Vectors of Sustainable Development and Global Knowledge in the Metallic Materials Industry in Romania

Abstract

As a 21st century trend, sustainability has encompassed the entire world economy, including industry. The concept of “Industry 4.0” is already known today. It promotes the computerization of manufacturing by interconnection, information transparency, technical assistance and decentralized decisions. In recent years, companies in the metal materials industry have also implemented strategies and technologies belonging to the Industry 4.0 concept. The main aim of the manuscript is to identify the key issues in the evolution of the development of the metal materials industry. The transition to a higher level of its evolution is based on two vectors, namely: the ecological paradigm, as a vector of in-depth knowledge, and sustainable material, as a vector that ensures sustainability in the areas of convergence of systems in the spheres of life and social consciousness. The systems that have an impact on the sustainable development of the metallic materials industry through the interactions between them are the technological system, the social system and the natural-ecological system. The main objectives of the paper are the investigations into the interconditions of ecology–economy, and the correlations of ecology–economy–energy, investigations that led to the establishment of new scientific branches (ecometallurgy, metallurgical economics, metallurgical ecosociology and sustainable materials engineering) in terms of global knowledge, and which allow the expansion of the field of implementing knowledge of sustainable development in the metal materials industry. The paper is based on literary foundations, obtained from libraries; databases such as Web of Science (WoS), Scopus and Google Scholar; sustainable universal principles; and legislative parameters.

1. Introduction

Today, changes and influences produced by science and education in social life are closely related to a new process of remarkable conceptual progress. In recent years, companies in the metal materials industry have also implemented strategies and technologies belonging to the Industry 4.0 concept.

For a manufacturer, Industry 4.0 means the perfect combination of software, equipment and social life, in order to increase the speed, reliability and information flow between all the company’s systems. The changes in the metal materials industry are focused on production, information technology and environmental protection. Thus, we can talk about a Sustainable Industry 4.0, which leads to new values, new business models and new service and work processes.

The Sustainable Industry 4.0 concept is gaining more and more interest among scientists and practitioners [1]. In the context of the metal materials industry, the concept of sustainable development focuses on the interaction between technological, social and natural-ecological systems. Thus, we can talk about a Sustainable Industry 4.0 of metal materials, which integrates information and communication technologies and aims to build smart factories and productions.

Currently, many scientists are studying and conducting research in order to know both the positive and negative effects on sustainable development in the metal materials industry.

Many changes took place in the environment with industrial development. Later, these changes led to constant crises or even threatened survival. Due to this, people realized that they were starting to face various problems, and they worked hard to improve the situation. Nowadays, the urgency of environmental protection and sustainable development is more evident, which shows the growing interest in addressing the challenges of sustainability through education. Accordingly, education is a key enabler of sustainable development [1]. The important role of education in sustainable development has been understood since 1992. Today, through Target 4.7 of the Sustainable Development Goal 4 of the 2030 Agenda, it is proposed that people acquire skills and knowledge, which they can use to meet their own needs, without endangering the future of the next generations [1].

Now, we can say that the role of education and the progress of science in social life are supported by a sustainable development model. The most well-known definition of the sustainable development model is that “Sustainable development refers to development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” [2]. For Romania, sustainable development means the desire to strike a balance between the aspirations of its citizens, the society they depend upon, and the context that enables their self-realization. This balance begins with the individual in search of personal balance and conditions that are conducive to self-fulfilment. We can say that the presence of favourable conditions depends on the society that should be there to support and motivate the person, but it also depends on a favourable environment in which a person can achieve this balance. Consequently, the state role is to facilitate finding this balance, not only for today’s citizens, but also for the next generations [3].

Due to the production process with a large environmental footprint, the metal materials industry is under pressure. Efforts are currently being made to develop more energy efficient, environmentally friendly and socially acceptable technologies [4].

During execution, each part of the metallurgical process has a different magnitude of environmental risk. Between these units of the metallurgical process, there are notable differences in the promotion of the main and most important parts of their management (green programs, sustainability, environmental responsibility, etc.). As a result, there is a need to create a sustainability development model that includes these different perspectives, which should be based on the legal, social and operational duties of the metallurgical units [5].

