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Research   /   Areas of Research Metals

Metals fall between ceramics and polymers in terms of strength and temperature resistance, but have outstanding ductility and toughness, which make them particularly useful for structural, load-bearing applications.

Further non-structural applications take advantage of their unique electrical, magnetic, thermal, optical, and chemical properties.

Research Topics

Examples of metals research at Northwestern include:

  • Shape-memory alloys for biomedical implants
  • Multicomponent alloys for light-weight vehicles or high-temperature engines
  • Intermetallic alloys for hydrogen storage
  • Advanced characterization by electron microscopy or atom probe of alloys with nanoscale precipitates
  • Yip-Wah Chung
  • Vinayak Dravid
  • David Dunand
  • Laurence Marks
  • David N. Seidman
  • Peter Voorhees
  • Chris Wolverton

More in this section

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Contact Info

Department of Materials Science and Engineering McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science 2220 Campus Drive,  Room 2036 Evanston, IL 60208 Phone: 847-491-3537 Fax: 847-491-7820 Email Department

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Metals Research

metal research

Materials Science

Characterization of metals, ranging from large surfaces to inclusions and precipitates..

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Modern cutting-edge metals are increasingly engineered at the nanoscale to enhance their durability, reliability, and cost. Even traditional processes are now augmented with microscopic inspection to determine the resulting material’s elemental and structural composition.

In particular, the effective production of metals requires precise control of inclusions and precipitates. Depending on their consistency and distribution, these can either strengthen the material or act as contaminants, greatly impacting quality and lifetime. These microscopic properties can include;

  • Nano-precipitates formed during rolling, annealing or hot pressing
  • Nanoscale morphological changes (dislocations, crack initiation sites)
  • Grain boundaries
  • Oxide inclusions that cause casting interruptions in steelmaking

Historically, researchers have used optical microscopy to rate the size and number of inclusions, but this method does not provide any elemental information. Even optical emission spectroscopy, which can determine the elemental ratios of inclusions, does not accurately characterize the shape and composition of individual inclusions. Electron microscopy techniques have also been used for metal analysis, with scanning electron microscopy (SEM) capable of visualizing larger oxide inclusions, whereas transmission electron microscopy (TEM) is generally required to study features smaller than 100 nm. TEM analysis, however, has previously required manual particle counting and analysis, limiting the amount of data that could be collected to several dozen particles per day.

Thermo Fisher Scientific provides a range of electron microscopy solutions that make metal analysis not only more informative but also far more rapid. Thanks to our unique automation capabilities, a thorough overview of the elemental and structural composition of hundreds, if not thousands, of precipitates is possible in a manner of hours, as compared to the few dozen that would be found in a day of manual analysis. Not only is statistical information on the bulk available, but individual precipitates can also be seen with high detail, providing a multi-scale overview of the metal.

Our robust, automated instruments can perform a variety of critical tasks including:

  • Nanoparticle counting, particularly useful for steel and aluminum production where light weighting is a top priority
  • High throughput chemical analysis with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) mapping
  • Instantly showing composition gradients across the sample surface with scanning electron microscopy (SEM) via ChemiSEM technology
  • Rapidly preparing large area transmission electron microscopy samples or 3D volumes with plasma focused ion beam (PFIB) milling

Phenom ParticleX Steel Desktop SEM inclusion analysis short demonstration.

ParticleX Steel Desktop SEM - Workflow introduction.

Axia ChemiSEM provides high-quality imaging of steel samples to aid in the production of high-value steels. 

Axia ChemiSEM identifies composition on-the-fly

metal research

Aluminum 2099 alloy lamella characterization of Cu and Zr precipitates by APW

Nickel superalloy sample characterizingr titanium nitride nano particles by APW.

HSLA steel lamella characterization of Nb precipitates by Automated Particle Workflow (APW).

3D EDS TEM tomography of precipitates in an AlMgSi alloy.

High resolution APW showing complex features in additively manufactured stainless steel.

Maps and Avizo2D recordings (left and right) running side by side during an acquisition.

Blog post  

APW Speeds Nanoparticle Analysis for Metals and Catalyst Research

Steel Manufacturing - Steel Analysis - Accelerating Microscopy

On-demand webinars: Particle Analysis Applications Using Desktop SEM Webinar Series

On-demand webinar: Novel Electron Detection and Imaging Strategies in the SEM for Enhanced Quantification of Second Phases

Webinar: Nanoparticle Characterization by Automated TEM.

Webinar: Correlative Microscopy for Aerospace and Defense Industries

On-demand webinar: Unraveling the Morphology and Elemental Distribution of Nanoporous Refractory Metals via TEM Tomography

On-demand webinar: Novel Applications of Advanced Electron Microscopy Techniques in Materials Failure Analysis

On-demand webinar: Electron Microscopy Solutions for Metal Additive Manufacturing Qualification

On-demand webinar: New Capabilities in Metals Failure Analysis and Interface Characterization

On-demand webinar: Using Diffraction-contrast Electron Microscopy to Elucidate Dislocation Pathways in Refractory Multi-principal Element Alloys

On-demand webinar: A Novel SEM-EDS Approach for Material Failure Analysis

On-demand webinar: Steel precipitate characterization by Automated Particle Workflow (APW)

On-demand webinar: Advanced Characterization of Steels at the Nano and Microscale (OCAS)

