Federation for International Refractory Research and Education

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Mar 12, 2026

Highlight of FIRE Alumni - Murilo Henrique Moreira - UFSCar - Brasil

Academic life is a continuous cycle of learning, discovering and transmitting knowledge. I entered this dance in 2014 when I came across refractories in the first semester of my Bachelor's in Materials Engineering, by joining the research group led by Professor Victor Carlos Pandolfelli at the Federal University of São Carlos. That decision shaped my professional career. High temperature materials were my entrance to discovering three passions: the scientific method, computational simulations, and advanced experimental tests.

 FIRE played a decisive role in this journey. Through the network, I took the first flight of my life to spend a year in France. I completed internships at Imerys Aluminates and Saint-Gobain Provence. Besides the professional development, I experienced different cultures and got to meet lifelong friends from the refractory world. FIRE truly embodies this constant exchange between generations, academia & industry, institutions, and countries.

It has always been my dream to give back to the refractories community that welcomed me so warmly into this network. Thanks in large part to collaborations with numerous industry partners, multiple academic mentors, and teamwork with international colleagues during my academic development, I grew both professionally and personally. During this time, I received numerous awards - many of them at international meetings that I could only attend through FIRE and its members' support. More than individual accomplishments, these validated the impact of the FIRE network cooperation. They also played an important role in demonstrating my professional potential, which allowed me to begin a new chapter as an Assistant Professor at the Federal University of São Carlos.


Stepping to the other side of the classroom brings both responsibility and opportunity: to advance research in refractory materials through the combination of state-of-the-art numerical models, world-leading research facilities, and to support students as they begin their own journeys.

I hope to ignite in them the same intellectual curiosity and commitment that FIRE once sparked in me. Contributing to this community now as a faculty member feels like a natural continuation of a cycle constantly fueled by FIRE.

Murilo Henrique Moreira

Assistant Professor

Materials Engineering Department

Federal University of São Carlos (UFSCar), Brasil

Murilo Henrique Moreira | LinkedIn

Last news

Highlight of FIRE Alumni - Mathilda Derensy - Institute of Mineral Resources Engineering, RWTH Aachen University - Germany

My interest in refractories began during my engineering studies in ceramics at ENSCI Limoges, when I discovered that the refractory specialisation offered an international research experience through the FIRE program. I quickly realised that refractories are far more complex and fascinating than simple bricks.

Jun 15, 2026
Imerys & FIRE: Driving Innovation in Refractories Through Global Collaboration

I had the immense pleasure of being invited to talk about cooperative refractory research and education during the plenary session of the 20th China National Youth Academic Symposium on Refractories last May. The event took place in Yangzhou, China, and served as a perfect platform to promote the key mission of the Federation of International Refractory Research and Education (FIRE).

Jun 9, 2026

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