Materials Australia Magazine | September 2023 | Volume 56

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CONTENTS

Reports Contents

From the President

Corporate Sponsors

Advertisers

LMT2023

Materials Australia News Profile: Ian Polmear

MISE 2023

WA Branch Reports

NSW Branch Report

Profile: Anthony Roccisano, Swinburne University of Technology, SEAM

CMatP Profile: Mark Easton

Our Certified Materials Professionals (CMatPs)

Why You Should Become a CMatP

Industry News

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New Research Facility to Help Bring Sustainable Materials to Market

Ultrathin Nanotech Promises to Help Tackle Antibiotic Resistance

Taking 3D Printing Quality to the Next Level Using Projection Micro Stereolithography

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From the President This brings me to the importance of maintaining national and international professional networks. For me, this requires strong interaction with customers, suppliers and colleagues anywhere in the world, who can help you fast track outcomes. Some of our professional networking has been hampered in the past few years, with face-to-face meetings more difficult. So there is perhaps no better time than now to reinforce how critical professional networks are to our advancements.

Welcome to the September 2023 edition of Materials Australia magazine. As mentioned in my last message, I have been involved almost non-stop with audits for NADCAP, as well as special process approval audits for customers. These are now complete and I’m very pleased to confirm that AW Bell has passed its aerospace welding audit with the minimum number of nonconformances, just one minor finding from the audit, and one minor finding after the audit. As the first company to achieve this in Australia, this has been quite a task and an achievement! Special thanks to Matt Billman (Quality Manager/Welding Coordinator) from Uneek Bending Co in Dandenong South who helped me economically solve the final pieces of the puzzle.

MANAGING EDITOR Gloss Creative Media Pty Ltd EDITORIAL COMMITTEE Prof. Ma Qian RMIT University Dr. Jonathan Tran RMIT University Tanya Smith MATERIALS AUSTRALIA

4 | SEPTEMBER 2023

In manufacturing, challenges and problems are common. Knowledge exchange is probably the top of the list for networking and allows professionals to share industry insights, best practices, and the latest technological advancements. This knowledge exchange can help individuals and organisations stay competitive and innovative. I recently attended the CTNZ foundry conference in New Zealand. This included a stop at Hamilton Jet and AW Fraser in Christchurch before the conference, and I left very impressed with several great ideas to try out myself. A diverse professional network can provide access to experts and experienced individuals who can offer solutions and advice when issues arise. Regulations in the manufacturing industry can change frequently and a network can help professionals stay informed about regulatory changes and compliance requirements. Examples from my industry include silica compliance, and the impending change that will impact more widely; lead (Pb) free brasses in potable water systems. I

ADVERTISING & DESIGN MANAGER Gloss Creative Media Pty Ltd Rod Kelloway (02) 8539 7893 PUBLISHER Materials Australia Technical articles are reviewed on the Editor’s behalf PUBLISHED BY Institute of Materials Engineering Australasia Ltd. Trading as Materials Australia ACN: 004 249 183 ABN: 40 004 249 183

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believe this is coming to Australia in the very near future and we as a materials community have to be ready for it. Luckily, I have colleagues in other parts of the world who have already been working on this for some years now. When as a business, we are eventually faced with this prospect I can answer the questions with some authority as I know who to ask for advice. We cannot be experts at everything. The key is in knowing who the experts are in given fields. Knowing the right people and having a positive professional reputation can make a significant difference in one's career trajectory. Through networking events, seminars and conferences, professionals can engage in continuous learning and skill development, which is vital in a rapidly evolving industry like manufacturing. This also helps facilitate collaboration opportunities that build a strong supply chain. As a result, access to resources and products that might otherwise not be available is possible. For example, last year the price of cobalt and cobalt alloys became extremely high due to the growth in the electric vehicle industry. In Australia, I have only rarely been able to purchase scrap cobalt of the type my business requires to manufacture various grades. In 2022, I attended the Titanium USA Conference and met with as many scrap metal traders as I could, including a team from Japan. Although the discussion initially focused on titanium scrap supply, we also discussed cobalt alloys. Since then, I have purchased several tons of the cobalt grade required at a fraction of the primary price.

Cover Image

From feature article on page 44.

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Who of us have discussed job opportunities via networking? Whether it is for yourself or if you are recruiting someone in the industry, job opportunities, promotions, and career growth are an integral part of networking. These days many recruiters unfortunately do not look too far past LinkedIn, which has changed this scenario. Although, I would encourage anyone who uses LinkedIn to link with only those you would count as part of your professional network already. Attending conferences, seminars and events provides market insights, helping companies make informed decisions about product development, pricing, and market expansion. Professionals can engage in continuous learning and skill development, which is vital in a rapidly evolving industry like manufacturing. An important part of networking is understanding industry trends, which is essential for adapting to shifts in consumer preferences and emerging technologies. Obviously, it’s also about

sharing knowledge and how things might be done better or differently. From the research prospective, this allows individuals to present their work in front of their peers, which can lead to collaborations. Interestingly enough, some of the best collaborations can begin with different perspectives, yet compatible views on a topic and this leads to posing new questions that need answering. A fantastic example of this is a paper recently published in Nature (T. Song et.al., Nature Vol 618, June 2023, p.63) arising from the collaboration between Professor Ma Qian’s research team at RMIT and Professor Simon Ringer’s team at the University of Sydney, together with colleagues from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. This work originated from the APICAM 2019 conference held in Melbourne. Last I heard, the news had been viewed over 41 million times, and over 800,000 times in The Guardian alone. Congratulations also must go to Tingting Song, who as the first named author has achieved

something very commendable and deserving of much recognition. Finally, I have to encourage all members to get involved in the Materials Australia networking opportunities such as conferences, seminars and events. Unfortunately, we have a number of non-financial members at the moment and it would be a shame to lose them from our Materials Australia community. By taking part in networking opportunities, as a student you may find your future employer, a mentor, a collaborator or a research supervisor. As a materials professional, you may find a group you want to collaborate with or you may find a future employee. Or you may find a way in which to save your business time, resources and money. As always, as we head into the fourth quarter of the year, I look forward to catching up with many of you at our events. I wish you all the best. Dr Roger Lumley President, Materials Australia

Advertise with Materials Australia! Email rod@materialsaustralia.com.au for more information Advertising with Materials Australia will give you the opportunity to: • Maintain and build on professional relationships • Connect with a highly targeted audience • Showcase your new products and services

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Materials Australia National Office PO Box 19 Parkville Victoria 3052 Australia T: +61 3 9326 7266 E: imea@materialsaustralia.com.au W: www.materialsaustralia.com.au

NATIONAL PRESIDENT Roger Lumley

This magazine is the official journal of Materials Australia and is distributed to members and interested parties throughout Australia and internationally. Materials Australia welcomes editorial contributions from interested parties, however it does not accept responsibility for the content of those contributions, and the views contained therein are not necessarily those of Materials Australia. Materials Australia does not accept responsibility for any claims made by advertisers. All communication should be directed to Materials Australia.

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2024 SEPTEMBER 2023 | 7

MATERIALS AUSTRALIA

MELBOURNE AUSTRALIA

10TH INTERNATIONAL LIGHT METALS TECHNOLOGY CONFERENCE

MELBOURNE AUSTRALIA

R M IT, M E LBO URNE, AUS TR ALI A | 10 - 12 J ULY 2023

LMT2023 Conference: A Huge Success Source: Sally Wood

The 10th Light Metals Technology conference was held at RMIT from 10 to 12 July. An activity of the Global Light Metals Alliance, this year’s conference marked the 20th anniversary of the first conference held in Brisbane. The focus of the conference has always been research with industry outcomes in mind. This year, we reverted to the original structure of a single session, which helped facilitate great conversations and connections amongst the 107 participants. The conference also saw the signing of Memorandum of Understanding between the partners of the Alliance. There are now 13 partners across ten countries (Australia, Austria, Germany, Sweden, England, Korea, China, South Africa, Canada and the USA). The conference commenced with a keynote presentation by Paul Schaffer (Principal Advisor Technical Marketing, Rio Tinto). Schaffer focused on how the aluminium industry will reach net zero by 2050 through the use of sustainable energy sources, inert anodes and increased circularity. Paul attended the first LMT conference and presented a poster when he was a PhD student at the University of Queensland. Paul also worked with our co-Chair David StJohn who chaired the first LMT conference. Alan Luo from the Ohio State University also presented a keynote, focused on whether magnesium was an industrial metal or a technology metal. Luo suggested that it could be both. Don Larsen from the International Titanium Association also focused on the environmental theme in his presentation, explaining how aerospace propulsion engines can be operated at higher temperatures with better Ti-alloys. Don also ran a very successful Ti workshop the day after the conference, with 25 attendees from industry and universities. Day one focused on solidification, 8 | SEPTEMBER 2023

casting and some additive manufacturing, with attendees learning about the latest in melt conditioning through ultrasound and shear technologies, the importance of controlling defects and process parameters and grain refinement, much to the delight of the conference chairs.

additive manufacturing technologies, by using hot isostatic pressing and through controlling texture.

MELBOURNE AUSTRALIA The afternoon was CON F E R E N C Esession P R O G Rkeynote AM

Recycling and circularity was another theme, giving birth to the new metallurgy based on recycled compositions. Particularly exciting was a series of presentations on the use of synchrotron imaging to see solidification processes occurring in real time even in the very rapid world of additive manufacturing. Day two commenced with a keynote by Richard Taube from Ford, who once again picked up the theme of sustainability and the role of light alloys, particularly aluminium in reducing emissions from Ford vehicles. The morning session focused mainly on alloy design and manufacture: Mg alloys stronger than steel and aluminium, titanium alloys for wire based additive manufacturing, the use of integrated computational and machine learning approaches to alloy design, as well as a novel way to produce rare earth containing alloys. The afternoon session started with a keynote from Michael Elford (Senior Researcher, Boeing) who presented Boeing’s work on using simulation to optimise forming operations. The presentations were on thermomechanical processing and joining technologies. Attendees learnt about the continuing work on heat treatment regimes on the properties of higher strength Al alloys, cold spray and joining metals particularly of different types. Day three focused on recycling, the circular economy and improved properties. Attendees learnt about an integrated Mg clean energy ecosystem, circular Al alloys and using Al in the recycling of e-waste. We found improved properties in alloys produced using two different BACK TO CONTENTS

Chamini Mendis, another student poster presentation at the first LMT conference who talked about her work on precipitation hardening in Mg alloys that covered four countries and three GLMA partners. The session looked at the possibility (or otherwise) of the dislocation structures in Mg alloys, as well as precipitation mechanisms in both Mg and Al alloys. We were also challenged to consider a fourth light alloy, Sc-based alloys. There was also an excellent contribution from our poster presenters. The best poster award went to Stephanie Kotiadis from the University of Guelph for her poster on ‘The Heat treatability, Conductivity, and Strength Properties of the Al-Fe-Ni-Mg-Si Alloying System’. Second place went to Wan Ye from Monash University for her poster on ‘Solidification-microstructure relationship study of single tracked laser scanned Mg-La based alloys’. The social events were a highlight of the conference, particularly the dinner held in the Old Melbourne Gaol amongst the cells. Tour groups were told stories of the early history of Melbourne through the eyes of the prisoners including the most infamous of all, the bushranger Ned Kelly. The organisers would like to thank RMIT for hosting the conference; ATLAS for being the poster sponsor; DMTC for sponsoring the Ti workshop; AW Bell for organising the speaker; American Elements as Lanyard sponsor; Cameca Ametek for being an exhibitor; and Deakin University’s Institute for Frontier Materials for being a supporter. The next conference will be in Sweden hosted by Anders Jarfors at Jönköping University in June 2025.