SEM documents

  • Application note: Distinguishing the unique components of composite materials with ChemiPhase Analysis Software
  • Application note: Automated SEM analysis of intermetallic particles in aluminum
  • Application note: Micro- and nano-scale analysis of passivated stainless-steel landing gear with XPS, SEM, and TEM
  • Application note: Inclusion analysis of aluminum-calcium treated steel
  • Application note: Inclusion analysis of complex titanium-magnesium treated steel
  • Application note: How mature is your steel analysis?
  • Application note: Characterization of complex refractories for steel production using the Axia ChemiSEM
  • Application note: Bend failure mechanism of high-strength steel
  • Application note: Failure analysis on metal automotive production parts
  • Application note: Failure analysis of corroded steel surface
  • Application note: Multiscale characterization of additive manufacturing alloys with SEM

TEM documents

  • Application note: Aerospace aluminum alloy 2099 friction stir weld analysis
  • Application note: Precipitate Analysis in Metals with the Automated Particle Workflow
  • Application note: Ultimate solution for nanoparticle characterization with the Automated Particle Workflow
  • Application note: Advances in Compositional Analysis Using Analytical S/TEM
  • Application note: Microalloyed steel precipitate characterization by TEM
  • Application note: Multiscale characterization of additive manufacturing alloys with TEM

TEM Articles

Nanoscale origins of the oriented precipitation of ti3al in ti\\al systems.

Hao Wu, Guohua Fan, Lin Geng, Xiping Cui, Meng Huang

Effect of heat treatments on microstructural evolution of additively manufactured and wrought 17-4PH stainless steel

Yu Sun, Rainer J. Hebert, Mark Aindow

Coherency strains of H-phase precipitates and their influence on functional properties of nickel-titanium-hafnium shape memory alloys

Behnam Amin-Ahmadi,⁎, Joseph G. Pauza, Ali Shamimi, Tom W. Duerig, Ronald D. Noebe, Aaron P. Stebner

Effect of laser scan length on the microstructure of additively manufactured 17-4PH stainless steel thin-walled parts

Non-metallic inclusions in 17-4ph stainless steel parts produced by selective laser melting, fib-sem articles, joachim mayer, rwth aachen.

“Formation of White Etching Areas in SAE 52100 Bearing Steel under Rolling Contact Fatigue − Influence of Diffusible Hydrogen” M. Oezel, A. Schwedt, T. Janitzky, R. Kelley, C.Bouchet-Marquis, L. Pullan, C. Broeckmann, J. Mayer Wear, Volumes 414-415, November 2018, Pages 352-365.

Philip Withers, University of Manchester

“Industrial Gear Oils: Tribological Performance and Subsurface Changes” Aduragbemi Adebogun, Robert Hudson, Angela Breakspear, Chris Warrens, Ali Gholinia, Allan Matthews, Philip Withers Tribology Letters (2018) 66:65.

Jun Tan, Shenyang National Laboratory for Materials Science

“Insight into atmospheric pitting corrosion of carbon steel via a dual-beam FIB/SEM system associated with high-resolution TEM” Corrosion Science 152 (2019) 226–233.

Yu-Lung Chiu, University of Birmingham

“Micro-tensile strength of a welded turbine disc superalloy” K.M. Oluwasegun, C.Cooper, Y.L.Chiu, I.P.Jones, H.Y.Li, G.Baxter Materials Science & Engineering A 596 (2014) 229–235.

Chris Pistorius, Carnegie Mellon University

“Application of Plasma FIB to Analyze a Single Oxide Inclusion in Steel” D. Kumar, N.T. Nuhfer, M.E. Ferreira and P.C. Pistorius Metallurgical and Materials Transactions B, Volume 50B, June 2019, Pages 1124-1127.

Applications

Process control using electron microscopy

Modern industry demands high throughput with superior quality, a balance that is maintained through robust process control. SEM and TEM tools with dedicated automation software provide rapid, multi-scale information for process monitoring and improvement.

Quality control and failure analysis

Quality control and assurance are essential in modern industry. We offer a range of EM and spectroscopy tools for multi-scale and multi-modal analysis of defects, allowing you to make reliable and informed decisions for process control and improvement.

Fundamental Materials Research

Novel materials are investigated at increasingly smaller scales for maximum control of their physical and chemical properties. Electron microscopy provides researchers with key insight into a wide variety of material characteristics at the micro- to nano-scale.

Technical Cleanliness

More than ever, modern manufacturing necessitates reliable, quality components. With scanning electron microscopy, parts cleanliness analysis can be brought inhouse, providing you with a broad range of analytical data and shortening your production cycle.

  • S/TEM Sample Preparation

3D Materials Characterization

Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy

EDS Elemental Analysis

3D EDS Tomography

Cross-sectioning

  • In-situ Experimentation
  • Particle Analysis

Automated Particle Workflow

metal research

(S)TEM Sample Preparation

DualBeam microscopes enable the preparation of high-quality, ultra-thin samples for (S)TEM analysis. Thanks to advanced automation, users with any experience level can obtain expert-level results for a wide range of materials.

Learn more ›

metal research

Development of materials often requires multi-scale 3D characterization. DualBeam instruments enable serial sectioning of large volumes and subsequent SEM imaging at nanometer scale, which can be processed into high-quality 3D reconstructions of the sample.

metal research

Energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) collects detailed elemental information along with electron microscopy images, providing critical compositional context for EM observations. With EDS, chemical composition can be determined from quick, holistic surface scans down to individual atoms.

metal research

Thermo Scientific Phenom Elemental Mapping Software provides fast and reliable information on the distribution of chemical elements within a sample.

metal research

Modern materials research is increasingly reliant on nanoscale analysis in three dimensions. 3D characterization, including compositional data for full chemical and structural context, is possible with 3D EM and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy.

metal research

EDS Analysis with ChemiSEM Technology

Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy for materials characterization.

metal research

Cross sectioning provides extra insight by revealing sub-surface information. DualBeam instruments feature superior focused ion beam columns for high-quality cross sectioning. With automation, unattended high-throughput processing of samples is possible.