According to existing studies, managerial factors make an essential contribution to a company’s sustainable development. Thus, it was found that a company’s management efficiency mainly depends on communication and operational level. It focuses on the best practices implementation for sustainable development, based on the three pillars: economic, social and environmental.

In essence, the sustainable development concept in the metal materials industry strives to balance different, often competing needs with a growing awareness in the technological, social and natural-ecological systems [6]. In this way, the progress of education and science in social life represents the process, defined by the evolutionary and adaptive transformations, within the eco–socio–economic–technological mega system, resulting in conditions of interaction and inter-conditioning between its components: the natural-ecological system, also called the foundation system; the social system; the economic system; and the technological system, which are also known as parasitic systems [7].

The design of a new model of sustainable development in the metal materials industry regarding the changes and influences of science in social life should propose qualitative and quantitative improvements in the design, popularization and operationalization of new knowledge (Figure 1).

Certain targets should become mandatory, as follows:

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The use of multi and interdisciplinary integration tools, so that the new model should provide the theoretical framework for understanding adaptive and evolutionary transformations, i.e., designing new methodological and managerial tools.

Multi and interdisciplinary integration is not a novel concept. “Interdisciplinary integration” indicates that scientists, researchers, and the community must work together to resolve global issues [8];

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Achieving the integration of sectorial knowledge, provided by a wide range of disciplines, in order to understand the mega system integration events.

For “integration” to be effective it is important to understand which attempts, and importantly, why, some attempts at interdisciplinary integration succeed [8];

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The permanent reactivation of human thinking which, compared to the technique development, cannot come immediately and consecutively after the development of material life.

Lately, such goals are accomplished based on new concepts, known as global knowledge and global thinking [9,10].

Thus, this paper aims to identify the key issues in the sustainable development evolution of the metallic materials industry in Romania and to emphasize the role of education and science in these efforts. The transition to a higher level of evolution is difficult to study. We tried to have an overall vision by carrying out a study based on two vectors, namely: the ecological paradigm, as a vector of in-depth knowledge [11], and sustainable material, as a vector that ensures sustainability in the areas of systems convergence in the spheres of life and social consciousness [12].

The work program started with a survey carried out on metallurgical companies, in order to gain an exact image of how strategies and technologies belonging to the Sustainable Industry 4.0 concept are implemented. From the survey, we observed that knowledge and many social skills need to be improved. Moreover, we carried out a study of the specialized literature on new knowledge for higher level development of the metal materials industry in Romania, in order to ensure sustainability in the areas of systems convergence in the spheres of life [13] and social consciousness. An innovative aspect of this study is the design and conception of new branches of science regarding global knowledge and global thinking in the field of metallic materials engineering

2. Theoretical Basis

A research thesis was formulated in the paper: the metal materials industry in Romania enables the integration of the concept of Sustainable Industry 4.0.

The paper adopts bibliometrics and the “basic literature extension method” based on the systematic review approach of the literature [14]. Based on the available literature, using databases such as Web of Science (WoS), Scopus and Google Scholar; sustainable universal principles; and new legislative parameters, we created this study.

The research was carried out in two fields:

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Sustainability, as the main lever in the evolution of the development, at a higher level, of the metallic materials industry. The time interval of the analyzed period is 2000–2021;

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SustainableIndustry 4.0, as a concept for the development of the metal materials industry, using advances in ICT, new global knowledge and the latest and most advanced techniques and technologies with a low impact on the environment. The time interval of the analyzed period is 2011–2022.

According to the methodology applied in the paper, the following steps were performed: planning, implementation, reporting (Figure 2). The structure of this methodology is presented in

Table 1. The structure of the methodology.

