1034729 Ohio State University; Sudarsanam Babu 1034695 University of Wisconsin-Madison; Sindo Kou 1034703 Lehigh University; John DuPont 1034628 Colorado School of Mines; Stephen Liu
The Center for Integrative Materials Joining Science for Energy Applications will focus on the diverse need for materials in energy industries, and on developing scientific methodologies to join these materials and predict their lifetime. Ohio State University (OSU), University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW), Lehigh University (LU) and Colorado School of Mines (CSM) are collaborating to establish the proposed center, with Ohio State University as the lead institution.
The intellectual merit of the proposed center is to "close the gap" between material development and weldability for materials used in the energy industry. The new knowledge generated will be used to (a) extend the life of material joints within the aging energy infrastructure and (b) increasing efficiency in deploying advanced materials for new energy infrastructure. The focus of the proposed center is to also address the critical need for engineering graduates trained in interdisciplinary methodologies to address materials joining for wide range of energy applications. The PIs are proposing the following research areas: joining of existing materials; joining of new advanced materials; joining of dissimilar materials; additive manufacturing for hybrid materials; and life extension of existing joints. The PIs are well-qualified and have adequate resources to conduct the proposed research.
The proposed center will focus on developing joining methodologies that will eventually become core components of the curriculum within welding and joining engineering programs. The proposed Center will also offer mentoring programs for students from different ethnic backgrounds and underrepresented groups. If successful, the scientific methodologies will be used to develop state-of-the-art simulation tools that could benefit several industries.
The defined concept for the center should provide an increase in the opportunity for different industries to participate in fundamental research. The center should provide an organized structure for drawing interest and projects from industry. In addition, the center should improve the potential for better understanding of advanced joining metallurgy.
