Integrated Computational Materials Engineering of Next Generation Aluminum and Magnesium Alloys

拟议的研究计划将引领全球集成计算材料工程（ICME）领域，用材料特性、制造过程和对这些过程的响应的数字模拟来取代冗长、昂贵、试错驱动的研发。这一发展是加速将更坚固、更安全、更轻质的材料引入运输行业的关键，运输行业为加拿大经济贡献了4.7%的GDP或940亿加元。目前的研究计划与众不同的是专注于化学相关模型，空间分辨微观结构（在晶粒水平，即10 μm和部件尺度，即mm），以及基础研究和知识的工业应用之间的密切联系。上述化学依赖性、微观结构的空间变化和历史依赖性的挑战决定了需要一种整体数字构建块方法来将不同的制造工艺联系在一起。 这项工作的目的是生产贯穿过程（ICME）模型，以加速下一代高强度和韧性铝和镁合金在交通运输领域的应用。所提出的方法需要结合国家的最先进的建模和仿真工具和先进的表征工具，包括组合研究和高效的实验方法。贯穿过程方法的核心是明确考虑到各过程之间的联系。从一开始，开发子模型时就知道它们必须联系在一起;这是一个具有挑战性的过程，需要仔细规划哪些变量将成为每个模型的输入和输出，以及这些变量将如何从一个模型传递到下一个模型。该研究计划将侧重于：i）高强度，汽车工业用高韧性铝合金--下一代铝合金的目标（Al-Mg-Zn-Cu-Zr）具有高于400 MPa的强度和>0.5的真实断裂应变，使得它们可以形成以制造用于碰撞应用的具有改进的能量吸收能力的复杂部件，和ii）新型镁合金板，可在室温下形成复杂的汽车部件，同时将材料成本从目前的每公斤15美元降低到每公斤不到5美元。 这些材料的插入已被证明有可能减少汽车重量超过50%，其结果包括增加替代燃料车辆的可行性，减少化石燃料的使用，减少温室气体的产生，所有这些都对更可持续的地球做出了可衡量的贡献。此外，40%的加拿大制造商已经报告了直接的技能/劳动力短缺，60%的制造商预计未来五年将出现短缺。因此，下一代材料工程师的教育，培训和指导将是这项研究计划的关键成果。

The proposed research program will lead the global Integrated Computational Materials Engineering (ICME) field to replace lengthy, costly, trial-and-error-driven R&D with digital simulation-of materials properties, manufacturing processes, and responses to those processes. This evolution is key to accelerating the insertion of stronger, safer, lighter-weight materials into the transportation sector, which contributes 4.7% of GDP or $94b CAD to the Canadian economy. What sets the current research program apart is the focus on chemistry-dependent models, spatial resolved microstructure (both at the grain level, i.e. 10 of µm's and the part scale, i.e. mm's), and the close linkage between the foundational research and industrial application of the knowledge. The challenges of chemistry dependence, spatial variation of microstructure, and history dependence noted above dictate that a holistic digital building-block approach is needed to link the different manufacturing processes together. The objective of this work is to produce through process (ICME) models to accelerate the insertion of the next generation of high strength and toughness aluminum and magnesium alloys into applications in the transportation sector. The proposed methodology requires a combination of state-of-the-art modeling and simulation tools and advanced characterization tools, including combinatorial studies and high-efficiency experimental approaches. At its heart, the through process approach explicitly considers the linkages between processes. From the beginning, sub-models are developed with the knowledge that they must be linked together; a challenging process requiring careful planning of which variables will be inputs and outputs for each model and how those variables will be passed from one model to the next. This research program will focus on: i) high strength, high toughness aluminum alloys for the automotive industry - the aim for the next generation of aluminum alloys (Al-Mg-Zn-Cu-Zr) is strength above 400 MPa and true fracture strain >0.5 such that they can be formed to make complex parts with improved energy absorption capability for crash applications and ii) novel magnesium sheet alloys that can be formed into complex automotive parts at room temperature while reducing material cost from the current $15 per kg to less than $5 per kg. The insertion of these materials has been demonstrated to have the potential to reduce automobile weight more than 50% with outcomes which include the increased viability of alternative-fuel vehicles, reduced fossil fuel use, and reduced greenhouse gas production, all measurable contributions to a more sustainable planet. Further, 40% of Canadian manufacturers are already reporting immediate skills/labour shortages and 60% of manufacturers anticipate shortages in the next five years. As such, the education, training, and mentoring of the next generation of materials engineers will be a critical outcome for this research program.