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MELBOURNE AUSTRALIA

10TH INTERNATIONAL LIGHT METALS TECHNOLOGY CONFERENCE

MELBOURNE AUSTRALIA

R M IT, M E LBO URNE, AUS TR ALI A | 10 - 12 J ULY 2023

MELBOURNE AUSTRALIA CONFERENCE PROGR AM

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MATERIALS AUSTRALIA MELBOURNE AUSTRALIA

MELBOURNE AUSTRALIA

10TH INTERNATIONAL LIGHT METALS TECHNOLOGY CONFERENCE R M IT, M E LBO URNE, AUS TR ALI A | 10 - 12 J ULY 2023

Profile: Ian Polmear Emeritus Professor Materials Science & Engineering Source: Sally Wood

Australian transition within the engineering curriculum from the field CO N F E R E N C EtoPthe ROG RAM of metallurgy field of materials science.

MELBOURNE AUSTRALIA

Ian took on the role of Deputy ViceChancellor at Monash University from 1987 to 1990, after which he pursued further research, consulting and other interests in the fields of materials engineering and energy. Ian was made an Emeritus Professor when he took slightly early retirement in December 1991. One highlight was his appointment as a part-time visiting professor at Tohoku University in Sendai, Japan, from 1993 to 1995. He also worked a day a week as a consultant at the CSIRO Division of Materials Science and Technology at Clayton from 1992 to 2010 and has served as a member or chair of several government committees concerned with materials and energy. He served as a Councillor with the Royal Society of Victoria from 1997 to 2000. He has also had visiting appointments in England, Switzerland and Japan and was the author of the first four editions of Light Alloys which were published between 1981 and 2006. Ian began his engineering career at the University of Melbourne. Graduating with a Bachelor of Metallurgical Engineering in 1949, he then went on to gain a Master of Science (1956) and Doctor of Engineering (1965).

the inaugural Chair of Materials Science in the Department of Civil Engineering at Monash University, which led to the establishment of the Department of Materials Engineering in 1970, which he led as Head of Department until 1986.

In between his studies, Ian gained industrial experience, working as a metallurgist in the paper industry as well as the automotive and electroplating industries. For two years from 1951, he worked as a research investigator at the Fulmer Research Institute in the United Kingdom. Returning to Melbourne in 1953, he took up a post in the Materials Division of the Aeronautical Research Laboratories, becoming Principal Research Scientist by 1967.

Ian had a keen interest in international developments in teaching as well in courses in Materials Science and Materials Engineering. His research interests – which include precipitation hardening in aluminium alloys, development of high strength alloys for aircraft, metal fatigue and weldable light alloys – led to collaborations with laboratories and industries in Australia, Britain, Switzerland, USA and Germany. His work with the Department is considered a leading

From 1967 Ian took on the role of 10 | SEPTEMBER 2023

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Ian was awarded the IMMA (now AusIMM Minerals Institute) Silver Medal in 1988, and appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia in 1993 for services to materials science and engineering. In 2002 he became the second Australian elected as an Honorary Fellow of the British Institute for Materials, Minerals and Mining. Ian is a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering and is Honorary Fellow of the British Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining. In 1993, he was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) for services to materials science and to engineering. He was awarded a Centenary Medal in 2003 and in 2008 received a 50th Anniversary Research Award from Monash University. WWW.MATERIALSAUSTRALIA.COM.AU

University of Queensland | Brisbane, Australia | 29 - 31 October 2023 The fifth International Materials Innovations in Surface Engineering (MISE) conference will be convened in Brisbane, Australia. The conference will be located at the state-of-the-art St Lucia Campus of the University of Queensland: twenty minutes from the centre of Brisbane. MISE2023 features eminent academic and industrial plenary, keynote and invited speakers who encompass the engineering modification of a material’s surface to improve its performance. St Lucia Campus – University of Queensland.

The conference will cover topics such as: > Coatings and Thin Films for Extreme Industrial Environments > Surface Modification for Industrial Applications > Surface Modification for Biomedical Applications > Modelling and Simulation related to Surface Engineering > Vacuum Deposition Coatings and Technologies: PVD and CVD > Thermal Spray Coatings and Technologies > Weld Overlays and Technologies > Laser Processing and Technologies > Characterisation of Surfaces, Coatings and Films > New Horizons in Coatings and Thin Films > Educational and Training of Early Career Researchers in Surface Engineering > Case Histories for Surface Engineering, including Failure Analysis > Corrosion, Bio-corrosion and Coatings for Corrosion Protection > Wear of Materials > Surface modification for Wear and Corrosion Resistance

DON'T MISS O UT • Guidelines and an abstract template can be downloaded Abstracts • Abstracts open 1 December 2022 and can be submitted online through the MISE website - www.mise2023.com.au

PRES ENTED BY

Enquiries Tanya Smith Materials Australia +61 3 9326 7266 imea@materialsaustralia.com.au

TICK

ETS S T Sponsorship and Sponsorship and Industry Displays ILL VA Iwill A number of limited sponsorship packages will be available.A There L Aalso BL be opportunities for sponsors to reserve space to exhibit their products andE technologies. Please see the MISE2023 website for details. Why should you participate in MISE? • Networking opportunities to kick-off and maintain your research profile • Interacting with leading, global industrialists to promote future activities • Contribute to your Continuing Professional Development (CPD) portfolio • Learn of the emerging manufacturing technologies that are on the near-term horizon

SPO N SORS S

www.mise2023.com.au

Enquiries: +61 3 9326 7266 or imea@materialsaustralia.com.au

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WA Branch Technical Meeting - 12 June 2023 Advancements in Surface Modification for Severe Service Equipment Source: Dr Evelyn Ng, Materials Engineer, Callidus Process Solutions Pty Ltd Dr Evelyn Ng completed her Materials Engineering degree and subsequent PhD in the University of Toronto. She then spent several years in the minerals processing industry, gaining international experience on five continents. This provided her with an exceptional background of experience for her next role, with Callidus Process Solutions. The Callidus Group provides custom engineering and repair services to its clients in the mining and oil & gas industries. The group specialises in the management, maintenance, diagnostics and supply of service equipment made from titanium, titanium alloys and exotic alloys. Evelyn’s current role encompasses forensic engineering investigations and providing client recommendations on improving asset integrity. Her role extends to developing companywide innovation strategy and leading collaborative research in new product development. This has led to the development of intellectual property that has been incorporated in new products. The focus of Evelyn’s presentation was on the coating and overlay technologies that Callidus has recently developed and patented in response to corrosion and erosion issues faced by clients who use High-Pressure Acid Leaching (HPAL) and Pressure Oxidization (POx). These

are the FM-1500 surface modification technology for ball valves used in highpressure acid leaching applications, and the BM-1600 corrosion- and erosionresistant coating system for ball valves used in pressure oxidation leaching, especially team vent valves. Evelyn spoke first about FM-1500, starting with a summary of the service conditions in HPAL of nickel ores, typically 4800 kPa at 200°C. This leads to rapid corrosion and erosion of the discharge ball valve. She then described the processes Callidus uses in providing its specialised service of ball valve maintenance and modification. This involves preparing the fixed valve seat and the rotatable ball and “trimming” the matching pair to achieve the seal. For HPAL, the material of choice is titanium, which makes up around 60% of the total material used. The standard treatment for ball valve seats is an oxide coating on the titanium, while the Callidus FM-1500 product is basically a full penetration titanium weld deposit converted to titanium nitride. The product development proceeded through three generations. Evelyn described the first as TiN-C – Conversion to nitride; the second was TiN-B – TiN Build-up; the third, which is patented, is TiN-A – TiN, but with a proprietary Additive. TiN-C is very hard (800 HV), but difficult to lap, and always contained cracks, which led to corrosion. TiN-B

is tougher, sufficiently hard (650 HV), deeper (1.5-2 mm), and has good wear properties, but with corrosion much the same as oxide coatings. The TiN-A product is similar, but with very few surface cracks, which are removed by machining, giving superior corrosion resistance, together with low galling. After machining, this is referred to as FM-1500. This product passed accelerated in-house testing and has now proved very successful in an 18-month field test. The BM-1600 product is another ball valve treatment, but one developed for POx applications in gold ore leaching, typically 230°C, 3000 kPa, with oxygen, steam and sulphuric acid. This is a particularly severe service application as the materials must be safe in oxygen at temperatures above 200°C. The standard surface treatment used is ceramic coating applied by plasma spray, with splat cooling. However, these coatings are subject to porosity leading to corrosion, then loss of adhesion, and finally delamination. The Callidus development, involving guided trial and error, uses an Alloy 200 (commercially pure nickel) base, with a 70 μm fused tantalum layer, followed by a ceramic topcoat applied by physical vapour deposition (PVD). The product passes the ASTM G124 standard requirements relating to combustion of metallic materials in oxygen. The success of BM-1600 was shown in a steam vent application where the standard coating typically only lasts four weeks. In contrast, the Callidus product remained in pristine condition after 12 months. Answering questions about cost, Evelyn explained that these were examples of how Callidus has the capacity to provide cost-effective bespoke solutions aimed at their clients “pain points”. Regarding size, the FM-1500 treatment is currently available for ball valves up to 20 inches diameter; the BM-1600 product is available up for ball valves up to fiveinch diameter, with the constraint being the size of the available PVD chamber.

L to R: Dr Steve Algie, Dr Evelyn Ng

12 | SEPTEMBER 2023

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palladium catalysts

nickel foam

thin film

perovskite crystals glassy carbon III-IV semiconducto europium phosphors buckyballs

Nd:YAG

MOFs

99.9999% aluminum oxide

1.00794

diamond micropowder

alternative energy additive manufacturing

metamaterials

borophene He osmium

organometallics

4.002602

Hydrogen

nanogels Li 3

Helium

2 1

6.941

YBCO

2 8 1

MOCVD

2 8 18 8 1

39.0983

AuNPs

(223)

Francium

3D graphene foam

2 8 8 2

2 8 18 18 8 1

Ba Ra (226)

44.955912

Ac (227)

Radium

2 8 18 18 9 2

Nb 92.90638

2 8 18 32 10 2

178.48

Actinium

104

Rf (267)

Db (268)

Rutherfordium

2 8 13 2

54.938045

2 8 14 2

55.845

Manganese

2 8 15 2

58.933195

Iron

2 8 16 2

58.6934

Cobalt

2 8 18 1

63.546

Nickel

95.96

2 8 18 32 12 2

183.84

Dubnium

106

Sg (271)

2 8 18 15 1

2 8 18 32 13 2

186.207

107

Bh (272)

Seaborgium

2 8 18 16 1

2 8 18 32 14 2

190.23

108

Hs (270)

Bohrium

2 8 18 18

2 8 18 32 15 2

192.217

109

Mt (276)

Hassium

2 8 18 32 17 1

Meitnerium

110

Ds (281)

2 8 18 32 18 1

2 8 3

2 8 18 32 32 18 1

Rg (280)

Roentgenium

112

Cn (285)

Nh (284)

Copernicium

2 8 18 32 18 3

Fl (289)

Nihonium

2 8 18 18 5

208.9804

Flerovium

2 8 18 18 6

Te Po

Moscovium

116

2 8 7

(293)

2 8 18 7

2 8 18 18 7

2 8 18 32 18 7

2 8 18 32 32 18 7

118

83.798

Xe Xenon

(210)

Livermorium

Ts (294)

Tennessine

2 8 18 18 8

131.293

2 8 18 32 18 8

(222)

Astatine 117

2 8 18 8

Krypton

Iodine

2 8 18 32 18 6

Invar

39.948

126.90447

2 8 18 32 32 18 6

2 8 8

Argon

79.904

(209)

2 8 18 32 32 18 5

h-BN

Neon

Bromine

Polonium

115

(288)

