Theory of Spark-Plasma Sintering

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The objective of this research is to investigate the theory of spark-plasma sintering (SPS) of powder components. SPS consists essentially of conjoint application of high temperature, axial pressure and field (electric current - based) assisted sintering. Potentially, SPS has many significant advantages over the conventional powder consolidation methods, ultimately resulting in dramatically improved properties of sintered products, low manufacturing costs, and environmental friendliness. Practical implementations of the SPS? bright potential, however, are limited by the lack of theoretical concepts enabling the process predictiveness and optimization. Thus, the development of reliable theory of spark-plasma sintering is urgently needed. Besides its fundamental importance for the powder processing science, the developed theory will enable synergistic solutions for the real-world problems of the SPS-based production of powder components with optimized micro- and nanostructure. Bulk powder components with optimized grain structure are of significant importance for the broad spectrum of applications, including aerospace, automotive, data processing, telecommunications, and medical areas. Graduate, undergraduate, and K-12 students will participate in this research program, which will contribute to the development of the Materials Engineering curriculum of the San Diego State University (SDSU) and to the progress of the SDSU Powder Technologies Laboratory. The program will also enhance the multi-disciplinary development of two Joint Doctoral Programs: between SDSU and University of California, San Diego (UCSD) in Engineering Sciences; and between San Diego State University (SDSU) and Claremont Graduate University (CGU) in Computational Sciences.This project is jointly funded by the Thermal Transport Processes (TTP) Program, of the Chemical, Bioengineering, Environmental, and Transport Systems (CBET) Division and by the Materials Processing & Manufacturing (MPM) Program, of the Civil, Mechanical, and Manufacturing Innovation (CMMI) Division, both within the Directorate for Engineering (ENG).