metal research

In Situ experimentation

Direct, real-time observation of microstructural changes with electron microscopy is necessary to understand the underlying principles of dynamic processes such as recrystallization, grain growth, and phase transformation during heating, cooling, and wetting.

metal research

Particle analysis

Particle analysis plays a vital role in nanomaterials research and quality control. The nanometer-scale resolution and superior imaging of electron microscopy can be combined with specialized software for rapid characterization of powders and particles.

metal research

X-Ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy

X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) enables surface analysis, providing elemental composition as well as the chemical and electronic state of the top 10 nm of a material. With depth profiling, XPS analysis extends to compositional insight of layers.

metal research

The Automated NanoParticle Workflow (APW) is a transmission electron microscope workflow for nanoparticle analysis, offering large area, high resolution imaging and data acquisition at the nanoscale, with on-the-fly processing.

metal research

STEM Sample Holder

  • Delivers high contrast under low voltage
  • Accommodates a range of materials
  • Includes BF, DF, and HAADF imaging modes

  Download datasheet

metal research

Phenom ParticleX Steel Desktop SEM

  • SEM and EDS integrated
  • Ease of use
  • Sub-micrometer inclusions

metal research

Talos F200S TEM

  • Intuitive and easy-to-use automation software
  • Available with Super-X EDS for rapid quantitative chemical analysis
  • High-throughput with simultaneous multi-signal acquisition

metal research

Talos F200X TEM

  • High-resolution, EDS cleanliness, and quality in 2D as well as 3D
  • X-FEG and X-CFEG available for the highest brightness and energy resolution
  • High accuracy and repeatable results with integrated Thermo Scientific Velox Software

Thermo Scientific Talos F200C transmission electron microscope (TEM)

Talos F200C TEM

  • High-contrast and high-quality TEM and STEM imaging
  • 4k x 4k Ceta CMOS camera options for large FOV and high read-out speeds
  • Large pole piece gap and multiple in situ options

metal research

Talos F200i TEM

  • Compact design with X-TWIN objective lens
  • Available with S-FEG, X-FEG, and X-CFEG
  • Flexible and fast EDS options for comprehensive elemental analysis

metal research

Helios 5 HX/Helios 5 UX/Helios 5 FX DualBeam

  • Fully automated, high-quality, ultra-thin TEM sample preparation
  • High throughput, high resolution subsurface and 3D characterization
  • Rapid nanoprototyping capabilities

metal research

Helios 5 PFIB DualBeam

  • Gallium-free STEM and TEM sample preparation
  • Multi-modal subsurface and 3D information
  • Next-generation 2.5 μA xenon plasma FIB column

Thermo Scientific Scios 2 plasma focused ion beam scanning electron microscope (DualBeam)

Scios 2 DualBeam

  • Full support of magnetic and non-conductive samples
  • High throughput subsurface and 3D characterization
  • Advanced ease of use and automation capabilities

Thermo Scientific Apreo 2 scanning electron microscope (SEM)

Apreo 2 SEM

  • High-performance SEM for all-round nanometer or sub-nanometer resolution
  • In-column T1 backscatter detector for sensitive, TV-rate materials contrast
  • Excellent performance at long working distance (10 mm)

metal research

Phenom Pharos G2 Desktop FEG-SEM

  • FEG source with 1 – 20 kV acceleration voltage range
  • <2.0 nm (SE) and 3.0 nm (BSE) resolution @ 20 kV
  • Optional fully integrated EDS and SE detector

metal research

Phenom ParticleX TC Desktop SEM

  • Versatile desktop SEM with automation software for Technical Cleanliness
  • Resolution <10 nm; magnification up to 200,000x
  • Optional SE detector

metal research

Nexsa G2 XPS

  • Micro-focus X-ray sources
  • Unique multi-technique options
  • Dual-mode ion source for monoatomic & cluster ion depth profiling

metal research

K-Alpha XPS

  • High resolution XPS
  • Fast, efficient, automated workflow
  • Ion source for depth profiling

  Download brochure

metal research

ESCALAB QXi XPS

  • High spectral resolution
  • Multi-technique surface analysis
  • Extensive sample preparation and expansion options

metal research

Avizo Software Materials Science

  • Support for multi-data/multi-view, multi-channel, time series, very large data
  • Advanced multi-mode 2D/3D automatic registration
  • Artifact reduction algorithms

metal research

Athena Software Imaging Data Management

  • Ensure traceability of images, data, metadata and experimental workflows
  • Simplify your imaging workflow​
  • Improve collaboration
  • Secure and manage data access​

metal research

  • Fully automated in situ S/TEM sample preparation
  • Support of top-down, planar and inverted geometry
  • Highly configurable workflow
  • Easy to use, intuitive user interface

Thermo Scientific Maps electron microscopy software

Maps Software

  • Acquire high-resolution images over large areas
  • Easily find regions of interest
  • Automate image acquisition process
  • Correlate data from different sources

metal research

3D Reconstruction

  • Intuitive user interface, maximum employability
  • Intuitive fully automated user interface
  • Based on 'shape from shading' technology, no stage tilt required

metal research

Metallurgical Sample Holder

  • Designed to support resin-mounted samples
  • Preferred solution for metallurgy and when working with inserts
  • Sample size up to 32 mm diameter and 30 mm height

metal research

  • Ultra-fast heating solution for in situ high resolution imaging
  • Fully integrated
  • Temperatures up to 1200 °C

metal research

Tensile Sample Holder

  • Determine batch quality
  • Determine manufacturing consistencies
  • Aid the design process

metal research

  • An experiments panel on the left side of the processing window.
  • Live quantitative mapping
  • Interactive detector layout interface for reproducible experiment control and setup

metal research

Electron microscopy services for the materials science

To ensure optimal system performance, we provide you access to a world-class network of field service experts, technical support, and certified spare parts.