2 8 18 6

127.6

2 8 18 32 18 5

2 8

20.1797

35.453

Tellurium

Bismuth 2 8 18 32 32 18 4

78.96

121.76

Chlorine

Antimony 2 8 18 32 18 4

2 8 6

32.065

Fluorine

Sulfur

2 8 18 5

2 7

18.9984032

Selenium

207.2

114

74.9216

Lead 2 8 18 32 32 18 3

2 8 5

Arsenic

Tin

204.3833

113

2 8 18 18 4

118.71

Thallium 2 8 18 32 32 18 2

15.9994

30.973762

2 8 18 4

Oxygen

Phosphorus

72.64

114.818

2 8 18 32 18 2

Germanium

Indium

Mercury

111

2 8 18 18 3

69.723

2 8 4

2 6

14.0067

28.0855

Nitrogen

Silicon 2 8 18 3

2 5

12.0107

Gallium

200.59

Gold

Darmstadtium

Cadmium

196.966569

2 8 18 32 32 17 1

2 8 18 18 2

112.411

Silver

Platinum 2 8 18 32 32 15 2

107.8682

195.084

Iridium 2 8 18 32 32 14 2

2 8 18 18 1

Palladium

Zinc

106.42

Rhodium

Osmium 2 8 18 32 32 13 2

102.9055

Ruthenium

Rhenium 2 8 18 32 32 12 2

101.07

Technetium

Tungsten 2 8 18 32 32 11 2

(98.0)

Molybdenum 2 8 18 32 11 2

2 8 18 13 2

2 8 18 2

Carbon

26.9815386

65.38

Copper

ultralight aerospace alloys Mo Tc Ru Rh Pd Ag Cd 2 8 18 13 1

180.9488

105

51.9961

Tantalum 2 8 18 32 32 10 2

2 8 13 1

Chromium

2 8 18 12 1

Niobium

Hafnium 2 8 18 32 18 9 2

2 8 11 2

50.9415

Vanadium

Zirconium

138.90547

2 8 18 10 2

91.224

Lanthanum 2 8 18 32 18 8 2

47.867

Yttrium

2 8 18 18 8 2

2 8 10 2

Titanium

2 8 18 9 2

88.90585

137.327

2 8 9 2

Scandium

2 8 18 8 2

Barium 2 8 18 32 18 8 1

isotopes Y Zr

2 4

Aluminum

Strontium

Cesium

87.62

132.9054

nanodispersions

40.078

Rubidium

2 8 2

Calcium

85.4678

EuFOD

2 8 8 1

10.811

Magnesium

Potassium 37

2 3

Boron

24.305

Sodium

Beryllium

22.98976928

surface functionalized nanoparticles

9.012182

Lithium 11

2 2

Radon

Og (294)

2 8 18 32 32 18 8

GDC NMC CIGS

Oganesson

InAs wafers titanium aluminum carbide molybdenum TZM silver nanoparticles ITO niobium C103

2 8 18 19 9 2

140.116

232.03806

2 8 18 21 8 2

140.90765

Cerium

quantum dots Th

Praseodymium 2 8 18 32 18 10 2

Thorium

Pa 231.03588

2 8 18 32 20 9 2

Protactinium

transparent ceramics

2 8 18 22 8 2

144.242

238.02891

Uranium

2 8 18 23 8 2

Pm Sm (145)

Neodymium 92

Np (237)

2 8 18 32 22 9 2

150.36

Promethium 2 8 18 32 21 9 2

2 8 18 24 8 2

Neptunium

Pu (244)

Plutonium

2 8 18 25 8 2

151.964

Samarium 94

2 8 18 32 25 8 2

Americium

(247)

2 8 18 27 8 2

158.92535

Gadolinium

Am Cm (243)

2 8 18 25 9 2

157.25

Europium 2 8 18 32 24 8 2

Curium

Bk (247)

2 8 18 28 8 2

2 8 18 32 27 8 2

Berkelium

UHP fluorides

(251)

Californium

Es (252)

Einsteinium

2 8 18 30 8 2

167.259

Tm 168.93421

Erbium 2 8 18 32 29 8 2

100

Fm (257)

Fermium

2 8 18 31 8 2

101

Md (258)

2 8 18 32 8 2

173.054

Thulium

2 8 18 32 30 8 2

2 8 18 32 31 8 2

Mendelevium

102

No (259)

2 8 18 32 32 8 2

Nobelium

103

Lr (262)

2 8 18 32 32 8 3

mischmetal

Lawrencium

chalcogenides

scandium powder

laser crystals

zircaloy -4

Lutetium

biosynthetics

carbon nanotubes

Now Invent.

gold nanocubes OLED lighting

2 8 18 32 9 2

174.9668

Ytterbium

CVD precursors

endohedral fullerenes tungsten carbide

2 8 18 29 8 2

Holmium 2 8 18 32 28 8 2

Ho 164.93032

Dysprosium

radiation shielding rare earth optical fiber dopants sputtering targets

162.5

Terbium

2 8 18 32 25 9 2

deposition slugs

flexible electronics

platinum ink superconductors

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MATERIALS AUSTRALIA

WA Branch Technical Meeting - 23 July 2023 Visit to Microanalysis Australia Source: Steve Algie Rick Hughes (Managing Director) recently hosted a return visit to Microanalysis Australia— this time to their new premises in Mount Lawley. The visit comprised an overview of the facilities and operations, provided by Sandy Lam (Lead Analytical Scientist), followed by small group tours led by Rick’s staff. Sandy has been with the company since 2011, and is focused on scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive spectroscopy. Sandy described what Microanalysis Australia does, as a small, specialised materials characterisation laboratory. Their main clients operate in the oil and gas, mining, pharmaceuticals, health and hygiene, and food and beverages industries. One client that few people in the tour had thought of is Australian

Border Force, which orders materials characterisation of various imported products, such as brake pads of imported cars, or building materials for which certification needs to be confirmed – the importer has to pay for the testing. Sandy explained how the business fits within the broader world of testing laboratories, using the example of personal asbestos monitoring. Microanalysis Australia does not undertake bulk screening of thousands of individual monitors, but is called in when identification of individual fibres is required. Since Rick established the business in 2008, it has grown to have 24 staff and an impressive array of specialised equipment, which now includes four

X-ray diffraction units, along with SEMs (EDS and EBSD), laser diffraction and extinction for particle sizing and counting, GCMS for chemical analysis, FITR spectroscopy, optical petrography, laser interferometry (surface profilometry), as well as facilities for characterising both solid and porous particles. Among many interesting applications, Sandy referred to forensic investigations for patent adherence and infringement, and sizing analysis used for silt plume modelling, used for planning dredging operations. Another specialised test is for transportable moisture limit (TML) required for shipping bulk cargoes; if the limit is exceeded the cargo may suffer liquefaction, leading to capsizing of the vessel. Other services include data interpretation, hazard assessment and development of safety data sheets, and studies of bio-persistence of chemicals. The more unusual services typically require a consultancy phase “to figure out what the client needs”. After the tour, Rick explained the origin of the business. Rick had worked in the Particle Analysis Service in the 1980s, then run by what is now Curtin University; this was approximately 50% commercial. He then moved, with the service, to CSIRO, where the focus gradually shifted to be mainly commercial. However, this was not a good fit with CSIRO operations, and Rick decided he could build a fully commercial business to service the demand from commercial clients for short turnaround times. He bought his first (second-hand) SEM and 2010, his first XRD machine in 2012, and has continued to grow the business (self-funded) often through judicious acquisition of equipment that doesn’t need to be quite at the ‘bleeding edge’ of technology. NATA accreditation for most services was achieved in 2019. After a very interesting visit, with lots of questions, members and guests shared refreshments with Rick’s staff.

L to R: Rick Hughes, Sandy Lam

14 | SEPTEMBER 2023

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MATERIALS AUSTRALIA

WA Branch Meeting Report - 11 September 2023 How Batteries Work at the Atom Scale Source: Dr Jacob W. Martin, Forrest Fellow, Department of Physics and Astronomy, Curtin University this process has motivated Dr Martin's recent studies on graphitisation.

The Western Australia Branch recently hosted a technical meeting focused on the topic How batteries work at the atom scale. Dr Jacob W. Martin (Forrest Fellow, Department of Physics and Astronomy, at Curtin University) was the keynote speaker. Dr Martin graduated in Physics and Chemistry in the University of Auckland. He proceeded to Cambridge University, where he completed his PhD in 2019 in the Department of Chemical Engineering, with his thesis on soot formation in flames. After further research at the National University of Singapore, he joined the Curtin Carbon group in 2021. In this role, Dr Martin works on advanced carbon materials for decarbonisation, with his major research focus graphite for use in lithium-ion batteries. Setting the scene for his presentation, lithium-ion batteries are revolutionising transport and are set to transform our electrical grid. However, how they work at the atomic scale is not immediately obvious. The highlight of Jacob’s presentation was his use of computergenerated 3D visualisations to explain the atomic structure of a lithium-ion battery.

anode, but the problem with these was than growth of lithium dendrites, as the ions were reduced, made them prone to puncture of the separating layer, with explosive consequences. The breakthrough was the use of graphite as the anode layer. Lithium metal placed on graphite will dissolve into it, forming a gold-coloured amalgam. The lithium atoms occupy space between the carbon layers, in a process called intercalation. As the metallic atoms enter the graphite, a semi-metal, they share electrons, making the intercalated material metallically conductive. Dr Martin showed SEM images of battery anodes with the intercalated layer penetrating further into the graphite as the state of charge changed. At this point Dr Martin distributed red-blue cardboard glasses and, taking the audience back to the era of 1950s 3D movies, showed a series of videos of computer simulations of views from inside the graphite, revealing the positions of the lithium atoms.

A typical lithium battery pack is comprised of thousands of small cylindrical cells (often ‘18650’ cells, 18mm diameter, 65mm high). Each cell is constructed from a strip of flexible film comprising a conducting layer, cathode, separator, anode and the second conductor, tightly wound to form a cylinder.

Dr Martin next spoke about the seven different forms of carbon used in lithium-ion batteries, the most important of which is the graphite used for the anodes. The main supply has been natural graphite, which is milled into spheroids which are then coated with carbon to reduce physical degradation. However, there is a limited supply of natural graphite, and the processing required is challenging. The other source is synthetic graphite, which has been produced since the 1890s.

Dr Martin showed SEM images of battery cross sections, showing the sequence of approximately 100 μm cell layers, each thinner than a human hair. The first lithium ion cells used lithium metal as the

There would have been few in the audience who had known before this talk that synthetic graphite is produced by holding petroleum coke above 2,700°C for many hours. The enormous cost of

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The Curtin Carbon group has developed a novel furnace that can heat samples to 3,000°C and hold for a few seconds (before it melts!), followed by rapid cooling. Using high-resolution TEM to examine samples of partially graphitised carbon, the group has made some remarkable discoveries about the kinetics of graphitisation. Dr Martin showed a series of TEM images of views perpendicular to the graphite planes, clearly revealing how these develop from screw dislocations. The group has subsequently used the Pawsey supercomputer to model graphitisation starting with graphene. This confirmed that after screw dislocations form, graphitisation proceeds with movement of screw and edge dislocations as the proto-layers assemble, with the average inter-layer distance decreasing to the final stable state as the dislocations disappear through pair annihilation. The audience gained a clearer understanding of the process from 3D printed models that Jacob passed around, showing the screw and edge dislocations at various states of graphitisation. The extraordinary finding from these studies was that at 3,000°C the graphitisation process only takes a matter of seconds to complete, suggestion the potential form large energy savings in production cost. The next challenge is to reduce the temperature needed, possibly through catalysis. The presentation concluded with questions concerning recycling, embodied energy, and future battery types, notably sodium-ion phosphate cells. For those who were prepared to risk motion sickness, Jacob offered Virtual Reality tours of intercalated graphite with headset and joystick. In keeping with the rest of his presentation, this was most impressive!

