IUCRC Planning Grant: North Carolina State University, Center for Industrial Metal Forming

金属成形工艺是最高效、最经济、最环保的大批量制造技术之一，通过对输入原料进行再成形来制造产品，浪费很少，而且往往是在室温下进行的。约5.8%的美国GDP(2019年为21.4万亿美元)与汽车、航空航天、国防、材料、电子和生物医学等行业相关，所有这些行业都广泛使用金属成形工艺。因此，估计金属成形对美国社会的经济影响高达数千亿美元。该奖项支持拟议的工业金属成形中心(CIMF)的规划阶段。该中心由俄亥俄州立大学(OSU)、奥克兰大学(OU)、北卡罗来纳州立大学(NCSU)和新汉普郡大学(UNH)组成，其使命是在金属成形科学和工程领域开展前沿的、竞争前的基础研究，并培养下一代行业专家。CIMF将在新的块材和板材成形工艺；集成计算金属成形(ICMF)及其相关科学，如塑性和断裂；先进设备和模具技术；以及传感器和工业物联网(IIoT)在金属成形中的应用方面进行行业驱动的转型研究。这一努力将需要与制造工程、电气工程、材料科学、数值方法、数据分析和实验力学的专家一起采取跨学科的方法。因此，CIMF的活动将创造一支具有高度竞争力的、多样化的劳动力队伍，以支持美国工业的增长和扩大制造业就业，同时也有助于美国的供应链弹性和全球市场竞争力。CIMF围绕着将其四个站点的核心能力与在广泛的客户发现过程中确定的行业需求相结合而设计。CIMF的基础研究将基于三个支柱：1)成形方面的计算和材料改进；2)创新的成形工艺；以及3)设备和模具的创新。这些支柱融合了每个地点的独特专业知识：OSU的集成计算金属成形(ICMF)；OU的剪切工艺、冲压和设备方面的IIoT以及模具创新；NCSU的锻造、混合成形工艺和摩擦学；以及UNH的材料和工艺建模和柔性成形。通过在板材/管材成形、锻造和挤压工艺方面采用创新方法，改善材料的成形性，改进虚拟工艺设计方法，以及采用新的模具材料、涂层、润滑剂和金属成形设备，将实现纵向的根本性进展。具体地说，这些以行业为重点的项目将着眼于工艺创新(例如，液压锻造、柔性成形)、基于IIoT的成形控制、高能效成形机器、增强附加制造模具的性能等。其成果将是材料利用率的进步、最终零件性能和重量的减轻、工艺设计的工业友好计算工具、延长使用寿命的金属成形模具以及提高生产率的工业金属成形工艺，涉及一系列先进材料系统和行业，例如汽车、航空航天和生物医学。NCSU的网站将包括来自多个部门的教师，他们拥有金属成形过程建模、制造摩擦学、工艺创新、网络制造、几何深度学习、工厂现场计算、复杂系统分析和建模的计算方法以及金属添加剂制造方面的专业知识。与CIMF其他站点合作的项目将受益于访问添加剂制造和物流中心(CAMAL)和分析仪器设施(AIF)，该中心拥有一系列表征技术-共聚焦激光扫描显微镜、X射线计算机断层扫描声学显微镜、非原位FIB/SEM/EDS/EBSD、原位蠕变、蠕变-疲劳和断裂扫描电子显微镜分析。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，认为值得支持。

Metal forming processes are among the most efficient, economical and environmentally-friendly high-volume manufacturing techniques, creating products by re-shaping the input feedstock, with limited waste, and oftentimes at room temperature. Approximately 5.8% of the U.S. GDP ($21.4 trillion in 2019) is tied to industries such as automotive, aerospace, defense, materials, electronics and biomedical, all extensively utilizing metal forming processes. Therefore, the estimated economic impact of metal forming in the U.S. society is in the hundreds of billion $. This award supports the planning phase of the proposed Center for Industrial Metal Forming (CIMF). The mission of the Center, which is comprised of Ohio State University (OSU), Oakland University (OU), North Carolina State University (NCSU) and University of New Hampshire (UNH), is to perform cutting-edge, pre-competitive fundamental research in metal forming science and engineering and to create the next generation of industry experts. CIMF will conduct industry-driven transformational research in novel bulk and sheet forming processes; Integrated Computational Metal Forming (ICMF) and the sciences that tie into it, such as plasticity and fracture; advanced equipment and die technologies; and the application of sensors and the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) in metal forming. This effort will necessitate an interdisciplinary approach with experts from manufacturing engineering, electrical engineering, materials science, numerical methods, data analytics and experimental mechanics. Therefore, CIMF activities will create a highly-competitive, diverse workforce to support the growth of U.S. industry and expand manufacturing employment, while also contributing to the Nation’s supply chain resilience and global market competitiveness. CIMF is designed around integrating the core competencies of its four sites with the industry needs identified during the extensive customer discovery. The fundamental research at CIMF will be based on three pillars: 1) computational and material enhancements in forming; 2) innovative forming processes; and 3) equipment and die innovation. These pillars blend with the unique expertise of each site: Integrated Computational Metal Forming (ICMF) for OSU; shearing processes, IIoT in stamping and equipment and die innovation for OU; forging, hybrid forming processes and tribology for NCSU; and material and process modeling and flexible forming for UNH. Vertical, fundamental advances will be achieved by employing innovative approaches in sheet metal/tube forming, forging and extrusion processes, improving material formability, advancing methods for virtual process design, and employing new die materials, coatings, lubricants and metal forming equipment. Specifically, the industry-focused projects will target process innovation (e.g., hydro-forging, flexible forming), forming control based on IIoT, energy-efficient forming machines, enhanced performance of additively-manufactured dies, etc. The results will be advancements in material utilization, final part performance and weight reduction, industry-friendly computational tools for process design, metal forming dies with extended life and industrial metal forming processes of increased productivity, across a range of advanced material systems and industries, e.g., automotive, aerospace, and biomedical. The NCSU site will involve faculty from multiple departments with expertise in modeling of metal forming processes, manufacturing tribology, process innovation, cyber-manufacturing, geometric deep learning, factory-floor computing, computational methods for the analysis and modeling of complex systems, and metal additive manufacturing. Collaborative projects with other CIMF sites will benefit from access to the Center for Additive Manufacturing and Logistic (CAMAL) and Analytical Instrument Facility (AIF) which houses a host of characterization techniques – confocal laser scanning microscopy, Xray computed tomography scanning acoustic microscopy, ex situ FIB/SEM/EDS/EBSD, in situ creep, creep-fatigue and fracture SEM analysis.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.