I. Planning
Steps	Detailing the steps	Comments
Research subject	Evolution of the metallic materials industry into sustainability	Result: reducing the environmental footprint during the life cycle of the final product.
Search fields	Title, abstract, keywords, document type, access type	These fields are more representative.
Fields	Sustainability, Sustainability Industry 4.0	Assumption: these will show the interconditions of ecology–economy and the correlations between ecology–economy–energy.
Keywords	Sustainability, Sustainability Industry 4.0, smart factory, smart production, sustainable smart production;	The keywords used were determined on the basis of expert knowledge.
Databases	Web of Science (WoS), Scopus, Google Scholar, sustainable universal principles and legislative parameters	The choice of databases was made according to their size and accessibility.
Time period	For Sustainability from 2000 to 2021; for Sustainable Industry 4.0 from 2011 to 2022	Different time periods were used because the domains have different life cycles: higher for “Sustainability” and shorter for “Sustainable Industry 4.0”.
II. Making
Steps	Detailing the steps	Comments
Form of search	Manual or automatic	Manual form was used for collection and compilation of data.
Search results	Sustainability, Sustainability Industry 4.0	The search results were systematized in four points of the paper, according to the analyzed fields.
III. Reporting
Steps	Detailing the steps	Comments
Form of reporting	Description and presentation	New information and additional information about analyzed subject by analyzing particular scientific papers.

.

The main research topic was the evolution of the metallic materials industry into a sustainable one, using the advances of ICT, the new global knowledge and the latest and most advanced techniques and technologies with a low impact on the environment.

Drawing from a sample over 6000 books and peer-reviewed articles, we mapped the landscape of the Sustainability and the Sustainability Industry 4.0 research domain and identified key developments and patterns over the period 2000–2022. In addition to highlighting a range of publication trends including key theoretical influences, the findings also reveal an acceleration in the volume and breadth of the evolution of the development of the metal materials industry research [15]. From the total number of works identified, we reached a list of over 300 works, which referred to the education development and industry, especially the metal materials industry. Using “education and industry development”, specifically “metal material industry development” as filters, we arrived at a list of over 300 papers, books, database articles, universal sustainable principles and legislative documents. Then, we reduced the number of papers to approximately 40, respectively, to those referring to the changes and influences of education and science for the qualitative and quantitative improvement of new knowledge in the sustainable development of the metal materials industry.

Thus, we conducted a literary study, which led to theoretical assumptions about a sustainable evolution of metallurgical companies to increase efficiency with a low impact on the environment. Prior literature did not emphasize the importance of the conditions of interaction and inter-conditioning for the need to build new knowledge and innovative skills, together with their popularization and implementation in the process of training community members from the metallic materials industry. In recent years, metallurgical engineering companies have been subjected to external pressures on sustainability (by technical improvement, human resource management, cost reduction and beneficiary requirements), including environmental protection by reducing emissions.

From the external perspective of metallurgical companies’ development, the researchers showed that the support policies and mandatory policies issued by the government provide an institutional guarantee and constraint for the implementation of sustainable development goals, and are important institutional mechanisms for the sustainable development of the metal industry. An important guarantee for companies in the metal materials industry shows that for remarkable conceptual progress, the interactions and inter-conditioning of the components within the mega eco–socio–economic–technological system must be optimized.

3. Results

3.1. Bibliometric Analysis

Bibliometrics refers to the research methodology employed in library and information sciences, which utilizes quantitative analysis and statistics to describe the distribution patterns of articles within a given topic, field, institution, or country [16]. Bibliometric information constitutes an adequate information source for assessing the performance of the major actors in the fields and subfields of scientific and technological studies. Many investigators have recently used these methods in global trends studies of specific fields [16].

This work is useful in terms of indicating the current status of research to researchers as well as practitioners, enabling them to be more aware of the research hotspots when making decisions about which topic to address.

Thus, following the bibliometric analysis, on the two fields (Sustainability and Sustainable Industry 4.0), and with the help of keywords (smart fabric, smart production, sustainable smart production), the researchers noticed that the metal materials industry can evolve much faster by integrating ICT in each sector of the metallurgical process, as well as with the help of multi- and interdisciplinary knowledge, such as: the ecological paradigm, as a vector of in-depth knowledge; the sustainable material [17], as a vector that ensures sustainability in the convergence domains of the life and social consciousness spheres; and the new scientific branches of global knowledge.

Continuous efforts to explore the landscape of Sustainability and Sustainable Industry 4.0 have been made for both the recognized crucial need for decision making, and for the investigation of resources in this field.