SEPTEMBER 2023 | 15

MATERIALS AUSTRALIA

An Update from the New South Wales Branch Source: Alan Todhunter - NSW President Materials Australia New South Wales Branch recently held its annual Committee elections. As a result, we have a few changes in the team. The Committee would like to thank its outgoing President Rachel White and committee members Yi-Sheng (Eason) Chen and Sophie Primig. We are also pleased to announce our new Committee: • President: Alan Todhunter – CMatP • Vice-President / Secretary: Huijun Li – CMatP • Treasurer: Hong Lu – CMatP • NSW CMatP Coordinator: Alan Hellier – CMatP • • • • • •

Councillors: Nima Haghdadi – CMatP Blake Regan – CMatP Ehsan Farabi - CMatP Klaus-Dieter Liss – CMatP Ranming Niu – CMatP

On behalf of the entire Committee, Alan Todhunter would like to welcome all of the returning committee members, as well as our new additions: Ehsan Farabi, Klaus-Dieter Liss and Ranming Niu.

CMatP Mini Conference

Future New South Wales Events

The Materials Australia New South Wales Branch recently hosted the CMatP Mini Conference. The event was highly successful, with presentations given by:

With the change in Committee members, there has been a delay in hosting events in 2023. This includes the previously scheduled metallurgy course; this has now been rescheduled to 2024.

• Rod Mackay Sim (Director, Hillside Engineering) on Creative Design Blossoms when Seeded by Materials Science/Engineering • Associate Professor Alexey Glushenkov (Battery Storage and Grid Integration Program and Research School of Chemistry, ANU) on Post Lithium Ion Batteries: Sustainable Alternatives • Dr Andrew Gregory (Registered Attorney and Partner, FB Rice) on Materials and IP • Dr Hong Lu (Quality Compliance Officer, National Ceramic Industries Australia) on Assessments of Materials for Ceramic Floor Tiles) • Dr Zhijun Qiu (Industrial Instrument Scientist, ANSTO) on Stabilised Mechanical Properties in Ni-based Hastelloy C276 Alloy by Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing through Interlayer Control

However, we are pleased to confirm that the annual student presentation will be held in late November. The event will held in the new Western Sydney University Engineering building in Parramatta. The student presentation will include undergraduate students doing presentations and a poster session. The student presentations will also be made available online via Zoom to allow members and students outside of Sydney to view the presentations. The New South Wales Committee is currently organising several site visit tours and technical talks for 2024. The technical talks will be either hybrid or online sessions on a range of materials related topics. Details will be released in the forthcoming New South Wales branch newsletter.

Vale Ron Cecil The Western Australia Branch of Materials Australia notes with respect the passing of Ron Cecil, the last of our founding members. Ron passed away on 27 June 2023, in his 100th year. Ron joined what was later to become Materials Australia at its inaugural meeting in Perth in 1943. He went on to serve as Branch President, Branch Secretary, Conference Secretary and National Councillor. In 1982, Ron was awarded our national Meritorious Service Award. He remained an active member throughout his life, regularly attending our annual Ron Cecil Lecture up until last year. Ron gained Diplomas in Applied Science (Chemistry) and Metallurgy while working at the Kalgoorlie Foundry, and went on to have a distinguished professional career, mainly in the fields of casting and heat treatment. As well as Hoskins, Ron worked for Chamberlain Industries, Pope Engineering and Vaughan Castings, where Ron was deeply involved with casting keels for the Americas Cup Yachts. Ron developed strong interests in optical emission spectrometry, mechanical testing, and non-destructive testing. However, for many people, it is his immense knowledge and understanding of steelmaking practices that would first come to mind when Ron’s name is mentioned. Ron was one of the best teachers and mentors that a young metallurgist could ask for. His help, guidance, wisdom and unselfishness inspired and helped many to achieve their potential, and their dreams.

16 | SEPTEMBER 2023

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MATERIALS AUSTRALIA

SEAM Profile: Anthony Roccisano industry partner LaserBond Ltd on a range of projects in composing the Coating and Repair of Additive Manufactured Components. Within LaserBond Ltd, Anthony engages in a diverse range of projects that encompass materials development, process enhancements, and failure analysis. LaserBond Ltd is renowned for its expertise in surface engineering, aimed at enhancing the performance and durability of critical components through the application of the right material with the right process. Working on this project has provided Anthony with invaluable exposure to cutting-edge technologies and processes, highlighting the world-class production capabilities at LaserBond Ltd. This work has been made possible through the support of the Future Industries Institute at UniSA, which boasts top-tier facilities, including advanced fabrication equipment and an extensive tribology lab. Additionally, UniSA hosts ANFF and Microscopy Australia, granting access to state-of-the-art analysis equipment. In addition to his project work, Anthony plays a crucial role in the SEAM ecosystem. He co-supervises three doctoral candidates, each contributing to distinct SEAM projects. Furthermore, he actively participates in the day-to-day operations of projects, conducting hands-on testing and analysis of results. Anthony recognizes the significant advantages of being part of an ARC training centre like SEAM. Such centres equip early career researchers with the essential skills required to thrive in both academic and industrial environments. The wide spectrum of projects that SEAM researchers engage in fosters innovation and the ability to work seamlessly within multidisciplinary teams. This prepares graduates to become leaders in academia and industry alike, offering immense benefits to the industrial landscape. Indeed, Anthony understands that innovation is intricately linked to a company's ability to attract and retain innovative people. Through their investment in researchers, partner companies like LaserBond Ltd are facilitating future innovations.

Anthony Roccisano is a Postdoctoral Fellow with the Australian Research Council (ARC) Industrial Transformation Training Centre in the Surface Engineering for Advanced Materials (SEAM) with the University of South Australia (UniSA). Anthony earned his PhD from the University of Adelaide in 2020, specializing in mechanical engineering with a strong focus on materials science and manufacturing. Shortly after completing his doctoral studies, Anthony embarked on a new journey, joining UniSA and SEAM in early 2021 as a postdoctoral researcher. In this role, he collaborates with

18 | SEPTEMBER 2023

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In his capacity as a postdoctoral researcher, Anthony maintains close collaboration with academic and technical staff. He oversees the progress of doctoral candidates and manages research equipment and facilities. Beyond his research role, Anthony also holds the position of Vice President at the South Australian branch of the Australasian Corrosion Association. In this capacity, he actively bridges the gap between industry challenges and academic solutions, contributing to the growth and development of both sectors.

For more information about SEAM, please visit www.arcseam.com.au/ or email seam@swinburne.edu.au

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Founded in 2019 as a partnership between three universities, SEAM’s mission is to help solve critical surface engineering problems faced by industry, while training up talented industry-ready graduates for our future.

Over the past 4 years, SEAM has supported D&T to develop a high-quality laser cladding process. This has enabled them to refurbish a wider range of heavy-industry parts, in a range of materials – each one optimised for different end-use applications, with performance often exceeding OEM spec.

LaserBond partnered with SEAM to develop advanced process sensing enabling on-line defect detection. Unlocking a deeper understanding of product and process enabled better control, improving product quality, while adding capabilities that open the door to new products and services.

Rosebank brought a need for a high-speed thinfilm surface engineering capability to SEAM. These developments in additive manufacturing will increase production efficiency and decrease costs, as well as provide lab-measured confidence in the performance of these new coatings.

See More: https://arcseam.com.au

MATERIALS AUSTRALIA

CMatP Profile: Mark Easton industry. This fits very well with RMIT's culture of producing work ready graduates and translational research. He is also the Diversity and Inclusion advocate for Engineering. He realises that his is very fortunate to be given the opportunities that he has had in his career and life and thinks it is important for others to have similar opportunities. One of the attractive attributes of RMIT is its focus on these issues.

Where do you work? Describe your job.

Professor Mark Easton is passionate about seeing research and teaching being used in the real world. He has worked in research and management roles across academia and industry for over 25 years. Professor Easton has recently moved into a new role at RMIT University: Associate Deputy Vice Chancellor for Research Infrastructure. Prior to this, he was the Director of the Advanced Manufacturing Precinct at RMIT which brings together three facilities: the Micro Nano Research Facility, the Microscopy and Microanalysis Facility and the Digital Manufacturing Facility. The precinct is able to fabricate, manufacture and characterise materials, devices and components from the nano-scale to the metre scale. Prior to this he was the Associate Dean for Manufacturing, Materials and Mechatronics within the School of Engineering. Professor Easton is very interested in the intersection between industry and universities. Most of his career has been spent at either side of the intersection, working with industry focused research centres, industry which partners with universities or within universities that partner with 20 | SEPTEMBER 2023

I work at RMIT University and I have just started a new role as the Associate Deputy Vice Chancellor for Research Infrastructure in the last couple of months. Before that, I was the Director of the Advanced Manufacturing Precinct which incorporates the three key manufacturing facilities (Digital Manufacturing Facility, Microscopy and Microanalysis Facility and the Micro Nano Research Facility) and before that the Associate Dean (Manufacturing, Materials and Mechatronics).

What inspired you to choose a career in materials science and engineering? Like many Australian kids, I loved sport growing up. When I started tennis, I had a wooden racquet that was replaced by a wood composite racquet and finally a carbon fibre racquet similar to what is used today. It fascinated me how the technology changed over those few years and improved based on the material being used. At school I was always interested and good at maths and science. When I decided that I wanted to study a science degree, my maths teacher suggested that I look at engineering. In the end, I opted for a double degree— materials science and engineering fitted well with that. My final year project was focused on polymers, but I really enjoyed the metallurgical processing elective that I did at (what was then) the BHP labs. This piqued my interest in metals.

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Who or what has influenced you most professionally? My greatest influence professionally was the CAST co-operative research centre. I moved to Queensland to do a PhD with David StJohn, who was a wonderful boss, mentor and collaborator ever since. My first ‘real’ job was with Comalco Research and Technical Services with Mal Couper, who was involved as an industry partner in CAST. I then worked at Monash with CAST, and was seconded to the Leichtmetallkompetenzentrum, Ranshofen (LKR) in Austria which was a part of the Global Light Metals Alliance (GLMA), of which CAST was a founding member. I was a postgraduate coordinator, program manager and was the final CEO of CAST. CAST helped me develop my international network, developed my ability to work with industry and follow research to application, and gave me the opportunity to learn about IP, project management and strategic planning. There were a lot of wonderful mentors, such as CEOs Gordon Dunlop and George Collins who are sadly no longer with us, and many collaborators who became professional friends.

What has been the most challenging job or project you've worked on to date and why? Apart from closing CAST, my most challenging job was leading the manufacturing, materials and mechatronics discipline at RMIT where there was the intersection of people management, teaching, research but required a strategic approach. During that time the student numbers almost doubled and the research income increased by an order of magnitude. Technically, the best projects I have been a part of were the alloy design projects with Comalco and Magontec during the CAST years. I did not see myself as an alloy design person at the time but realised my understanding of materials processing (along with Trevor Abbott) complimented the expertise in precipitation hardening and solidstate phase transformations of people like Jian-Feng Nie, Mark Gibson, and WWW.MATERIALSAUSTRALIA.COM.AU

MATERIALS AUSTRALIA

Colleen Bettles. It was challenging but also a lot of fun and really developed my love of team-based research work.

What does being a CMatP mean to you? Being a CMatP is about being part of a community of materials professionals. It is the community where people most closely understand what I do and can testify to its importance. I remember going to the Gifkins lectures when I was an undergraduate at Monash University, so Materials Australia has been a big part of my career. One of the greatest honours of my career was giving the Gifkins lecture myself in 2017.

What gives you the most satisfaction at work? I have always enjoyed working on

research and development projects where there are industry partners and a diverse group of researchers with different skill sets. I also enjoy seeing early career researchers growing and developing their careers. This gives me optimism about future. I am also optimistic that we will be able to address some of our biggest challenges as a society, whether it be climate change or inequality and injustice, and engineering does play a role in some of that.