  • Accelerate and Advance for materials science FIB-SEM ›
  • Materials science service and support ›

metal research

Electron microscopy support and resources

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metal research

Metal Matters

Metals have been a critical component of materials science for centuries. They are widely used in industries from aerospace to electronics to construction for their unique combination of properties, such as strength and electrical conductivity. Materials scientists and engineers study metals to better understand their properties and behavior and develop new materials that are stronger, more durable, and more efficient.

Another reason for studying metals is their potential for recycling and sustainability. Metals can be recovered from waste streams and reused, reducing the need for new materials and diminishing the environmental impact of production.

Most metals have high melting and boiling points.

Metals research at dmse.

DMSE started as the Department of Metallurgy and Mining, producing graduates whose work in ore refining and steel production led to an expansion of industry and transportation in the 19th century. Today, metals research at DMSE is focused on developing stronger alloys, more efficient manufacturing methods, and refining techniques that are less harmful to the environment.

To achieve these goals, DMSE researchers are using advanced computational methods to design and predict the properties of new metals before they are produced, enabling the development of alloys with customized properties for specific applications.

Related Research Types

Related faculty and researchers.

metal research

How hair deforms steel

What we did.

Discovered why stainless-steel blades lose their sharpness over time. We found that a single strand of hair can cause the blade to chip. These degradations are more likely to happen if the blade’s microstructure is not uniform or if the blade cuts hair at an angle.

Why we did it

Why it matters, microstructural and micro-mechanical characterization during hydrogen charging: an in situ scanning electron microscopy study.

Developed novel methods to study the influence of hydrogen on metallic materials.

The CISR spring meeting will take place on May 22-23, 2024. This event is by invitation only. For more information contact Kelly Rockenstein.

metal research

The Center for Iron and Steelmaking Research (CISR) is devoted to education and research related to ironmaking, steelmaking, and metals processing. Within the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at Carnegie Mellon University, CISR is supported by a number of industrial partners.

  • Department of Materials Science at Carnegie Mellon University

metal research

Remembering Richard J. Fruehan

Richard J. Fruehan, founder of the Center for Iron and Steelmaking, left a profound legacy at Carnegie Mellon University and the Department of Materials Science and Engineering.

metal research

Revisiting steel Opens in new window

Advancing modern steel research allows us to access unique properties while lowering the carbon footprint, and it’s important for education.

metal research

Taking a closer look at steel using computer vision Opens in new window

CMU engineers are applying computer vision and machine learning to improve the study of inclusions, microscopic particle within steel that can have a big impact on metal properties.

Creating Models and Molds for Use in Metal Casting

ScienceDaily

Researchers unveil a secret of stronger metals

Study shows what happens when crystalline grains in metals reform at nanometer scales, improving metal properties.

Forming metal into the shapes needed for various purposes can be done in many ways, including casting, machining, rolling, and forging. These processes affect the sizes and shapes of the tiny crystalline grains that make up the bulk metal, whether it be steel, aluminum or other widely used metals and alloys.

Now researchers at MIT have been able to study exactly what happens as these crystal grains form during an extreme deformation process, at the tiniest scales, down to a few nanometers across. The new findings could lead to improved ways of processing to produce better, more consistent properties such as hardness and toughness.

The new findings, made possible by detailed analysis of images from a suite of powerful imaging systems, are reported today in the journal Nature Materials , in a paper by former MIT postdoc Ahmed Tiamiyu (now assistant professor at the University of Calgary); MIT professors Christopher Schuh, Keith Nelson, and James LeBeau; former student Edward Pang; and current student Xi Chen.

"In the process of making a metal, you are endowing it with a certain structure, and that structure will dictate its properties in service," Schuh says. In general, the smaller the grain size, the stronger the resulting metal. Striving to improve strength and toughness by making the grain sizes smaller "has been an overarching theme in all of metallurgy, in all metals, for the past 80 years," he says.

Metallurgists have long applied a variety of empirically developed methods for reducing the sizes of the grains in a piece of solid metal, generally by imparting various kinds of strain through deforming it in one way or another. But it's not easy to make these grains smaller.

The primary method is called recrystallization, in which the metal is deformed and heated. This creates many small defects throughout the piece, which are "highly disordered and all over the place," says Schuh, who is the Danae and Vasilis Salapatas Professor of Metallurgy.

When the metal is deformed and heated, then all those defects can spontaneously form the nuclei of new crystals. "You go from this messy soup of defects to freshly new nucleated crystals. And because they're freshly nucleated, they start very small," leading to a structure with much smaller grains, Schuh explains.

What's unique about the new work, he says, is determining how this process takes place at very high speed and the smallest scales. Whereas typical metal-forming processes like forging or sheet rolling, may be quite fast, this new analysis looks at processes that are "several orders of magnitude faster," Schuh says.

"We use a laser to launch metal particles at supersonic speeds. To say it happens in the blink of an eye would be an incredible understatement, because you could do thousands of these in the blink of an eye," says Schuh.

Such a high-speed process is not just a laboratory curiosity, he says. "There are industrial processes where things do happen at that speed." These include high-speed machining; high-energy milling of metal powder; and a method called cold spray, for forming coatings. In their experiments, "we've tried to understand that recrystallization process under those very extreme rates, and because the rates are so high, no one has really been able to dig in there and look systematically at that process before," he says.