Aside from academic research, integration among multiple domains of the metal materials industry has also been noticeable. For “integration” to be effective it is important to understand which attempts, and importantly, why, some attempts at interdisciplinary integration succeed.

The newly proposed tools can be applied to face the increasing complexity of the processes and technologies behind and around current metal materials industry development and decision-making processes, derived from the new forms of proactive intervention in more strategic contexts.

In relation to the study area, from approximately 300 papers, books, database articles, universal sustainable principles and legislative documents, the following were used: studies in engineering sciences (93); in education (35); in sociology (17); in business and economics (35); in environmental science (46); in legal studies (11); in evaluation (37); in health research and policy (12); and in management and organization (28), plus some applications in other fields (Figure 3) [18].

Finally, the data show that the most representative works [19,20] that helped to carry out this study were articles in WoS-cited and indexed scientific journals (21); books published in recognized publishing houses (4); legal documents and strategies (3); and international conferences papers (3) (Figure 4).

The content analysis about multi- and interdisciplinary knowledge is presented in the following sections.

3.2. The Global Knowledge

The global knowledge for the material engineer means to build new knowledge and innovative competencies on the one hand, and their dissemination and implementation through the process of training and improving the community members on the other hand, considering that:

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The interactions and inter-conditionings occurring in the convergence areas of the four systems of the eco–socio–economic–technological mega system should be studied in-depth, using the postulate of the interdependence of parts and the priorities of the whole in relation to these parts [21];

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It is necessary to minimize the negative inter-conditionings between the technological system (producer of metal materials and metallurgical services) and the other systems;

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The natural-ecological system must be supported to be able to perform its two fundamental functions (resource provider for the other systems and processing or storage basin for the polluting secondary materials);

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The eco–socio–economic–technological mega system investigation is a matter that is based on specialization, disciplinarity, interdisciplinarity and transdisciplinarity;

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The possibility to generate new ideas by the specialist who collaborates in an interdisciplinary manner to increase the value of the initial information becomes greatly necessary [22];

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The metallurgical engineer must shift from the gogglewise knowledge [23] to the fanwise knowledge;

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The global knowledge pattern [24] shall match with the magnitude of the durable (sustainable) knowledge;

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The dissemination of new knowledge must have a multisystem nature;

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The metalworking engineer must contribute to the development and expansion of technological know-how and technological knowledge.

3.3. The Eco–Socio–Technological Paradigm

The ecological paradigm, as a vector of in-depth knowledge, is considered to be a special paradigm. It is understood as a group of people who have beliefs and values about sustainable development, where they can ask questions and receive complex and sustainable answers. Within such a framework, the engineering event is investigated, identified, characterized and made available based on methodological principles, methods and tools that highlight the priority importance of the natural-ecological system as a foundation system. More specifically, this means that the technological processes and the resulting materials must go through a circular active anti-entropic life cycle (provision of resources → manufacture → use → reintegration of secondary materials using 3R technologies (recirculation, recycling and regeneration) → disposal of residues) [25].

The operationalization of the eco–socio–technological paradigm acts over two aspects:

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It replaces the current techno-technologist paradigms, which are conventional paradigms;

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It predicts a global-type paradigm that can be called the “durable development paradigm”.

As can be seen below, the use of the ecological paradigm leads to important changes in the knowledge of materials engineering.

The application of the eco–socio–technological paradigm enables:

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The systemic approach, in which the eco–socio–technological paradigm mega system is appreciated on the basis of interactions between the ecological, economic, social and technological components, so that the impact of one component affects the system as a whole;

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The contingency approach, which states that the objectives can be solved by taking into account either the connections’ intra-system, or between them and the elements of the external environment; in such a framework, it becomes possible to know the methodological tools to characterize the human activated dichotomy—the environment condition.

3.4. The New Materials

The advanced material, according to the ecological paradigm, is the material that experiences a full negentropic life cycle.