What have been your greatest professional and personal achievements? My greatest academic achievement was to have a paper accepted by Nature a few years ago. I always have seen myself as more of an applied researcher

so that is an achievement that I never expected. However, I do think that the great relationships that I have been able to develop have been my greatest achievement.

What are the top three things on your “bucket list”? As for a bucket list, I have to say that I have not really spent much time thinking about it. I am very much enjoying seeing my family grow at the moment. I would like to do more hiking before my knees really give way, and seeing a day of tennis at Wimbledon would be great. I would also love to see North Melbourne win another premiership, but that does not look like happening any time soon.

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SEPTEMBER 2023 | 21

MATERIALS AUSTRALIA

Our Certified Materials Professionals (CMatPs) The following members of Materials Australia have been certified by the Certification Panel of Materials Australia as Certified Materials Professionals.

A/Prof Alexey Glushenkov ACT Dr Syed Islam ACT Prof Yun Liu ACT Dr Karthika Prasad ACT Dr Takuya Tsuzuki ACT Dr Olga Zinovieva ACT Prof Klaus-Dieter Liss CHINA Mr Debdutta Mallik MALAYSIA Prof Valerie Linton NEW ZEALAND Prof. Jamie Quinton NEW ZEALAND Dr Rumana Akhter NSW Ms Maree Anast NSW Ms Megan Blamires NSW Dr Phillip Carter NSW A/Prof Igor Chaves NSW Dr Yi-Sheng (Eason) Chen NSW Dr Zhenxiang Cheng NSW Dr Evan Copland NSW Mr Peter Crick NSW Prof Madeleine Du Toit NSW Dr Azdiar Gazder NSW Prof Michael Ferry NSW Dr Yixiang Gan NSW Mr Michele Gimona NSW Dr Bernd Gludovatz NSW Dr Andrew Gregory NSW Mr Buluc Guner NSW Dr Ali Hadigheh NSW Dr Nima Haghdadi NSW Dr Alan Hellier NSW Prof Mark Hoffman NSW Mr Simon Krismer NSW Prof Jamie Kruzic NSW Prof Huijun Li NSW Dr Yanan Li NSW Dr Hong Lu NSW Mr Rodney Mackay-Sim NSW Dr Matthew Mansell NSW Dr Warren McKenzie NSW Mr Edgar Mendez NSW Mr Arya Mirsepasi NSW Mr Sam Moricca NSW Dr Ranming Niu NSW Dr Anna Paradowska NSW

Prof Elena Pereloma NSW A/Prof Sophie Primig NSW Dr Gwenaelle Proust NSW Miss Zhijun Qiu NSW Mr Waldemar Radomski NSW Dr Blake Regan NSW Mr Ehsan Rahafrouz NSW Dr Mark Reid NSW Prof Simon Ringer NSW Dr Richard Roest NSW Mr Sameer Sameen NSW Dr Luming Shen NSW Mr Sasanka Sinha NSW Mr Frank Soto NSW Mr Michael Stefulj NSW Mr Carl Strautins NSW Mr Alan Todhunter NSW Ms Judy Turnbull NSW Mr Jeremy Unsworth NSW Dr Philip Walls NSW Dr Alan Whittle NSW Dr Richard Wuhrer NSW Mr Deniz Yalniz NSW Mr Michael Chan QLD Prof Richard Clegg QLD Mr Andrew Dark QLD Dr Ian Dover QLD Mr Oscar Duyvestyn QLD Mr John Edgley QLD Dr Jayantha Epaarachchi QLD Dr Jeff Gates QLD Mr Payam Ghafoori QLD Mr Mo Golbahar QLD Dr David Harrison QLD Dr Damon Kent QLD Miss Mozhgan Kermajani QLD Mr Jaewon Lee QLD Mr Jeezreel Malacad QLD Dr Jason Nairn QLD Mr Sadiq Nawaz QLD Dr Saeed Nemati QLD Mr Bhavin Panchal QLD Mr Bob Samuels QLD Dr Mathias Aakyiir SA Mr Ashley Bell SA Ms Ingrid Brundin SA Mr Neville Cornish SA A/Prof Colin Hall SA Mr Nikolas Hildebrand SA Mr Mikael Johansson SA Mr Rahim Kurji SA Mr Andrew Sales SA Dr Thomas Schläfer SA Dr Christiane Schulz SA Prof Nikki Stanford SA Prof Youhong Tang SA Mr Kok Toong Leong SINGAPORE Mr Madhusudhanan Jambunathan UK Mr Devadoss Suresh Kumar UAE Dr Shahabuddin Ahmmad VIC Dr Ossama Badr VIC Dr Qi Chao VIC Dr Ivan Cole VIC Dr John Cookson VIC Miss Ana Celine Del Rosario VIC Dr Yvonne Durandet VIC Dr Mark Easton VIC Dr Rajiv Edavan VIC

22 | SEPTEMBER 2023

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They can now use the post nominal ‘CMatP‘ after their name. These individuals have demonstrated the required level of qualification and experience to obtain this status. They are also required to regularly maintain their professional standing through ongoing education and commitment to the materials community. We now have nearly 200 Certified Materials Professionals, who are being called upon to lead activities within Materials Australia. These activities include heading special interest group networks, representation on Standards Australia Committees, and representing Materials Australia at international conferences and society meetings.

Dr Peter Ford Mr Bruce Ham Ms Edith Hamilton Dr Shu Huang Mr Long Huynh Dr Jithin Joseph Mr. Akesh Babu Kakarla Mr Russell Kennedy Mr Daniel Lim Dr Amita Iyer Mr Robert Le Hunt Dr Michael Lo Dr Thomas Ludwig Dr Roger Lumley Mr Michael Mansfield Dr Gary Martin Dr Siao Ming (Andrew) Ang Mr Glen Morrissey Dr Eustathios Petinakis Dr Leon Prentice Dr Dong Qiu Mr John Rea Miss Reyhaneh Sahraeian Dr Christine Scala Mr Khan Sharp Dr Vadim Shterner Dr Antonella Sola Mr Mark Stephens Dr Graham Sussex Dr Kishore Venkatesan Mr Pranay Wadyalkar Dr Wei Xu Dr Ramdayal Yadav Dr Sam Yang Dr Matthew Young Mr Angelo Zaccari Mr Mohsen Sabbagh Alvani Dr Murusemy Annasamy Mr Graeme Brown Mr Graham Carlisle Mr John Carroll Mr Sridharan Chandran Mr Conrad Classen Mr Chris Cobain Mr Adam Dunning Mr Jeff Dunning Dr Olubayode Ero-Phillips Mr Stuart Folkard Mr Toby Garrod Prof Vladimir Golovanevskiy Mr Chris Grant Mr Paul Howard Dr Paul Huggett Mr Ivo Kalcic Mr Srikanth Kambhampati Mr Ehsan Karaji Mr Biju Kurian Pottayil Mr Mathieu Lancien Mr Michael Lison-Pick Dr Evelyn Ng Mr Deny Nugraha Mrs Mary Louise Petrick Mr Johann Petrick Mr Stephen Rennie Dr Mobin Salasi Mr Daniel Swanepoel Mr James Travers

VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC VIC WA WA WA WA WA WA WA WA WA WA WA WA WA WA WA WA WA WA WA WA WA WA WA WA WA WA WA WA WA WA WA

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Why You Should Become a Certified Materials Professional Source: Materials Australia Accreditation as a Certified Materials Professional (CMatP) gives you recognition, not only amongst your peers, but within the materials engineering industry at large. You will be recognised as a materials scientist who maintains professional integrity, keeps up to date with developments in technology, and strives for continued personal development. The CMatP, like a Certified Practicing Accountant or CPA, is promoted globally as the recognised standard for professionals working in the field of materials science. There are now well over one hundred CMatPs who lead activities within Materials Australia. These activities include heading special interest group networks, representation on Standards Australia Committees, and representing Materials Australia at international conferences and society meetings.

Benefits of Becoming a CMatP • A Certificate of Membership, often presented by the State Chapter, together with a unique Materials Australia badge. • Access to exclusive CMatP resources and website content. • The opportunity to attend CMatP only

networking meetings. • Promotion through Materials Australia magazine, website, social media and other public channels. • A Certified Materials Professional can use the post nominal CMatP. • Materials Australia will actively promote the CMatP status to the community and employers and internationally, through our partner organisations. • A CMatP may be requested to represent Materials Australia throughout Australia and overseas, with Government, media and other important activities.

standards. They are recognised as demonstrating excellence, and possessing special knowledge in the practice of materials science and engineering, through their profession or workplace. A CMatP is prepared to share their knowledge and skills in the interest of others, and promote excellence and innovation in all their professional endeavours.

The Criteria

• Networking directly with other CMatPs who have recognised levels of qualifications and experience.

The criteria for recognition as a CMatP are structured around the applicant demonstrating substantial and sustained practice in a field of materials science and engineering. The criteria are measured by qualifications, years of employment and relevant experience, as evidenced by the applicant’s CV or submitted documentation.

• The opportunity to assume leadership roles in Special Interest Networks, to assist in the facilitation of new knowledge amongst peers and members.

Certification will be retained as long as there is evidence of continuing professional development and adherence to the Code of Ethics and Professional behaviour.

What is a Certified Materials Professional?

Further Information

• A CMatP may be offered an opportunity as a mentor for student members.

A Certified Materials Professional is a person to whom Materials Australia has issued a certificate declaring they have attained all required professional

Contact Materials Australia today: on +61 3 9326 7266 or

imea@materialsaustralia.com.au or visit our website:

www.materialsaustralia.com.au

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SEPTEMBER 2023 | 23

INDUSTRY NEWS

‘Topological Gardening’ to Achieve Unexpected Spin Transport Source: Sally Wood

‘Trimming’ the edge-states of a topological insulator yields a new class of material featuring unconventional ‘two way’ edge transport in a new theoretical study from Monash University, Australia. The new material, a topological crystalline insulator (TCI) forms a promising addition to the family of topological materials and significantly broadens the scope of materials with topologically nontrivial properties. Its distinctive reliance on symmetry also paves the way for novel techniques to manipulate edge transport, offering potential applications in future transistor devices. For example, ‘switching’ the TCI via an electric field that breaks the symmetry supporting the nontrivial band topology, thus

suppressing the edge current. This ground-breaking discovery significantly advances our fundamental understanding of how spin currents travel in topological materials, providing valuable insights into the behaviour of these intriguing systems. Challenging the Common Definition of Topological Insulators The elegant definition of topological insulators according to the vision of FLEET is: “Topological insulators conduct electricity only along their edges, and strictly in one direction. This one-way path conducts electricity without loss of energy due to resistance.” However, this new theoretical study, conducted by the computational group at Monash University, challenges that standard topologicalphysics view by uncovering a new type of edge transport, which prompts reconsideration of the phrase ‘strictly in one direction’. Modifying this phrase is not a simple task. The topological material is akin to a large tree rooted in the solid soil of ‘bulk–edge correspondence’, meaning that the intrinsic properties of the bulk will dictate the nature of the edge current.

Lead author Dr Yuefeng Yin, a research fellow at Monash University.

Just as a tree requires pruning to maintain its shape and health, the edge states of a topological material also need to be tailored to adapt towards various applications in electronics and spintronics. The research team successfully achieved the objective of extracting a new type of edge spin current in a 2D topological material, planar bismuthine, by proposing a novel method to manipulate edge states through bulk-edge interactions, similar to the pruning work done in gardening routines.

FLEET Chief Investigator Prof Nikhil Medhekar (Monash).