Using a laser-based system to shoot 10-micrometer particles at a surface, Tiamiyu, who carried out the experiments, "could shoot these particles one at a time, and really measure how fast they are going and how hard they hit," Schuh says. Shooting the particles at ever-faster speeds, he would then cut them open to see how the grain structure evolved, down to the nanometer scale, using a variety of sophisticated microscopy techniques at the MIT.nano facility, in collaboration with microscopy specialists.

The result was the discovery of what Schuh says is a "novel pathway" by which grains were forming down to the nanometer scale. The new pathway, which they call nano-twinning assisted recrystallization, is a variation of a known phenomenon in metals called twinning, a particular kind of defect in which part of the crystalline structure flips its orientation. It's a "mirror symmetry flip, and you end up getting these stripey patterns where the metal flips its orientation and flips back again, like a herringbone pattern," he says. The team found that the higher the rate of these impacts, the more this process took place, leading to ever smaller grains as those nanoscale "twins" broke up into new crystal grains.

In the experiments they did using copper, the process of bombarding the surface with these tiny particles at high speed could increase the metal's strength about tenfold. "This is not a small change in properties," Schuh says, and that result is not surprising since it's an extension of the known effect of hardening that comes from the hammer blows of ordinary forging. "This is sort of a hyper-forging type of phenomenon that we're talking about."

In the experiments, they were able to apply a wide range of imaging and measurements to the exact same particles and impact sites, Schuh says: "So, we end up getting a multimodal view. We get different lenses on the same exact region and material, and when you put all that together, you have just a richness of quantitative detail about what's going on that a single technique alone wouldn't provide."

Because the new findings provide guidance about the degree of deformation needed, how fast that deformation takes place, and the temperatures to use for maximum effect for any given specific metals or processing methods, they can be directly applied right away to real-world metals production, Tiamiyu says. The graphs they produced from the experimental work should be generally applicable. "They're not just hypothetical lines," Tiamiyu says. For any given metals or alloys, "if you're trying to determine if nanograins will form, if you have the parameters, just slot it in there" into the formulas they developed, and the results should show what kind of grain structure can be expected from given rates of impact and given temperatures.

The research was supported by the U.S. Department of Energy, the Office of Naval Research, and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada.

  • Materials Science
  • Inorganic Chemistry
  • Nanotechnology
  • Spintronics
  • Engineering and Construction
  • Heavy metals
  • Electrical conduction
  • Supercooling
  • Electron microscope

Story Source:

Materials provided by Massachusetts Institute of Technology . Original written by David L. Chandler. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.

Journal Reference :

  • Ahmed A. Tiamiyu, Edward L. Pang, Xi Chen, James M. LeBeau, Keith A. Nelson, Christopher A. Schuh. Nanotwinning-assisted dynamic recrystallization at high strains and strain rates . Nature Materials , 2022; DOI: 10.1038/s41563-022-01250-0

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Metal Research, Inc.

   Metal Research, Inc. has over fifty years of machining and manufacturing experience in North Alabama. We have continuously improved our machinery, technology, and processes to better supply our customers with quality product in a timely manner. We offer our customers 5-axis machining, CNC milling & turning, and an inventory management system to better suit customer needs. MRI also provides experience is welding and fabrication.

metal research

      Our employees are skilled in their job duties, and our employees undergo training in areas of company policies, procedures, CNC programming, CAD/CAM, advanced machining techniques, blueprint interpretation, use of inspection equipment, sampling techniques, and overall knowledge of production.  Metal Research, Inc. has three CMM’s using PCDmis. There are Wenzel LH1210, Hexagon SK4.5.4, and Hexagon SK7.10.7 plus other inspection equipment to ensure the highest quality. We are   AS9100D with ISO 9001:2015 registered. Certificate Number: C0633392-AS1

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Research trend and dynamical development of focusing on the global critical metals: a bibliometric analysis during 1991–2020

  • Research Article
  • Published: 02 December 2021
  • Volume 29 , pages 26688–26705, ( 2022 )

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  • Wei Liu 1 ,
  • Minxi Wang 1 &
  • Litao Liu 2  

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Critical metals are indispensable to a world seeking to transition away from carbon. Yet their extraction, processing, and application leave an unsustainable global environment and climate change footprint. To capture the development dynamics and research emphases of critical metals throughout their life cycle, this paper adopts bibliometrics to analyze the various stages of global critical metal flow in multiple dimensions to reveal the hot issues and future strategic trends. The research results indicate that the number of research papers on critical metals is annually rising, with remarkably rapid growth after 2010. Judging from the number of articles published by the authors and the citations, among the authors, Kawakita, Poettgen, Anwander, Inoue, and Dongmei Cui have a significant influence on critical metal research fields. The institutions with the most research on critical metals are universities, not research institutes. In addition, the focus has extended from a single discipline to the interdisciplinary development of multiple disciplines. Analysis of keywords shows that “rare metals” and “precious metals” are the most popular metals among the researched metals. The researched buzzwords of critical metals are disappearing, convergent, and merging over time. The research has focused on the mining and the whole life cycle process of extraction, treatment, and application. Based on the above characteristics, this paper tries to understand the dynamic development and evolution of global critical metals from multiple dimensions, resorting to giving a reference for follow-up-related research scholars.

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Acknowledgements

Thanks to anonymous peer reviewers for their helpful comments.

The study received funding from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (71991484; 71991480) and Key projects of Sichuan Mineral Resources Research Center (SCKCZY2021-ZD001). These funding bodies had no role in the design of the study; the collection, analysis, and interpretation of the data; or the writing of the manuscript.

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All authors contributed to the design of this research, as follows: Wei Liu: conceptualization, data curation, methodology, and writing of the original draft; Xin Li: conceptualization, formal analysis, and investigation; Minxi Wang: funding acquisition, supervision, writing, review, and editing; Litao Liu: funding acquisition and supervision.

