Prediction of Atomic Transport Properties in Multicomponent Engineering Alloys. Technological advances bring demands for new engineering materials and the improvement of existing ones. Since almost every property of such materials depends directly or indirectly on matter transport, it is imperative that the materials designer can accurately predict its direction and extent. This theoretical project, supported and tested by computer simulation, will provide this knowledge. It will develop a toolb ....Prediction of Atomic Transport Properties in Multicomponent Engineering Alloys. Technological advances bring demands for new engineering materials and the improvement of existing ones. Since almost every property of such materials depends directly or indirectly on matter transport, it is imperative that the materials designer can accurately predict its direction and extent. This theoretical project, supported and tested by computer simulation, will provide this knowledge. It will develop a toolbox of robust and versatile expressions for predicting and interpreting matter transport in alloy systems at high temperatures. With these expressions in hand, the designer will be in a superior position to tailor the properties of such materials.Read moreRead less
A Predictive Theory of Kinetic Demixing in Engineering Ceramics. Technological advances bring demands for new engineering ceramics and the improvement of existing ones. The properties of engineering ceramics are critically dependent on the composition and distribution of atomic components. However, separation or demixing of the components occurs in-service at high temperatures as a result of stress, electric fields or oxygen gradients. Demixing causes a major loss of performance and longevity. T ....A Predictive Theory of Kinetic Demixing in Engineering Ceramics. Technological advances bring demands for new engineering ceramics and the improvement of existing ones. The properties of engineering ceramics are critically dependent on the composition and distribution of atomic components. However, separation or demixing of the components occurs in-service at high temperatures as a result of stress, electric fields or oxygen gradients. Demixing causes a major loss of performance and longevity. This Project will develop a robust and versatile theory of demixing to enhance longevities of engineering ceramics. It will also guide the deliberate manipulation of demixing to generate novel compositionally-graded engineering ceramics having new properties of technological interest.Read moreRead less
A Theory to Predict and Control Porosity Occurring During Diffusion-Bonding. This Project will guide the design of strategies that will substantially improve the diffusion-bonding process and broaden the range of materials possible for bonding. Many Australian industries, from manufacturers of computer chip connectors to aircraft engines, could benefit significantly from the results of this research. By means of the training of computational and theoretical materials scientists/engineers, this P ....A Theory to Predict and Control Porosity Occurring During Diffusion-Bonding. This Project will guide the design of strategies that will substantially improve the diffusion-bonding process and broaden the range of materials possible for bonding. Many Australian industries, from manufacturers of computer chip connectors to aircraft engines, could benefit significantly from the results of this research. By means of the training of computational and theoretical materials scientists/engineers, this Project will also make a substantial contribution to building Australia's research capacity in this internationally recognized growth area.Read moreRead less
Intelligent Materials Processing: Microstructure And Texture Control In Bcc Metals. In Australia, steel companies are continuing to search for cost effective steel compositions and processing routes. Concurrently, applications for Ti alloys in chemical, medical and aerospace industries are continuing to widen. As an outcome of this project, the basis for the optimisation of processing routes in order to achieve enhanced product properties at lower cost will be established. In the course of this ....Intelligent Materials Processing: Microstructure And Texture Control In Bcc Metals. In Australia, steel companies are continuing to search for cost effective steel compositions and processing routes. Concurrently, applications for Ti alloys in chemical, medical and aerospace industries are continuing to widen. As an outcome of this project, the basis for the optimisation of processing routes in order to achieve enhanced product properties at lower cost will be established. In the course of this work, a new model for the prediction of microstructure and texture evolution during recrystallisation will be developed and new process routes will be designed. Read moreRead less
Interactions between Lattice Defects and Nanoscale Solute Aggregates: Strengthening and Creep Mechanisms in Magnesium Alloys. Advances in manufacturing and processing technologies in recent years have brought renewed interests in magnesium alloys for applications at elevated temperatures (100-200°C). Improvement in strength and creep resistance of existing alloys and development of new alloys require better understanding of strengthening and creep mechanisms and their correlations with deformat ....Interactions between Lattice Defects and Nanoscale Solute Aggregates: Strengthening and Creep Mechanisms in Magnesium Alloys. Advances in manufacturing and processing technologies in recent years have brought renewed interests in magnesium alloys for applications at elevated temperatures (100-200°C). Improvement in strength and creep resistance of existing alloys and development of new alloys require better understanding of strengthening and creep mechanisms and their correlations with deformation behaviour of the alloys. In this project, advanced imaging techniques of transmission electron microscopy and three-dimensional atom probe field-ion microscopy, combined with tensile and creep tests, will be used to study interactions between lattice defects and nanoscale solute aggregates and their quantitative effects on deformation behaviour of magnesium alloys at elevated temperatures. The aim of this project is to develop a robust theory for the design of magnesium alloys with improved strength and creep resistance.Read moreRead less