24 | SEPTEMBER 2023

This groundbreaking discovery will significantly advance our fundamental understanding of how spin currents travel in topological BACK TO CONTENTS

materials, providing valuable insights into the behaviour of these intriguing systems. Unconventional Spin Texture Hidden in the Symmetry-Protected Topology The unconventional spin texture found in TCI planar bismuthene (Image by Dr Yuefeng Yin) The newly discovered material, named a topological crystalline insulator (TCI), stands as a promising addition to the family of topological materials, operating on the principle that conducting edge currents remain resilient as long as specific crystalline symmetries exist within the bulk. The discovery of TCI significantly broadens the scope of materials with topologically nontrivial properties. Its distinctive reliance on symmetry also paves the way for novel techniques to manipulate edge transport, offering potential applications in transistor devices. For instance, by subjecting TCI to a strong electric field, the edge current can be suppressed when the symmetry supporting the nontrivial band topology is broken. Once the field is removed, the conducting edge currents promptly return, showcasing TCI’s advantageous on-demand switch property, ideal for integration into transistor devices. Beyond offering an alternative form of topological protection, the exciting potential of TCI goes further. The research team has uncovered an unconventional type of spin transport hidden within the edge of two-dimensional TCI bismuthene, a phenomenon previously overlooked in prior reports. “While the common belief is that TCI exhibits the same edge transport mode observed in topological insulators, where each stream of spin current (spin-up or spin-down) strictly travels in one direction, our findings reveal that TCI planar bismuthene hosts a new type of spin transport protected by mirror symmetry,” WWW.MATERIALSAUSTRALIA.COM.AU

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said lead author Dr Yuefeng Yin, a research fellow at Monash. “In this mode, the spin current is no longer confined to fixed directions along the edge.” This new-found spin transport mode unlocks innovative design concepts for topological devices, enabling support for “both pure charge current without net spin transport, and pure spin currents without net charge transport”—a possibility not comprehensible in conventional understanding of topological materials.

The unconventional spin texture found in TCI planar bismuthene (Image by Dr Yuefeng Yin).

“This discovery opens up a new path toward achieving FLEET’s goal of creating low-energy-consuming electronic devices,” said co-author Professor Nikhil Medhekar, also affiliated with Monash. “While identical spin-polarised streams travelling in opposing directions may not seem immediately useful, they offer new opportunities for spin manipulation that are otherwise inaccessible in other topological materials.” The research team anticipates that this computational breakthrough will inspire further follow-up studies, both experimental and theoretical, to fully harness the potential of this novel edge transport in electronic and spintronic applications.

The unconventional spin texture found in TCI planar bismuthene (Image by Dr Yuefeng Yin).

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SEPTEMBER 2023 | 25

INDUSTRY NEWS

RUX Energy is Accelerating Australia’s Hydrogen-Powered Future Source: ATA Scientific Pty Ltd Rux Energy CEO and Founder Dr Jehan Kanga is leading the change in implementing hydrogen technologies for hydrogen storage, collaborating with industry experts from around the world to align Australia to global decarbonisation plans, participating in the strategic discussion and to develop appropriate Australian and ISO standards for industry. As Dr Kanga explained “ensuring zero emission hydrogen safety in every jurisdiction across the world is critical to increasing the velocity of the energy transition, as it forms the foundation of hydrogen’s social licence to operate”.

While there is significant interest in electric vehicles and batteries to decarbonise road transport in Australia, the benefits offered by hydrogen-powered vehicles are less well known. They are quicker to refuel, have a greater range between refuelling stops and can maximise their payload because they don’t need to carry large, heavy batteries required by electric vehicles. Other no-regrets applications of hydrogen include industrial heat, marine, aviation and energy export.

“We are equally passionate about a successful and just transition to sustainable energy, and our company is founded on the values of inclusivity, diversity, and collaboration. We're not just pioneering a technology; we're redefining the very fabric of energy distribution” said Nicolle Lane, Rux Ecosystems & Communications Manager.

Rux Energy is uniquely placed within the key hydrogen first adopter market in New South Wales Australia, with a supportive advanced manufacturing, research, and government support ecosystem. The company is working in close collaboration with major industry and research organisations across Australia. Dr Kanga shared “We're grateful for the support of the University of Sydney, in particular the School of Chemistry and Professor Cameron J Kepert, for championing our work and taking a leap of faith with us. We’d also like to acknowledge our early funders - IMCRC Activate, AusIndustry, and NSW Government Department of Climate & Energy Action”.

Micromeritics is Key for Hydrogen Adsorption Capacity

Australia’s national science agency, CSIRO and GHD Advisory recently released a new report calling for Australia to urgently decarbonise our transport sector which currently accounts for 18.6% of our greenhouse gas emissions. The report urged building more hydrogenpowered transport capability – alongside electric vehicles – or risk being left behind our international counterparts. CSIRO’s chief scientist, Prof Bronwyn Fox, said “While we know hydrogen will play a critical role, we also know that much of the key infrastructure for storing, moving and distributing hydrogen for use as a transport fuel – including pipelines, storage tanks and refuelling stations - is yet to be built”. The report highlighted the importance of growing industry partnerships and for targeted research and innovation, from hydrogen production through to storage, to help overcome the slow adoption velocity and solve some of the key challenges of costs and inefficiencies with decarbonising the heavy transport sector.

What’s important to Rux Energy? Rux Energy is an advanced materials company delivering breakthrough improvements in hydrogen storage and distribution, focused on decarbonising the hardest to abate sectors of heavy industry, freight, marine, trucking and aerospace with our highly hydrogen selective MOFs (Metal Organic Frameworks). Rux aims is to be directly responsible for 50 million tonnes of CO2 abatement, each year, every year, by 2030. 26 | SEPTEMBER 2023

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Rux Energy senior scientist Dr David Dharma recalls his first encounter with the Micromeritics line of gas sorption analyser was back in 2021, through a 3Flex instrument. Owned and run by the Kepert and D'Alessandro research groups at the University of Sydney, School of Chemistry, this instrument has been a workhorse of both groups for over 7 years. The requirement for a rapid tenfold increase in sample run size, following commercialisation, lead to the need for a higher resolution, high throughput surface area and porosity analyser. The Micromeritics ASAP system provides the ability to conduct quick high throughput gas sorption analysis, with the capacity to degas 12 samples and run 6 samples at once on the one instrument which is incredibly appealing. WWW.MATERIALSAUSTRALIA.COM.AU

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About Rux Energy Rux Energy, together with their partners, has worked to develop and optimise novel materials. These advanced (patented) nanoporous metal-organic-framework (MOF) materials enable high-efficiency hydrogen physisorption, significantly increasing the gravimetric (mass) and volumetric (space) density of hydrogen storage systems, reducing supply-chain-wide energy losses, while improving safety and reducing cost. The MOFs are interoperable with existing gas infrastructure and safety standards, accelerating industry transformation to a lower cost hydrogen economy.

About ATA Scientific “Our productivity increased from 3 samples run on the 3Flex once every couple of months - as the instrument at the University of Sydney was shared between multiple users - to 12 samples per day, 60 samples per week. This allowed us to conduct a wider and more thorough investigation on the factors that have a significant impact on gas adsorption, as well as widen the scope of materials under investigation”, said Dr Dharma.

At Rux Energy, a series of MOF materials with the potential for economic hydrogen storage have been identified and synthesised. The Micromeritics ASAP is being used to aid in the identification of the parameters that have a significant impact on both the gravimetric and volumetric hydrogen uptake of each material of interest. Once identified, these parameters are then optimised for maximum hydrogen uptake. Dr Dharma stated, “The most enjoyable aspect of our work is the sense that we are progressing a project that could have a massive impact on the environment. Making hydrogen a viable energy source is undoubtedly a key step in securing the sustainability of our planet. Given how fast the ASAP churns through samples, supplying the instrument with a continuous flow of samples to run has become a major challenge! “.

Rux Energy, together with their partners, has worked to develop and optimise novel materials. These advanced (patented) nanoporous metal-organicframework (MOF) materials enable high-efficiency hydrogen physisorption, significantly increasing the gravimetric (mass) and volumetric (space) density of hydrogen storage systems, reducing supply-chain-wide energy losses, while improving safety and reducing cost. The MOFs are interoperable with existing gas infrastructure and safety standards, accelerating industry transformation to a lower cost hydrogen economy. Reference: www.csiro.au/en/about/challenges-missions/Hydrogen/Hydrogen-Vehicle-Refuelling-Infrastructure

WWW.MATERIALSAUSTRALIA.COM.AU

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ATA Scientific, a leading supplier of advanced scientific instruments and analytical services, is the exclusive distributor for Micromeritics products in Australia and New Zealand. We offer expertise in various industries to characterise particles, powders and porous materials with a focus on physical properties, chemical activity, and flow properties. Our range of advanced technologies for particle characterisation together with Micromeritics’s long-established laboratory analysis equipment enable us to support our customers with even the most demanding applications. If you would like to learn more about the Micromeritics range of Surface Area and Porosity analysers, please contact us.

ATA Scientific Pty Ltd +61 2 9541 3500 enquiries@atascientific.com.au www.atascientific.com.au

SEPTEMBER 2023 | 27

INDUSTRY NEWS

New Research Facility to Help Bring Sustainable Materials to Market Source: Sally Wood Taking materials research from ‘lab to label’ will be the focus of Deakin University’s new Future Fibres Facility, which was unveiled today during the launch of the ARC Research Hub for Future Fibres.

The hub is a collaboration between the Australian Research Council (ARC), Deakin and industry partners, using the world-class research teams and facilities at Deakin’s Institute for Frontier Materials. Deakin Vice-Chancellor Professor Iain Martin said the continued support for the Future Fibres Hub, which is now in its second iteration, demonstrates the value industry places in research collaboration and Deakin’s commitment to fostering innovation. “Work supported by our research hub and new fibres facility will bring benefits to a range of industries – such as automotive, mining and fashion – through a wide array of partnership projects,” Professor Martin said. “These projects also have a strong sustainability and circular economy focus, including the generation of fibres from new and sustainable sources, as well as fibres that can be recovered and reused. By creating smarter materials and technology, this work will contribute to Deakin’s mission to translate ideas to impact, fostering innovation that strengthens the economy and enables a sustainable world.”

Deakin boasts the largest and most advanced fibre research group in the southern hemisphere, with more than 110 researchers. The new Future Fibres Facility is unique, housing fibre production and yarn processing equipment, along with specialised knitting and weaving machines. Future Fibres Hub Director Professor Joe Razal said the facility, located at Deakin’s Waurn Ponds campus in Geelong, would enable research teams to take new ideas from inception through the prototype and production stage. “For example, in the past, we could produce a sample of a new material, but not a whole garment. We couldn’t go from lab to label before,” Professor Razal said. “Thanks to our new Future Fibres Facility, the final steps in that process are now available.” Working with industry partner Nanollose, Deakin researchers are helping to develop fabrics generated from waste products. With partner Xefco, they are working on a water-free method to dye and finish fabrics. “Australians will be able to wear clothes and buy products made from materials that they know have far less environmental impact,” Professor Razal said. In a project with Carbon Revolution, Deakin researchers will help find ways to reduce waste in the manufacturing of carbon fibre composite wheels, a product in high demand for making vehicles lighter and more efficient. “The research focuses on solving real-world problems and discovering ways to reduce waste from the manufacturing process,” Professor Razal said. “This not only benefits the local community with highly skilled jobs but also enhances our international reputation for innovation in Australia.” The new Future Fibres Facility is supported by the Australian National Fabrication Facility (ANFF), a part of the National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy (NCRIS). The ARC Research Hub for Future Fibres includes research partners at the CSIRO, National University of Singapore, EMPA (Swiss Federal Labs for Materials Science and Technology), Aalto University (Finland) and Imperial College London.

About the Institute for Frontier Materials The Institute for Frontier Materials (IFM) links worldclass materials science research with industry to address challenges in the energy, mining, defence, health, transport, textiles and manufacturing sectors.

ARC Research Hub for Future Fibres manager Matt Boyd and Director Professor Joselito (Joe) Razal. PHOTO: Cameron Murray.