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Liu, W., Li, X., Wang, M. et al. Research trend and dynamical development of focusing on the global critical metals: a bibliometric analysis during 1991–2020. Environ Sci Pollut Res 29 , 26688–26705 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-021-17816-5

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DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-021-17816-5

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January 10, 2022

Breakthrough metals research has implications for the metal casting industry

by Ryan Randall, Florida Institute of Technology

Breakthrough metals research has implications for the metal casting industry

Florida Tech professor emeritus Martin Glicksman's latest metals/materials science research has implications for the metal casting industry, but it also has a profound personal connection inspired by two late colleagues.

Glicksman's research, "Surface Laplacian of interfacial thermochemical potential: itsrole in solid-liquid pattern formation," was published in the November edition of Springer Nature's partner journal Microgravity . The findings may lead to a better understanding of the solidification of metal castings, allowing for engineers to potentially make longer-lasting engines and stronger aircraft and advance additive manufacturing.

"The casting, welding, and primary metals production are all multi-billion-dollar businesses of great societal importance, when you think about steel, aluminum, copper—all important engineering materials," Glicksman said. "You can appreciate we're talking about materials, for which even small improvements are worth a lot."

Much as crystals form when water freezes, similar things occur when a molten metal alloy is solidified to create cast products. Glicksman's research reveals that during solidification of the metal alloy, surface tension between crystal and melt, as well as the curvature variations of crystals during growth, drives heat flow, even on stationary interfaces. This basic discovery is fundamentally different from the commonly used Stefan balances in casting theory, where the heat energy emitted from a growing crystal is proportional to its growth speed.

Glicksman noted that crystallite's curvature reflects its chemical potential: a convex curvature slightly lowers the melting point, while a concave curvature slightly raises the melting point. That is well known from thermodynamics. What is new, and now proven, is that gradients of that curvature can induce additional heat flows during solidification that are not considered in conventional casting theories. Moreover, these heat flows are "deterministic" not stochastic, like random noise, and could, in principle, be controlled to advantage during casting processes to modify alloy microstructures and improve properties.

"When you have complicated crystalline microstructures freezing, curvature-induced heat flows occur that could be controlled," Glicksman said. "Those heat flows in the case of a real alloy casting could, if controlled by chemical additions or physical effects, such as pressure or strong magnetic fields, improve the microstructure, which ultimately controls the chemical and mechanical properties of cast alloys, welded structures and even 3D-printed materials."

Beyond its scientific significance, this research is of great personal importance to Glicksman largely due to late colleagues who helped support it. One of those colleagues is Paul Steen, a fluid mechanics professor at Cornell University who passed away last year. Steen had helped Glicksman with microgravity materials research years ago, utilizing space shuttle fluid mechanics and materials research. Springer Nature dedicated the November issue of Microgravity to Steen and contacted Glicksman about writing a scientific paper in his memory concerning this research.

"It spurred me on to put something together that was interesting, and that Paul would have especially appreciated. And of course, many readers looking at this research paper are also interested in areas that Paul contributed to, which is interfacial thermodynamics," Glicksman said.

Another colleague who inspired Glicksman's paper was Semen Koksal, a Florida Tech mathematics professor, department head and academic affairs vice president who passed away in March 2020. Glicksman described her as a kind, intelligent person who was a delight to be around, noting that she was helpful providing her mathematical expertise to his research.

"She and I were good buddies, and she was deeply interested in my work. Semen helped me when I was stuck formulating the differential equations to explain the phenomenon of curvature-induced heat flow," Glicksman said. "We spent a lot of time discussing my equations and how to formulate them, their restrictions, and so on. She was a person I consulted with and was so helpful in formulating the mathematical theory and helping me to get it right."

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Liquid metals: fundamentals and applications in chemistry.

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* Corresponding authors

a School of Engineering, RMIT University, 124 La Trobe Street, Melbourne, Australia E-mail: [email protected] , [email protected]

b Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, USA

Post-transition elements, together with zinc-group metals and their alloys belong to an emerging class of materials with fascinating characteristics originating from their simultaneous metallic and liquid natures. These metals and alloys are characterised by having low melting points ( i.e. between room temperature and 300 °C), making their liquid state accessible to practical applications in various fields of physical chemistry and synthesis. These materials can offer extraordinary capabilities in the synthesis of new materials, catalysis and can also enable novel applications including microfluidics, flexible electronics and drug delivery. However, surprisingly liquid metals have been somewhat neglected by the wider research community. In this review, we provide a comprehensive overview of the fundamentals underlying liquid metal research, including liquid metal synthesis, surface functionalisation and liquid metal enabled chemistry. Furthermore, we discuss phenomena that warrant further investigations in relevant fields and outline how liquid metals can contribute to exciting future applications.

Graphical abstract: Liquid metals: fundamentals and applications in chemistry

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T. Daeneke, K. Khoshmanesh, N. Mahmood, I. A. de Castro, D. Esrafilzadeh, S. J. Barrow, M. D. Dickey and K. Kalantar-zadeh, Chem. Soc. Rev. , 2018,  47 , 4073 DOI: 10.1039/C7CS00043J

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New processing methods developed by MIT researchers could help ease looming shortages of the essential metals that power everything from phones to automotive batteries, by making it easier to separate these rare metals from mining ores and recycled materials.

Selective adjustments within a chemical process called sulfidation allowed professor of metallurgy Antoine Allanore and his graduate student Caspar Stinn to successfully target and separate rare metals, such as the cobalt in a lithium-ion battery, from mixed-metal materials.

As they report in the journal Nature , their processing techniques allow the metals to remain in solid form and be separated without dissolving the material. This avoids traditional but costly liquid separation methods that require significant energy. The researchers developed processing conditions for 56 elements and tested these conditions on 15 elements.

