New Wrought Magnesium Alloys: Manipulating the Annealed Microstructure. One of the main impediments to increased use of wrought magnesium is its characteristic but mediocre mechanical properties. The proposed work paves the way for new improved wrought magnesium alloys by determining how the constituent nano-structures, micro-structures and deformation conditions can be manipulated to control the evolution of properties during annealing. The project will deliver mathematical models describing th ....New Wrought Magnesium Alloys: Manipulating the Annealed Microstructure. One of the main impediments to increased use of wrought magnesium is its characteristic but mediocre mechanical properties. The proposed work paves the way for new improved wrought magnesium alloys by determining how the constituent nano-structures, micro-structures and deformation conditions can be manipulated to control the evolution of properties during annealing. The project will deliver mathematical models describing the annealed microstructure and mechanical properties. The work will also explore the potential of a recent discovery made by the CI of a simple technique to randomise the alignment of the annealed atomic lattice structure, which promises to markedly improve formability.Read moreRead less
Modelling twinning transitions in light metals: a new foundation for alloy and process development. Australia's quest to become a world leader in light metals technology is being held back by a lack of quantitative understanding of the metallurgical behaviour of magnesium, which is the lightest engineering metal, and titanium, which is the strongest light metal. In particular, there is poor knowledge of the influence of material parameters on deformation twinning. This knowledge is vital for eff ....Modelling twinning transitions in light metals: a new foundation for alloy and process development. Australia's quest to become a world leader in light metals technology is being held back by a lack of quantitative understanding of the metallurgical behaviour of magnesium, which is the lightest engineering metal, and titanium, which is the strongest light metal. In particular, there is poor knowledge of the influence of material parameters on deformation twinning. This knowledge is vital for efficient production and optimised alloy and part design. This proposal aims to develop a quantitative understanding of transitions in twinning activation for improved performance in fatigue, crash behaviour, structural integrity, forming, forging, extruding, hot rolling and annealing.Read moreRead less
Ultra-lightweight alloys with unique multi-dimensional property profiles. Lightweight alloys with high specific-strength are an essential prerequisite in modern and future technologies. To be useful, they must also possess ductility and inherent corrosion resistance. The latter two properties, however, are inversely correlated with strength. This project proposes to break this paradox - not only in terms of a paradigm change regarding multi-property alloy design - but as applied to the most ligh ....Ultra-lightweight alloys with unique multi-dimensional property profiles. Lightweight alloys with high specific-strength are an essential prerequisite in modern and future technologies. To be useful, they must also possess ductility and inherent corrosion resistance. The latter two properties, however, are inversely correlated with strength. This project proposes to break this paradox - not only in terms of a paradigm change regarding multi-property alloy design - but as applied to the most lightweight engineering alloy system in existence, Magnesium-Lithium (Mg-Li), for which the impact on specific properties is immense. The aim is to develop ultra-lightweight Mg-Li based alloys with formidable property profiles via alloy design and thermomechanical processing. The expected outcome is a new class of structural corrosion resistant metal.Read moreRead less
ENHANCED PERFORMANCE OF AUTOMOTIVE SHEET ALLOYS VIA CONTROL OF COMPOSITION, THERMAL PROCESSING AND NANOSTRUCTURE. This project involves characterisation using modern facilities of the form and identity of atomic-scale clusters of alloying elements in selected automotive sheet alloys that have been subjected to single and multiple ageing treatments and examination and modelling of deformation mechanisms and behaviour in such alloys. The aim is to establish the precise role of clusters of solute a ....ENHANCED PERFORMANCE OF AUTOMOTIVE SHEET ALLOYS VIA CONTROL OF COMPOSITION, THERMAL PROCESSING AND NANOSTRUCTURE. This project involves characterisation using modern facilities of the form and identity of atomic-scale clusters of alloying elements in selected automotive sheet alloys that have been subjected to single and multiple ageing treatments and examination and modelling of deformation mechanisms and behaviour in such alloys. The aim is to establish the precise role of clusters of solute atoms and vacancies in the formation of precipitate phases that control the final strength and deformation behaviour of the alloys, and to provide useful guidelines for further improvements in strength of these alloys via the control of alloy composition and of multiple ageing treatments.Read moreRead less