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IFM is a trusted partner for 130 innovative organisations across the globe who want to access the best and brightest minds in material science and the institute’s suite of pilotscale research facilities. At its core IFM aims to redesign materials for a circular economy and impart materials with extraordinary functionality. WWW.MATERIALSAUSTRALIA.COM.AU

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Ultrathin Nanotech Promises to Help Tackle Antibiotic Resistance Source: Sally Wood Researchers have invented a nanothin superbug-slaying material that could one day be integrated into wound dressings and implants to prevent or heal bacterial infections.

The innovation – which has undergone advanced pre-clinical trials – is effective against a broad range of drug-resistant bacterial cells, including ‘golden staph’, which are commonly referred to as superbugs. Antibiotic resistance is a major global health threat, causing about 700,000 deaths annually, a figure which could rise to 10 million deaths a year by 2050 without the development of new antibacterial therapies. The new study led by RMIT University and the University of South Australia (UniSA) tested black phosphorusbased nanotechnology as an advanced infection treatment and wound healing therapeutic. Results published in Advanced Therapeutics show it effectively treated infections, killing over 99% of bacteria, without damaging other cells in biological models. The treatment achieved comparable results to an antibiotic in eliminating infection and accelerated healing, with

wounds closing by 80% over seven days. The superbug-killing nanotechnology developed by RMIT was rigorously tested in pre-clinical trials by woundhealing experts at UniSA. RMIT has sought patent protection for the black phosphorus flakes including its use in wound healing formulations, such as gels. RMIT co-lead researcher, Professor Sumeet Walia, said the study showed how their innovation provided rapid antimicrobial action, then self-decomposed after the threat of infection had been eliminated. “The beauty of our innovation is that it is not simply a coating – it can actually be integrated into common materials that devices are made of, as well as plastic and gels, to make them antimicrobial,” said Walia from the School of Engineering.

How the Invention Works Black phosphorus is the most stable form of phosphorus - a mineral that is naturally present in many foods - and, in an ultra-thin form, degrades easily with oxygen, making it ideal for killing microbes.

The team’s black phosphorus treatment can be integrated into gels to make wound dressings. Credit: Seamus Daniel, RMIT University.

“As the nanomaterial breaks down, its surface reacts with the atmosphere to produce what are called reactive oxygen species. These species ultimately help by ripping bacterial cells apart,” Walia said. The new study tested the effectiveness of nano-thin flakes of black phosphorus against five common bacteria strains, including E. coli and drug-resistant golden staph. “Our antimicrobial nanotechnology rapidly destroyed more than 99% of bacterial cells – significantly more than common treatments used to treat infections today.”

The Global War on Superbugs Co-lead researcher Dr Aaron Elbourne from RMIT said healthcare professionals around the world were in desperate need of new treatments to overcome the problem of antibiotic resistance. “Superbugs – the pathogens that are resistant to antibiotics – are responsible for massive health burdens and as drug resistance grows, our ability to treat these infections becomes increasingly challenging,” said Elbourne, a Senior Research Fellow in the School of Science.

L to R: Dr Saffron Bryant, Dr Aaron Elbourne, Professor Sumeet Walia and PhD scholar Zo Shaw in a lab at RMIT University. Credit: Seamus Daniel, RMIT University.

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“If we can make our invention a commercial reality in the clinical setting, these superbugs globally wouldn’t know what hit them.” WWW.MATERIALSAUSTRALIA.COM.AU

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Taking 3D Printing Quality to the Next Level Using Projection Micro Stereolithography By Dr. Cameron Chai There has been a rapid proliferation of 3D printers in recent times driven by the ability to rapid prototype and produce small batches of parts quickly and economically. These parts are typically produced using Fused Deposition Modelling (FDM) or Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF) processes on relatively inexpensive machines that use polymer filaments extruded through a nozzle with diameter of the order of 0.4mm. As a result, the surface finish can be a bit rough and each deposited layer visible. For those looking to go beyond the limits of FDM, possible alternatives are micro injection moulding, micro CNC or projection micro stereolithography. Micro Injection moulding tooling can be very expensive especially for small runs.

Complex geometries e.g. internal cannels can be beyond the realms of both micro injection moulding and micro CNC. Projection micro stereolithography on the other hand overcomes these problems and adds the advantages and flexibility of 3D printing processes. It is also able to achieve micro scale resolution and the surface finish you would expect from a market-ready component. Projection micro-stereolithography (PµSL), patented by Boston Micro Fabrication combines the benefits of stereolithography (SLA) and Digital Light Processing (DLP) 3D printing technologies. It involves the use of a flash of UV Presented below is a comparison of competing microfabrication technologies. Table 1. Comparison of 3D printing technologies. Technology

Highest XY Resolution

Speed

Comments

PµSL

2 µm

Fast

Fast + high-precision

SLA

~50 µm

Slow

Slow + medium precision

2PP-DLW

<50 nm

Extremely slow

Ultra-high precision, small overall size but very slow

FDM

~200 µm

Slow

Rough surface & low precision

PolyJet

600 DPI (42 µm)

Fast

Low precision, fast & large size

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Applications for this technology are wide reaching and include: Table 2. Examples of applications that can utilise components produced using PµSL. Technology

Highest XY Resolution

Electronics

Connector bases, chip sockets

Medical devices

Cardiovascular stents, blood heat exchangers, spiral needles

Microfluidics

Valves for gene sequencing, lab-on-a-chip (LOC) devices

Filtration

Micro filtration

Micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS)

Micro switches, gears, latches, sensors, motors, valves, actuators, consumer electronics, accelerometers

Bio-MEMS

Stents, micro needles, LOC devices

Optical

Optical sensors, optocouplers, fiberglass connectors

Research

Drug discovery

light to rapidly photopolymerise a photosensitive liquid resin, in layer by layer fashion to build up the final 3D component. Digital masks controlled by CAD files are used to ensure only the desired regions are cured and are capable of achieving a resolution of 2µm. Advantages of the PµSL process include: • High precision • High resolution – down to 2µm • High accuracy • Excellent surface finish • No need for moulds or tools • Can reduce time from concept to prototyping to low volume production Boston Micro Fabrication offer a range of 3D printers that exploit PµSL technology. They range in size from benchtop to free-standing systems that have resolutions ranging from as low as 2µm to 25µm and can produce parts up 100 x 100 x 75mm. They also offer a range of UV-curable polymers, hydrogels and composite resins that contain ceramic or metal particles for use with their 3D printers, offering rigidity, toughness, high-temperature resistance, biocompatibility, flexibility or transparency Their open architecture also enables users to formulate their own resins to suit their own needs. To discuss your micro 3D printing requirements or to organise a demonstration of PµSL technology please email info@axt.com.au. WWW.MATERIALSAUSTRALIA.COM.AU

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SEPTEMBER 2023 | 33

INDUSTRY NEWS

COMBINED AUSTRALIAN MATERIALS SOCIETIES

CAMS CONFERENCE 2024 - University of South Australia CAMS is Australia’s largest interdisciplinary technical meeting on the latest advances in materials science, engineering and technology. CAMS2024 will be held at the University of South Australia from 4 to 6 December 2024. This conference is the largest interdisciplinary meeting for the year, giving attendees the chance to hear from some of the greatest minds in the industry and make meaningful connections in the process. Our technical program will cover a range of themes identified by researchers and industry as issues of topical interest. CAMS2024 is part of an ongoing series of meetings that are the product of the cooperation between Materials Australia (MA) and the Australian Ceramic Society (ACS). These

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meetings, which represent the forging of joint objectives, began in 2004. CAMS2024 will delve into themes such as: additive, advanced and future manufacturing, processes and products; materials characterisation; advances in steel and light metals technology, metal casting and thermomechanical processing; ceramics, glass and refractories; corrosion and wear resistant materials for demanding environments; materials for energy generation, conversion and storage; nanostructured and nanoscale materials and interfaces; surfaces thin films and coatings; polymers and composites; and use of waste materials and environmental remediation and recycling.

www.cams2024.com.au

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Abstract Submissions Open Soon We invite prospective speakers to submit a brief abstract, less than 250 words and including three key words. Submissions will open from December 2023.

CONFERENCE CO-CHAIRS Prof. Nikki Stanford University of South Australia

Nikki.Stanford@unisa.edu.au

Associate Professor Pramod Koshy UNSW koshy@unsw.edu.au

Conference Secretariat: Tanya Smith tanya@materialsaustralia.com.au T +61 3 9326 7266

WWW.MATERIALSAUSTRALIA.COM.AU

INDUSTRY NEWS

Comet Launch New Range of Lightweight Tube Heads By Dr. Cameron Chai Comet X-ray (formerly known as Yxlon) have recently launched the groundbreaking ECO series tube heads. Embodying innovation, the latest ECO models are not just lighter but notably more manageable, designed with even a single person’s use in mind. Sporting a sturdy, ergonomically superior design and weighing only 14 kg, the ECO series has been conceptualised with an aim to speed up workflows while enhancing safety and reducing fatigue. The first members of the ECO family are the ECO 160DS and ECO 200DS. They represent a leap forward in technology and innovation, designed to revolutionise the industry. These cutting-edge devices have been meticulously crafted to meet and exceed the ever-evolving needs of professionals like you. With state-

WWW.MATERIALSAUSTRALIA.COM.AU

of-the-art capabilities and unparalleled performance, the ECO series will empower you to achieve new levels of efficiency, accuracy, and productivity. These new lightweight units will enable radiography professionals to be able to more easily manoeuvre their tube heads, facilitating access into more difficult locations without the need to use lighter, lower power X-ray sources to perform important NDT testing and asset management tasks. These systems also benefit from Comet’s (and Yxlon’s) reputation for reliability which is further backed up by AXT’s nationwide service network and fleet of loan/ hire systems.

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For all your radiography needs please visit AXT or contact info@axt.com.au.

SEPTEMBER 2023 | 35

UNIVERSITY SPOTLIGHT

University of Queensland Source: Sally Wood The University of Queensland (UQ), situated in the vibrant city of Brisbane, Australia, stands as one of the nation's leading educational institutions. Established in 1909, UQ boasts a rich history of producing distinguished alumni who have significantly impacted various fields across Australia and globally.

Sprawling across three main campuses — St Lucia, Gatton, and Herston — UQ offers an all-encompassing academic environment for its diverse community of students. As of the last count, the university houses over 53,000 students, including a significant proportion of international students representing more than 140 nationalities. This cultural and academic diversity embodies UQ’s global outlook and commitment to fostering a connected, inclusive, and innovative environment. UQ’s vision is clear and compelling: providing knowledge leadership for a better world and are striving towards building a better future for our students and community. This ethos is deeply embedded in its research initiatives, academic programs, and community outreach. Recognised worldwide for its research excellence, UQ has undertaken pioneering work in fields such as biotechnology, sustainable

development, and global change. It continually ranks among the top universities globally, not only for its academic programs but also for the positive societal impact of its research.

Materials Science Innovation UQ has been a powerhouse in advancing the frontier of materials science and engineering. At the core of UQ's materials science research is a profound quest to understand the intrinsic properties of materials at atomic, molecular, and macro scales. Researchers work to uncover the relationships between a material's structure, its properties, the way it's processed, and its overall performance.

This foundational knowledge serves as a bedrock for the development of novel materials with optimised properties tailored for specific applications. UQ is focused on more than just creating new materials—they are improving the materials already available, making them stronger, cheaper and more sustainable. For instance, UQ is developing new blends of polymers and biocomposites to facilitate industry’s transition to a biobased and circular economy. UQ is focussing on the synthesis and characterisation of nanomaterials to advance energy, environment and health. The university is creating next generation healthier food and beverages through processing and materials design. One of the standout areas of UQ's research is the development of advanced functional materials. These materials promise transformative breakthroughs in sectors such as energy, healthcare, and electronics. For instance, UQ has been a leader in the design and synthesis of highperformance battery materials, paving the way for the next generation of energy storage solutions. In the realm of biomaterials, UQ researchers are delving deep into the creation of innovative materials for drug delivery, tissue engineering, and medical implants. By understanding and manipulating the interfaces

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UNIVERSITY SPOTLIGHT

Revolutionary New Method for Scalable Production of 2D Materials Discovered

Engineers at The University of Queensland (UQ) have developed a new method to create monolayer nanosheets that until now it has been difficult to produce at a large scale with high yield.