Following the bibliographic research, the authors observed that an advanced material is a material that meets the rigours imposed by Sustainable Industry 4.0. However, there are exceptions, in which a material that we call advanced material does not correspond to Sustainable Industry 4.0. For example, from the point of view of the technological paradigm, nuclear materials are considered advanced materials, but from the perspective of the ecological paradigm this function is not fulfilled, because they do not go through a non-entropic life cycle. Nuclear waste is only disposed of and not used.

The high-performance material, according to the ecological paradigm, is the material which, going through an anti-entropic life cycle, ensures a maximum degree of recovery to the primary substance (intrinsic substance or native substance).

The notion of the primary substance is necessary because it represents the useful value of the material that goes through an anti-entropic life cycle. (e.g., the value of the main petroleum hydrocarbon).

Researchers have noted that efficient materials must be used for sustainable smart production. The efficient materials are those materials whose maximum use characteristics are reached. As an example, nuclear materials are efficient materials from the point of view of the technological paradigm; however, they are not considered as materials that are efficient from the point of view of the ecological paradigm, because nuclear waste still contains the primary substance and cannot be reused.

3.5. Scientific Branches of Global Knowledge in the Metal Materials Engineering

Based on the works found on the Web of Science with Sustainable Industry 4.0 or Industry 4.0 in the title of articles from the Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED) and Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), or in the literature, we obtained relevant information for the proposed topic and to improve the quality of the information we transmit.

Since the concept of Sustainable Industry 4.0 was first targeted by production, we have summarized the research hotspots and shown that industrial production and economic development [26], especially the metal industry, complement each other, so the financial industry is an important support for the metallic materials industry.

According to the studies, there are inter-, trans- and multisystem activities (actions), which have recently become topics for new scientific branches, whose subject are areas of inter- or multidisciplinary convergence. Thus, the investigations on ecology–economics inter-conditionings (ECOL-ECON correlations) have led to the foundation of some disciplines, such as natural resources economics or environmental economics. Lately, this correlation has been supplemented by the energy factor, which characterizes a new sphere of knowledge: ecology–economics–energy correlations (ECOL-ECON-ENERG correlations, or 3E correlations, or E³ correlations). This area has become the object of study for a new discipline called econology [26]. In the same vein, there are more numerous and more important concerns regarding the inter-conditionings between ecology and sociology (ECOL-SOC correlations), which became an object of knowledge for a new discipline, called environmental sociology or general ecosociology [27].

4. Discussion

According to the research of documents from databases and the literature, in the coming years, investment in Industry 4.0 in Romania will grow rapidly, and the transformation to Sustainable Industry 4.0 is a major historical opportunity, but also a test for companies.

This paper first explores what Industry 4.0 is, and then takes advantage of bibliometrics to investigate which technologies play an important role in Sustainable Industry 4.0. The work not only allows researchers to understand the research status quo and look for research directions, but it can also be applied to businesses and organizations to generate inspiration and improve practice.

In the spirit of scientific research, an increasing number of specialists are currently participating in the extension of the durable development knowledge implementation area. It is also the case of metal materials engineers who, in their capacity as distinguished members of the technological system, have launched research–development–innovation on the market, which are new branches of science in terms of global knowledge.

Ecometallurgyis the scientific branch whose objective is the theoretical substantiation of the knowledge and application of the improvement technologies and techniques in the metal materials industry, in accordance with the rigours of the sustainable development concept.

The emergence of this scientific branch is due to certain causes, such as:

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The necessity of transition from specialized industrial branches (metallurgy and environmental engineering) providing conventional materials and services to branches producing efficient and advanced materials, as well as ecomaterials and sociomaterials;

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In case of eco-metallurgy, there are training conditions based on multi- and interdisciplinary knowledge;

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Eco-metallurgy becomes a field that is adaptable to the rigours imposed by two systems: the natural-ecological system and the technological system;

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This discipline brings the metallurgist closer to nature, a modern trend of sustainable development;

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Eco-metallurgy enables the dissemination and knowledge of the rigours convergently imposed by the natural-ecological system and the technological system.

Metallurgical econology is the scientific branch dealing with the optimization of pollution prevention and control policies and the specific consumptions of natural capital in conditions of economic efficiency and minimization of energy needs in the metal materials industry.