A Predictive Approach to the Formation of Plate-Shaped Strengthening and Toughening Constituents in Advanced Metallic and Ceramic Materials. Development of stronger and tougher materials has been largely empirical and the properties obtained so far are only a small fraction of the theoretical values. One of the key steps to develop stronger and tougher materials is to understand the mechanisms responsible for the formation and distribution of key strengthening and/or toughening components in the ....A Predictive Approach to the Formation of Plate-Shaped Strengthening and Toughening Constituents in Advanced Metallic and Ceramic Materials. Development of stronger and tougher materials has been largely empirical and the properties obtained so far are only a small fraction of the theoretical values. One of the key steps to develop stronger and tougher materials is to understand the mechanisms responsible for the formation and distribution of key strengthening and/or toughening components in the materials. This project seeks to make this step. The findings will provide guidance to the development of stronger and tougher materials for the aerospace, aircraft and automotive industries. This project provides opportunities to strengthen the collaboration with USA experts and to train early career researchers.Read moreRead less
States of Aggregation - Clustering, Segregation, Nucleation and Nanostructure. High strength light alloys are nanostructured materials, deriving their mechanical properties from nanoscale dispersions of strengthening precipitate phases controlled by alloy composition and thermomechanical processing. Atom-probe field-ion microscopy and high-resolution electron microscopy will be combined to study the aggregation of solute atoms that precedes formation of the precipitate phases. Experimental st ....States of Aggregation - Clustering, Segregation, Nucleation and Nanostructure. High strength light alloys are nanostructured materials, deriving their mechanical properties from nanoscale dispersions of strengthening precipitate phases controlled by alloy composition and thermomechanical processing. Atom-probe field-ion microscopy and high-resolution electron microscopy will be combined to study the aggregation of solute atoms that precedes formation of the precipitate phases. Experimental studies at high spatial resolution will be complemented by elastic strain energy calculations and first-principles modelling of the aggregation behaviour, to define its role in controlling precipitation processes and thus properties. The work will provide a basis for improved alloy design and a platform for computer-aided design of high-performance alloys.Read moreRead less
MICROFORMING: effects of microstructural scale on metal formability. Microforming is a rapidly growing industry, and already enjoys considerable activity in Germany, Japan, the US, and Korea, all of which are major trading partners of Australia. This project couples fundamental insight into the effects of microstructural and geometric scale with the frontier technology of microforming. Thus, the project will place Australian researchers at the frontier of microforming research, with the capacity ....MICROFORMING: effects of microstructural scale on metal formability. Microforming is a rapidly growing industry, and already enjoys considerable activity in Germany, Japan, the US, and Korea, all of which are major trading partners of Australia. This project couples fundamental insight into the effects of microstructural and geometric scale with the frontier technology of microforming. Thus, the project will place Australian researchers at the frontier of microforming research, with the capacity to be involved in shaping the industry. In the course of this work, new process routes will be developed, new materials may be created, and new opportunities will certainly emerge.Read moreRead less
Development of new steel products by thin strip casting and direct thermomechanical processing. The development of strip casting is now being driven by the opportunity to produce steel products with much lower utilization of energy, land and water and lower greenhouse gas emissions. However, this process represents a radical departure from conventional steel processes and therefore the factors that determine the final properties of the strip need to be understood and controlled under high rates ....Development of new steel products by thin strip casting and direct thermomechanical processing. The development of strip casting is now being driven by the opportunity to produce steel products with much lower utilization of energy, land and water and lower greenhouse gas emissions. However, this process represents a radical departure from conventional steel processes and therefore the factors that determine the final properties of the strip need to be understood and controlled under high rates of change. We believe that these challenges actually represent an opportunity to develop new high performance steel products that exploit the unique processing conditions of strip casting and that can use much more recycled material as a feed.Read moreRead less
Giant magnetic hardening in flash-annealed nanocomposite magnets. One of the most important properties required for permanent magnets is the coercivity. Recent results from an international collaboration between the Chief Investigator and researchers from the Japanese materials industry have shown that rapid heating can enhance the coercivity of chromium-added iron-neodymium-boron-based nanocomposite magnets by 30 times. The aim of this project is to clarify the mechanism of this giant magnetic ....Giant magnetic hardening in flash-annealed nanocomposite magnets. One of the most important properties required for permanent magnets is the coercivity. Recent results from an international collaboration between the Chief Investigator and researchers from the Japanese materials industry have shown that rapid heating can enhance the coercivity of chromium-added iron-neodymium-boron-based nanocomposite magnets by 30 times. The aim of this project is to clarify the mechanism of this giant magnetic hardening effect and thereby establish a basis for further development of economically viable nanocomposite magnets with low neodymium content. Our novel flash-annealing process will allow exploration of new nanocomposite alloys, which may lead to Australian-owned patents.Read moreRead less