Their sulfidation approach, they write in the paper, could reduce the capital costs of metal separation between 65 and 95 percent from mixed-metal oxides. Their selective processing could also reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 60 to 90 percent compared to traditional liquid-based separation.

“We were excited to find replacements for processes that had really high levels of water usage and greenhouse gas emissions, such as lithium-ion battery recycling, rare-earth magnet recycling, and rare-earth separation,” says Stinn. “Those are processes that make materials for sustainability applications, but the processes themselves are very unsustainable.”

The findings offer one way to alleviate a growing demand for minor metals like cobalt, lithium, and rare earth elements that are used in “clean” energy products like electric cars, solar cells, and electricity-generating windmills. According to a 2021 report by the International Energy Agency, the average amount of minerals needed for a new unit of power generation capacity has risen by 50 percent since 2010, as renewable energy technologies using these metals expand their reach.

Opportunity for selectivity

For more than a decade, the Allanore group has been studying the use of sulfide materials in developing new electrochemical routes for metal production. Sulfides are common materials, but the MIT scientists are experimenting with them under extreme conditions like very high temperatures — from 800 to 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit — that are used in manufacturing plants but not in a typical university lab.

“We are looking at very well-established materials in conditions that are uncommon compared to what has been done before,” Allanore explains, “and that is why we are finding new applications or new realities.”

In the process of synthetizing high-temperature sulfide materials to support electrochemical production, Stinn says, “we learned we could be very selective and very controlled about what products we made. And it was with that understanding that we realized, ‘OK, maybe there’s an opportunity for selectivity in separation here.’”

The chemical reaction exploited by the researchers reacts a material containing a mix of metal oxides to form new metal-sulfur compounds or sulfides. By altering factors like temperature, gas pressure, and the addition of carbon in the reaction process, Stinn and Allanore found that they could selectively create a variety of sulfide solids that can be physically separated by a variety of methods, including crushing the material and sorting different-sized sulfides or using magnets to separate different sulfides from one another.

Current methods of rare metal separation rely on large quantities of energy, water, acids, and organic solvents which have costly environmental impacts, says Stinn. “We are trying to use materials that are abundant, economical, and readily available for sustainable materials separation, and we have expanded that domain to now include sulfur and sulfides.”

Stinn and Allanore used selective sulfidation to separate out economically important metals like cobalt in recycled lithium-ion batteries. They also used their techniques to separate dysprosium — a rare-earth element used in applications ranging from data storage devices to optoelectronics — from rare-earth-boron magnets, or from the typical mixture of oxides available from mining minerals such as bastnaesite.

Leveraging existing technology

Metals like cobalt and rare earths are only found in small amounts in mined materials, so industries must process large volumes of material to retrieve or recycle enough of these metals to be economically viable, Allanore explains. “It’s quite clear that these processes are not efficient. Most of the emissions come from the lack of selectivity and the low concentration at which they operate.”

By eliminating the need for liquid separation and the extra steps and materials it requires to dissolve and then reprecipitate individual elements, the MIT researchers’ process significantly reduces the costs incurred and emissions produced during separation.

“One of the nice things about separating materials using sulfidation is that a lot of existing technology and process infrastructure can be leveraged,” Stinn says. “It’s new conditions and new chemistries in established reactor styles and equipment.”

The next step is to show that the process can work for large amounts of raw material — separating out 16 elements from rare-earth mining streams, for example. “Now we have shown that we can handle three or four or five of them together, but we have not yet processed an actual stream from an existing mine at a scale to match what’s required for deployment,” Allanore says.

Stinn and colleagues in the lab have built a reactor that can process about 10 kilograms of raw material per day, and the researchers are starting conversations with several corporations about the possibilities.

“We are discussing what it would take to demonstrate the performance of this approach with existing mineral and recycling streams,” Allanore says.

This research was supported by the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. National Science Foundation.

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Press mentions, popular science.

Popular Science reporter Andrew Zaleski spotlights Prof. Antoine Allanore and his work developing new methods to extract materials from rock without burning fossil fuels. “The electrification of metal production is groundbreaking,” says Allanore. “It not only allows us to avoid certain fuels and carbon emissions, it opens the door to higher productivity.”

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Battery Day 2024: Advancements in sustainable, next-generation technology

February 16, 2024

Scientists and engineers at the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering (PME) are advancing new research on battery technology, forging a pathway to a clean, sustainable energy future.

In recognition of National Battery Day on Feb. 18, read more about the latest developments:

UChicago engineer driving key role in Great Lakes water transformation

The Chicago-based  Great Lakes ReNEW  coalition has been awarded one of the largest, if not the largest, climate awards in the city’s history – up to $160 million over 10 years as one of the inaugural  U.S. National Science Foundation’s Regional Innovation Engines .

The award will be used in part to recycle used water, creating a clean water resource, and also to transform filtered-out waste metals into new types of batteries that help power the nation’s switch to clean energy. 

“Water is needed everywhere for daily life. For manufacturing in particular, it is critical to our economic prosperity. But water is limited in supply, especially freshwater,” said Prof. Junhong Chen, the co-Principal Investigator and Use-Inspired R&D Lead for Great Lakes ReNEW. “The only way to get us out of this challenge is to be able to recycle and reuse the water.”  

  • Read more about one of the largest, if not the largest, climate awards in the city’s history

Researchers advance lithium-metal batteries, paving the way for safer, more powerful devices

The boom in phones, laptops, and other personal devices over the last few decades has been made possible by the lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery, but as climate change demands more powerful batteries for electric vehicles and grid-scale renewable storage, lithium-ion technology might not be enough.

