Nowe Projekty and GiG were partners in the project. The project work included submission of an application for funding under the NCBiR's “New Energy Technologies” competition.
WATER TREATMENT
The project concerns mine water management based on the electrolysis process - the production of green hydrogen. Water Treatment is understood as an effort to manage various types of mine water from active as well as closed mines by developing a technology to recover clean salt in an environmentally-friendly manner, while producing green hydrogen and clean oxygen. The expected effects of the Water Treatment project: execution of work in accordance with the circular economy concept, setting a new direction for the use of mine water, developing Poland’s first salt recovery technology with simultaneous production of hydrogen and oxygen.
RES IN THE GROUP
The premise of the project was to take an inventory of available land at the Group's units, including vacant land at working plants and available land after production plants cease to operate, as well as available roofs of buildings and canopies of production installations in order to determine the possibility of developing Renewable Energy Sources (RES) installations - e.g. photovoltaic installations. The implementation of the project has made it possible to select vacant space on Group facilities and available brownfield sites within the Group that could be developed through the construction of renewable energy facilities for the production of electricity with green certificates or the production of hydrogen as a form of energy storage.
SOIL-FORMING MATERIALS
The aim of the project is to develop a soil-forming material formulation to create soil structures with CO2-accumulating capacity using two active substances: humic acid and kaolinitic clay. The project involves the development of a soil-forming material dedicated to reclamation of a degraded post-industrial site through the use of a specialized reclamation substrate based on stabilized waste and biological components, as well as a large amount of biogenic elements that support plant growth and thus accelerate the reclamation process.
MINIGENERATOR
The aim of the project is to minimize energy purchase costs by producing electricity using existing technical infrastructure, including, among other things, process water pipelines. The proposed solution is a patented series of hydraulic turbines for power generation, which guarantees high flexibility of applications for various utilities.
STRATEGIC ELEMENTS
The goal of the project is to analyze selected solid as well as liquid waste streams generated by JSW mines to determine the content of critical raw materials. Phase I of the project was carried out in cooperation of JSW Nowe Projekty, and the work of this phase resulted in the completion of a preliminary Concept Study titled “Analysis of the possibility of obtaining selected critical raw materials.” Now a proposal from JSW Nowe Projekty for the implementation of the next phases of the project is at the arrangement stage.
COMPOSITES
Initiative to explore the use of composite materials in the Group, including platforms, ladder compartments, straights and others, replacing previously used steel components, whose service life is limited due to, among other factors, corrosion. The project is being carried out in cooperation with JSW Nowe Projekty. The use of composite materials reduces the Group's CO2 emissions and improves the ability to obtain external financing for the PPP Project when financing project implementation.
