EARTH

High-temperature industrial processes, such as steelmaking and glass production, require advanced knowledge of radiative heat transfer, a critical element of thermal engineering. With growing climate concerns and fossil resources depletion, industries must adopt alternatives like renewable energy or process electrification. Radiative transfer, a key factor in these processes, is vital for achieving energy and environmental transitions. The European Union has embarked on an ambitious energy transition aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions, improving energy efficiency and increasing the share of renewable energies in the energy mix. Initiatives such as the Green Deal aim to make Europe the first climate-neutral continent by 2050. Many sectors rely on high-temperature processes (steelmaking, glass manufacturing, cement production, etc.). For these industries, a better understanding of radiative heat transfer will help to improve performance, reduce CO2 emissions, and facilitate the substitution of fossil fuels with renewable energy sources. Overall, this could help to avoid at least 50% of the CO2 emissions in the sectors concerned. We propose a consortium that brings together experts in thermophotovoltaics, concentrated solar energy, porous media for heat exchangers, clean combustion, heat storage to tackle this challenge. However, expertise in radiative transfer is scattered across various disciplines, limiting collaboration between researchers. This project aims to establish a European doctoral training network (MSCA) to consolidate knowledge, and train PhD students to address critical challenges like decarbonization, energy optimization, and solar resource utilization. One aim of this network is to emphasize advanced techniques to model radiation in various applications including Monte Carlo methods for complex scale modeling, leveraging modeling expertise from French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Swiss and Norwegian teams. Through providing researchers with cutting-edge tools and interdisciplinary training, the initiative seeks to advance energy transition efforts and align with the EU Green Deal’s objectives.