A one-step advanced manufacturing process for developing bulk stable nanocrystalline-lightweight alloy: A new weight reduction approach to combating global climate change

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Alberta/Canada is committed to the United Nation's sustainable development goals to combat global climate change. As the requirement to reduce energy consumption/emission becomes more stringent, there are few options for accomplishing this goal from a metallurgical standpoint. For instance, in the past four decades, automobile industries have not been able to reduce the vehicular weight that causes high fuel consumption; instead, technological innovations are used to offset these impacts, e.g., the advent of electric vehicles. However, making vehicles lighter by 35% with no sacrifice to safety can further lower fuel consumption by another 12-20%. This, and other heavy weight requiring-structures open a new window for a metallurgical weight-reduction approach that will accomplish Alberta/Canada's climate change target in record time. Materials' thickness/weight requirement for structures and, in turn, energy consumption, can be reduced when materials' strength is increased through the development of nanocrystalline (NC) structure in the materials. However, nanograins are unstable even at ambient temperature due to the excess energy at the grain boundaries; a phenomenon that results in the loss of inherent functional properties in NC materials and also stalls their widespread use. While stabilizing NC materials against grain growth is important, their commercial adoption is limited in thickness (~1-100 µm). There is still a need for processing science that circumvents the outline drawbacks. Therefore, the overall objective of this project is to design and develop ultra-high strength "bulk" lightweight stabilized NC alloy in a one-step process-i.e., a single manufacturing process that directly produces NC in bulk but with GB stabilized. This proposed project will directly benefit the energy and transportation sectors in Alberta and Canada by reducing the cost associated with greenhouse-gas reduction targets by 2030-$9.1 billion, and an estimated $5.5 trillion if no new measure is taken. The research program will also contribute to the training of highly qualified personnel to ensure continuous training of experts in Alberta and Canada, in the area of nanotechnology, and advanced manufacturing technologies.