The launch of metallurgical econology is imposed by the importance of the economic system in the operationalization of the economic magnitude of the concept of sustainable development. This means solving a complex comprising two main segments [28]:

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Streamlining metallurgical product manufacture processes (the economic system and the technological system);

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Optimizing specific consumptions of natural capital under conditions of pollution prevention and control (the natural-ecological system and the technological system).

Metallurgical ecosociology is the branch of science that approaches the engineering methods of optimizing the socio-environmental interactions and correlations existing in the metallurgy field. It deals with the methods, modalities and possibilities through which the engineering actions (activities) interrelate with the sociological restrictions. The attention focuses on the scientific branch whose main knowledge objective is to optimize the impact of industrial policies, technologies and equipment on the quality of life, mainly through the quality of the metallurgical environment [29].

Defining, characterizing and designing new models of evolution at a higher level of materials engineering has led to the emergence of sustainable materials engineering [30].

There are currently many papers that deal with studies on materials. Their analysis leads to conclusions that confirm the previous finding. Therefore:

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The materials are a restricted and sectoral subject, with a particular aim to achieve;

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Almost all situations are focused on the use phase of the life cycle;

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The material is not regarded as an industrial lever that can influence the interactions and inter-conditionings occurring in the convergence zones of the systems;

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The material is not analyzed and evaluated as a tool to help ensure the sustainability and durability of the systems [31].

The authors believe that overcoming such dysfunctions as above can be achieved by approaching the materials in another way. In other words, it is believed that the sphere of human activity has begun to depend on a new generation (class) of materials that become a subject of knowledge under two names:

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Durable materials (a name adopted and adapted in Romanian from the French name durables matteriaux), or;

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Sustainable materials (a name adopted and adapted in Romanian from the English name sustainable materials).

Starting from the above names, we propose the following definitions for the notion of durable material:

The durable material (sustainable material) is the material considered to be the major vector that ensures the sustainability and durability in the convergence zone of the technological system with the natural-ecological system.

The durable material (sustainable material) is the material which, going through all the phases of the circular active life cycle, contributes to solving the rigours, restrictions, conformances and specifications imposed by the need to achieve the system performance in all three systems.

The durable material (sustainable material) is the material which simultaneously performs the functions of efficient material, advanced material, eco-material and sociomaterial.

Given that the authors of this paper are metallurgical engineers, the main heroes of this paper are, in general, the durable metal materials and, in particular, steel, which will continue in the next decades to be the foundation of economic and social development. The authors approach and treat these materials as characters considered to be trustworthy life partners. Steel is a sociomaterial not only because living standards are based on it, but also because it undergoes a real social life. Thus, it is a diligent learner, because it is learns and operationalizes high-level scientific knowledge; occupies the position of service provider; has a modern attitude in relation to the media; sustains collective work; cultivates public relations; takes into account the emotional state from other spheres; behaves like a young practitioner of industrial fitness; is a flexible and adaptable partner; and is stubborn in the positive sense of the word. Steel can display such qualities as it uses modern methods, means and tools of technological and social evolution, which are represented by durable technologies and equipment. The home (the family) in which the steel lives is the durable metallurgy, an industrial branch able to put its shoulder to the wheel for reaching the economic and social optimum in our country.

5. Conclusions

The research of official documents and the academic literature combined with bibliometrics strengthens the connection between academic and practical research, makes this work more practical and instructive and, to some extent, opens the bridge between scientific research and application.

Thus, the article confirms the thesis that the evolution to a higher level in the metal materials industry is based on three new concepts:

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The durable (sustainable) development;

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The global knowledge;

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The eco–socio–technological paradigm.

The interaction between the technological system (represented in this paper by metallurgy) and the natural-ecological system must be optimized in the following directions:

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Ensuring the durability and sustainability of the natural-ecological system in its dual quality: natural resource provider and collection basin for the pollutant secondary materials;

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Using the multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary integration knowledge to study the interactions of the technological system, the natural-ecological system and the social system.

In a context like the one above, new scientific branches of durable development and global knowledge become important, such as ecometallurgy, metallurgical econology, metallurgical ecosociology and sustainable materials engineering, which are defined and briefly described in this paper.