High-Throughput Manufacturing of Layered Dissimilar Metals for Extreme Conditions

The core objective of the project will be to conduct fundamental studies to understand the process-structure-properties relationship for a groundbreaking manufacturing process that uses a complex (dusty) plasma to bond dissimilar metals. These materials that can withstand extreme service conditions, such as high temperature and corrosive environments, while retaining strength and thermal conductivity, are crucial for advanced energy and aerospace applications, including structural components for future fusion reactors and shielding materials for hypersonic aviation. The project’s outcome will be knowledge on a process that significantly reduces energy use and shortens production time in the high-throughput manufacturing of these materials. This project aims to enhance U.S. competitiveness in advanced manufacturing and, potentially, create new domestic STEM career opportunities, thereby contributing to economic and national security. The project will also strengthen the STEM workforce by engaging thirty high school science teachers from northwestern Pennsylvania in three annual hybrid summer workshops. Through these workshops, teachers will gain hands‑on experience and foundational knowledge of how electromagnetic microwaves interact with different materials. This broader‑impact effort supports STEM education and enhances public understanding of the science underlying the project’s emerging manufacturing technology. The overall objective of this research is to understand a high‑throughput, complex‑plasma‑based process for manufacturing bonded dissimilar metallic materials. In this method, stable or semi‑stable plasma generated by microwave radiation near bulk and powder metals creates thermodynamic conditions that promote strong interfacial bonding. Preliminary work shows that this process can join similar and dissimilar metals while reducing manufacturing time by two orders of magnitude and lowering the carbon footprint compared to conventional diffusion bonding. The central hypothesis is that microwave‑metal interactions generate a complex plasma containing liquid and solid metal particles that react with the substrate surface, forming both mechanical and chemical bonds. The first research aim is to study how material parameters, including metal types (ferromagnetic, paramagnetic, and diamagnetic), their apparent density and geometry (shape and size), together with process parameters, including the radiation time and power of a multi‑mode 2.45 GHz microwave, affect the radiation‑induced electrical discharge required to sustain the complex plasma. Building on the findings from the first research aim, the second aim is to investigate the process–structure–property relationships for the dusty‑plasma‑based joining process. For the second aim, the work will focus on studying the formation, microstructure, and impression‑creep behavior of the interface between similar and dissimilar metals joined via microwave‑assisted bonding. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria. NSF Award ID: 2521727 | Program: 01002627DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT | Principal Investigator: Hadi Noori | Institution: University of Pittsburgh, PITTSBURGH, PA | Award Amount: $399,997 View on NSF Award Search: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/show-award/?AWD_ID=2521727 View on Research.gov: https://www.research.gov/awardapi-service/v1/awards/2521727.html