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“A compounding challenge that further doomed the first wave of LMB commercialization in the late 1980s was their propensity to explode,” Asst. Prof. Chibueze Amanchukwu  wrote in a recent study.

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  • Shirley Meng recognized for contributions to battery science

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New Research

These 3,000-Year-Old Treasures Were Forged From Meteoritic Iron

New research reveals that two Bronze Age artifacts from the Treasure of Villena contain iron from a meteor that hit a million years ago

Sonja Anderson

Sonja Anderson

Daily Correspondent

Full Treasure

In the ’60s, researchers discovered a trove of Bronze Age treasure in Villena, Spain. While most of the stunning bottles, bowls and bracelets are made of gold and silver, new research has revealed that some of them were forged from another material: iron from a meteor that struck Earth a million years ago.

According to a recent study published in the journal  Trabajos de Prehistoria , researchers conducted tests on two of the artifacts—a bracelet and a hollow decorative sphere—made between 1400 and 1200 B.C.E.

The trove’s materials have long mystified researchers. After finding it on the Iberian Peninsula in 1963, archaeologist José María Soler García noted the presence of a “dark leaden metal” among the gold, per El País ’ Vicente G. Olaya. The metal was “shiny in some areas, and covered with a ferrous-looking oxide that is mostly cracked.”

To determine the iron’s origins, researchers used mass spectrometry , a technique that measures a molecule’s mass-to-charge ratio. As Live Science ’s Jennifer Nalewicki reports, this analysis revealed that the iron’s nickel composition resembles that of meteoritic iron. These items are the first artifacts made of meteoritic iron ever found in the Iberian Peninsula.

Iron object

“Iron was as valuable as gold or silver, and in this case [it was] used for ornaments or decorative purposes,” study co-author Ignacio Montero Ruiz , a researcher at the Spanish National Research Council’s Institute of History, tells Smithsonian magazine.

The presence of such an “unusual raw material” suggests it was made by highly skilled metalworkers capable of “[developing] new technologies,” adds Montero Ruiz.

But iron is also quite different from more common materials such as copper, gold or silver. As Montero Ruiz says to Live Science , “People who started to work with meteoritic iron and later with terrestrial iron must [have had to] innovate.”

The study’s other co-authors are Salvador Rovira-Llorens of the National Archaeological Museum and Martina Renzi of the Diriyah Gate Development Authority. The trove is held by Villena’s Archaeological Museum , which says on its website that the 66 items are considered the “most important prehistoric treasure in Europe.” Still, the artifacts’ origins remain a mystery.

Bracelet

Montero Ruiz tells Smithsonian magazine that objects made from meteoritic iron are rare, and most known examples from this period are connected to eastern Mediterranean cultures. The treasure’s creators “probably had access to a fallen meteorite in the area that allowed them to discover the properties of this material and how to shape it,” he says.

Last year, research revealed that an arrowhead found in Switzerland was made from meteoritic iron. That artifact, however, dates to between 900 and 800 B.C.E.

Researchers also don’t know who owned the Villena treasure, though they think it would have belonged to a community rather than a single individual.

“These two pieces of iron had enormous value. For this reason, they were considered worthy of becoming part of this spectacular ensemble,” says Montero Ruiz, per El País . “Who manufactured them and where this material was obtained are still questions that remain to be answered.”

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Sonja Anderson

Sonja Anderson | READ MORE

Sonja Anderson is a writer and reporter based in New York City.

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  • Published: 19 January 2023

Prospects of metal recovery from wastewater and brine

  • Ryan M. DuChanois   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-3463-5958 1 ,
  • Nathanial J. Cooper   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-2972-1816 1 ,
  • Boreum Lee 1 ,
  • Sohum K. Patel 1 ,
  • Lauren Mazurowski 1 ,
  • Thomas E. Graedel 2 &
  • Menachem Elimelech   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-4186-1563 1  

Nature Water volume  1 ,  pages 37–46 ( 2023 ) Cite this article

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Modern technology relies on an undisrupted supply of metals, yet many metals have limited geological deposits. Recovering metals from wastewater and brine could augment metal stocks, but there is little guidance on which metals to prioritize for recovery or on the techno-economic viability of extraction processes. Here we critically assess the potential for recovering metals from wastewater and brine. We first look at which metals are critical for recovery on the basis of their supply risks and the impacts of those supply restrictions. We then assess the feasibility of recovering these metals from various water sources by estimating the required operational costs to match market prices. Next we discuss the limitations of established separation technologies that may inhibit the practicality and scalability of metal recovery from water. We conclude by highlighting materials and processes that could serve as more sustainable alternatives to metal recovery with further research and development.

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Acknowledgements

We acknowledge support received from the US–Israel Binational Science Foundation (grant number CBET-2110138) and the US National Science Foundation (NSF) through the Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment (grant number EEC-1449500). R.M.D. acknowledges the Abel Wolman Fellowship from the American Water Works Association (AWWA), N.J.C. acknowledges the eFellows Postdoctoral Fellowship from the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE, NSF grant number EEC-2127509), S.K.P. acknowledges the American Membrane Technology Association (AMTA) and Bureau of Reclamation Fellowship for Membrane Technology and L.M. acknowledges the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship. The contents of this Perspective are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the NSF, AWWA, ASEE, AMTA or Bureau of Reclamation.

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Ryan M. DuChanois, Nathanial J. Cooper, Boreum Lee, Sohum K. Patel, Lauren Mazurowski & Menachem Elimelech

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DuChanois, R.M., Cooper, N.J., Lee, B. et al. Prospects of metal recovery from wastewater and brine. Nat Water 1 , 37–46 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s44221-022-00006-z

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