Unlocking the diverse property profile of ultra-lightweight magnesium alloys. This project aims to develop the theory behind why micro alloying contributes to the formation of surface film properties. The exemplar is a prototype Magnesium-Lithium (Mg-Li) base alloy, with high specific-strength and corrosion resistance. This project will lead to the development of a new processable ultra-lightweight, corrosion resistant Mg-Li alloy family that is stronger than the prototype alloy, and with, at le ....Unlocking the diverse property profile of ultra-lightweight magnesium alloys. This project aims to develop the theory behind why micro alloying contributes to the formation of surface film properties. The exemplar is a prototype Magnesium-Lithium (Mg-Li) base alloy, with high specific-strength and corrosion resistance. This project will lead to the development of a new processable ultra-lightweight, corrosion resistant Mg-Li alloy family that is stronger than the prototype alloy, and with, at least, comparable ductility and corrosion resistance. Not only will the outcomes of the work be a fundamental advance to the fields of metallurgy and corrosion science, they will lead to the identification of an optimised compositional window for creating our second generation Mg-Li alloy family capable of being manufactured into ultra-lightweight, corrosion resistant metal products.Read moreRead less
Lower-cost processing of formable magnesium alloys. This project aims to develop higher speed extrusion and rolling of magnesium alloys through the enhanced control of alloying elements and processing schedules. Expected outcomes of this project include the development of novel alloys and processing technologies that can produce lighter, better performing magnesium products with lower processing costs. This project will deliver magnesium products that can improve fuel efficiency, resulting in lo ....Lower-cost processing of formable magnesium alloys. This project aims to develop higher speed extrusion and rolling of magnesium alloys through the enhanced control of alloying elements and processing schedules. Expected outcomes of this project include the development of novel alloys and processing technologies that can produce lighter, better performing magnesium products with lower processing costs. This project will deliver magnesium products that can improve fuel efficiency, resulting in lower emissions and less environmental pollution, along with lightweight portable consumer goods.Read moreRead less
A Microstructure Based Approach to Steel Design for Improved Crash Performance. There is a continual need for the automotive industry to develop vehicles with increased fuel efficiency and safety. This research will establish how different types of new advanced steels can contribute to improved crash worthiness, while also helping to increase fuel efficiency through lighter weight. This will lead to the development of new steels that offer even better crash performance while also providing more ....A Microstructure Based Approach to Steel Design for Improved Crash Performance. There is a continual need for the automotive industry to develop vehicles with increased fuel efficiency and safety. This research will establish how different types of new advanced steels can contribute to improved crash worthiness, while also helping to increase fuel efficiency through lighter weight. This will lead to the development of new steels that offer even better crash performance while also providing more realistic computer models for car designers.Read moreRead less
Reducing the environmental impact of steel making through direct strip casting. This project will investigate direct strip casting of steel, a technology that reduces the environmental footprint of liquid steel processing by up to 90 per cent. With the industry partner Baosteel, the project hopes to expand the application of this process to more steel grades and to also assess possible new steel grades with improved properties.
Batch annealing of 3rd generation advanced high strength steels. This project is focused on resolving processing issues to deliver advanced high strength steels. These materials will be invaluable for car manufacturers, who are looking for ways to lighten cars and increase fuel efficiency to comply with legislation on carbon dioxide emissions from automobiles. The use of breakthrough third generation advanced high strength steels may allow a reduction in mass of 10–20 per cent over existing grad ....Batch annealing of 3rd generation advanced high strength steels. This project is focused on resolving processing issues to deliver advanced high strength steels. These materials will be invaluable for car manufacturers, who are looking for ways to lighten cars and increase fuel efficiency to comply with legislation on carbon dioxide emissions from automobiles. The use of breakthrough third generation advanced high strength steels may allow a reduction in mass of 10–20 per cent over existing grades. However, these new steels require modifications to their processing compared with existing steel grades and new questions about how the microstructure evolves during processing must be answered before the processes can be optimised and the new steels can go into production.Read moreRead less
Dynamically responding metals: a new generation of engineering alloys. The manufacture of engineering metals is a major Australian industry and the worldwide metal manufacturing sector is estimated to be worth $1 trillion USD per annum. Advanced materials and, particularly the light metals, are both designated national research priority areas. The availability of new classes of metals with greatly improved combinations of properties will profoundly affect not only metal use by existing industry, ....Dynamically responding metals: a new generation of engineering alloys. The manufacture of engineering metals is a major Australian industry and the worldwide metal manufacturing sector is estimated to be worth $1 trillion USD per annum. Advanced materials and, particularly the light metals, are both designated national research priority areas. The availability of new classes of metals with greatly improved combinations of properties will profoundly affect not only metal use by existing industry, through the introduction of new, stronger and safer metal grades, but also allows for new engineering designs which will lead, for example, to lighter and more efficient automobiles and more sustainable construction.Read moreRead less