Monolayer nanosheets have many potential uses across electronics, energy storage, and medical imaging, but their applications have been limited by the lack of efficient production methods.

between materials and biological systems, they aim to bring forth solutions that can revolutionize healthcare.

Director of UQ’s Dow Centre for Sustainable Engineering Innovation Professor Xiwang Zhang said his team unlocked a critical step for many industrial and technological applications.

Additionally, sustainable material development is another key research thrust. UQ is committed to designing materials that not only exhibit superior performance but are also environmentally friendly, recyclable, or biodegradable.

“Our team used a simple and scalable method to produce high-quality single-layer 2D materials from a variety of sources, including graphite, carbon nitride, and others,” said Professor Zhang.

Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology Founded in 2004, the Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (AIBN) is tackling society's pressing issues, encompassing areas of health, energy, and the bioeconomy. As the global landscape grapples with challenges ranging from energy consumption to complex health concerns, AIBN emerges as a key player, dedicated to crafting solutions. Pioneering an innovative approach that intertwines bioengineering with nanoscience, AIBN disrupts traditional methodologies. This unique fusion equips the institute with a distinct perspective, allowing it to address and resolve issues in ways many others might not envision. Boasting a formidable 400-member team, the institute champions close collaborations with industry leaders. This synergy facilitates the translation of avant-garde science into tangible, practical solutions. Their efforts have WWW.MATERIALSAUSTRALIA.COM.AU

monumental aims: to diminish global dependency on fossil fuels, promote healthier societal frameworks, bolster robust and green economies, and imprint a sustainable footprint on the world. AIBN's versatility shines through as they craft platform technologies adaptable across multiple sectors. Whether it's pharmaceuticals and biotech or waste management and transportation, their innovations hold transformative potential. This commitment to converting scientific breakthroughs into market-ready solutions accelerates the path for their esteemed industry associates and government allies, ensuring timely and impactful market entries. BACK TO CONTENTS

The research team used a method called "sticky mechanical exfoliation" which involves using a liquid polymer called polyethyleneimine (PEI) as a medium for breaking down layered materials like graphite into single layer sheets of material like graphene. “This new method could pave the way for large scale production of 2D materials, making them more widely available for use in a variety of applications, and making it possible for researchers to study their properties in greater depth.” The team also demonstrated that the method works on other types of 2D materials as well and believe this new method can help in the industrialization of 2D materials and their potential use in everyday products.

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BREAKING NEWS Nano-Thin 'Liquid-Like' Coatings Pave the Way For a Self-Cleaning World A biodegradable alternative to ‘forever chemicals’ with numerous applications University of Sydney researchers have observed oil molecules retaining their 'liquid-like' properties when they are chemically attached as an extremely thin layer to solid surfaces, opening new possibilities for designing sustainable materials with non-stick characteristics. The research was led by Dr Isaac Gresham with co-authors Professor Chiara Neto and honours student Seamus Lilley from the School of Chemistry and Sydney Nano, Dr Kaloian Koynov from the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research and Dr Andrew Nelson from the Australian Centre for Neutron Scattering.

Crackling noise microscopy detects nanoscale avalanches in materials using a scanning probe microscope (SPM) tip. Image credit: FLEET.

The ‘liquid-like’ coatings the team studied, known as slippery covalently-attached liquid surfaces (SCALS), are produced from silicones or polyethylene glycol – both of which break down into harmless byproducts in the environment.

Listening to Nanoscale Earthquakes

SCALS are anti-adhesive without relying on problematic perfluorinated polymers (PFAS), known as ‘forever chemicals’ that are usually used for their low adhesion properties.

The nanoscale movement of atoms when materials deform leads to sound emission. This so-called crackling noise is a scale-invariant phenomenon found in various material systems as a response to external stimuli such as force or external fields.

“These liquid-like layers are extremely slippery to most contaminants: they shed liquid droplets effortlessly, which is great to increase the efficiency of heat transfer and for collecting water, they prevent the buildup of scale, and resist the adhesion of ice and bacteria, bringing us one step closer to a self-cleaning world,” said Professor Neto, who leads the Nano-Interfaces Laboratory at the University of Sydney. “We can correlate the exceptional performance of these layers with their nanostructure – meaning we now know what we’re aiming for when we design slippery surfaces, enabling us to make them even more effective and provide viable alternatives to fluorinated coatings.” The slippery nano-thin layers, between two and five billionths of a metre thick or 10,000 times thinner than a human hair, are made up of oil molecules that are only a hundred atoms long.

A recent University of New South Wales (UNSW) led paper presents an exciting new way to listen to avalanches of atoms in crystals.

Jerky material movements in the form of avalanches can span many orders of magnitude in size and follow universal scaling rules described by power laws. The concept was originally studied as Barkhausen noise in magnetic materials and now is used in diverse fields from earthquake research and building materials monitoring to fundamental research involving phase transitions and neural networks. The new method for nanoscale crackling noise measurements developed by UNSW and University of Cambridge researchers is based on SPM nanoindentation (see figure). “Our method allows us to study the crackling noise of individual nanoscale features in materials, such as domain walls in ferroelectrics,” said lead author Dr Cam Phu Nguyen. “The types of atom avalanches differ around these structures when the material deforms.” One of the method’s most intriguing aspects is the fact that individual nanoscale features can be identified by imaging the material surface before indenting it. This differentiation enables new studies that were not possible previously. In a first application of the new technology the UNSW researchers have used the method to investigate discontinuities in ordered materials, called domain walls.

Droplets on a slippery surface (Credit: Isaac Gresham). Image credit: University of Sydney.

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BREAKING NEWS Fungi Blaze a Trail to Fireproof Cladding RMIT scientists have shown it’s possible to grow fungi in thin sheets that could be used for fire-retardant cladding or even a new kind of fungal fashion. Mycelium, an incredible network of fungal strands that can thrive on organic waste and in darkness, could be a basis for sustainable fireproofing. RMIT researchers are chemically manipulating its composition to harness its fire-retardant properties. Associate Professor Tien Huynh, an expert in biotechnology and mycology, said they’ve shown that mycelium can be grown from renewable organic waste. “Fungi are usually found in a composite form mixed with residual feed material, but we found a way to grow pure mycelium sheets that can be layered and engineered into different uses – from flat panels for the building industry to a leather-like material for the fashion industry,” said Huynh, from the School of Science. The novel method of creating mycelium sheets that are paper-thin, like wallpaper, works without pulverising the mycelium’s filament network. Instead, they used different growth conditions and chemicals to make the thin, uniform and – importantly – fire-resistant material. Associate Professor Everson Kandare, an expert in the flammability and thermal properties of biomaterials and coauthor of the paper, said the mycelium has strong potential as a fireproofing material. “The great thing about mycelium is that it forms a thermal protective char layer when exposed to fire or radiant heat. The longer and the higher temperature at which mycelium char survives, the better its use as a fireproof material,” said Kandare. Beyond being effective, mycelium-based cladding can be produced from renewable organic waste and is not harmful to the environment when burned, he explained.

L to R: Professor Huanting Wang, Dr SJ Oosthuizen, Dr Rachel Mathew, Dr Zhouyou Wang with Lithium filtering membrane. Image credit: Monash University.

Membrane Technology Promises Cleaner, Cheaper, Faster Lithium Production for Growing Battery Market Monash University startup ElectraLith is building an extraction system to filter Lithium from brine using a membrane-based system, allowing the critical mineral to be extracted from salt lakes, mine tailings and other brine solutions using small amounts of solar generated electricity and without added chemicals or water. Harnessing the power of cutting-edge electro-filtration membrane technology, ElectraLith seeks to usher in a new era of lithium extraction, propelling the battery market into a cleaner, cheaper and faster future. At the forefront of this groundbreaking technology is Professor Huanting Wang. An Australian Laureate Fellow and the Director of the ARC Research Hub for Energyefficient Separation at Monash University's Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering. His pioneering work in nanostructure membranes has paved the way for ElectraLith's game-changing technology. “Current lithium extraction methods involve either roasting hard rock at high temperature and dissolving it with hot sulfuric acid, or evaporating brines in a solar pond, both of which use chemicals to precipitate lithium out. It is time consuming, disruptive, expensive and wasteful. My research in nanostructure membranes is all about efficiency and ingenuity to make the most of this limited mineral resource” said Professor Wang. Recognising the potential of this innovation, Monash Engineering's Dr Zhouyou (Emily) Wang has been awarded an Australian Research Council (ARC) Early Career Industry Fellowship to further develop and commercialise the novel membrane-based technology intended to transform the lithium mining and recycling industries.

L to R: The research team Nattanan (Becky) Chulikavit, Associate Professor Tien Huynh and Associate Professor Everson Kandare in their lab at RMIT’s Bundoora campus. Image credit: RMIT.

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“Even though seawater is a brine, the concentration of Lithium is too low for cost effective extraction, but we are already thinking about designing the next generation of membranes to improve Lithium extraction, so maybe in the future we can extract Lithium from new sources,” said Dr Wang.

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BREAKING NEWS Nanoneedle Breakthrough Gives Hope for Cheaper Cancer Treatment Australian scientists have successfully found a way to inject beneficial genetic material into white blood cells in a world-first breakthrough that could significantly improve treatment options for certain types of blood cancer. A multidisciplinary team led by ARC Future Fellow Dr Roey Elnathan, from Deakin University's School of Medicine, and ARC Laureate Professor Nicolas Voelcker, from Monash University's Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences (MIPS), has harnessed the power of nano-injection technology to improve outcomes in one of the world's newest forms of cancer immunotherapies, CAR-T cell therapy. CAR-T cell therapy involves taking a cancer patient's white bloods cells (or 'T cells') and genetically engineering them before they are infused back into the patient to attack the cancer cells. Because of the number of steps involved, the process is slow and expensive, currently costing more than $500,000 per patient. Using tiny (nano)needles 100,000 times less than the width of a human hair, the research team has found a way to eliminate inactive viral vectors for genetically encoding the T cells. Viral vectors are commonly used to deliver genetic material into cells but result in costly treatment delays in current CAR-T cell manufacturing. Dr Elnathan said there was an urgent need for a scalable, affordable, streamlined CAR-T cell manufacturing process that did not rely on viral vectors. "We're using nanotechnologies to enable targeted delivery of advanced non-viral therapeutics into primary human immune cells, which are notoriously difficult to transfect," Dr Elnathan said. "We have already shown that our nano-injection platform can re-engineer cells that benefit patients in vitro (in cell culture). We now need to test this technology at a clinical level."

L to R: CER’s Steve Horvat, Tony Carr, and Sean Jacobs with Deakin scientist Professor Abbas Kouzani. Image credit: Deakin University.

New Deakin REACH Partnership to Convert End of Life Tyres into Electricity Deakin University is delighted to officially welcome Geelong-based company Clean Energy Resources (CER) as a partner in its Recycling and Clean Energy Commercialisation Hub (REACH) to give tyres a new life after their time on the road. Each year in Australia, the equivalent of 48 million tyres reach the end of their life and only 16% of these are domestically recycled. Around two thirds of used tyres in Australia end up in landfill, are stockpiled, illegally dumped or have an unknown fate. Deakin scientist Professor Abbas Kouzani and his multidisciplinary team will work with CER on a project that will see tyres take on new life using a unique technology to convert tyres into hydrogen, electricity, and other reusable resources. The project leverages the team’s success in creating a solar panel recycling plant and capitalises on Deakin’s translational research skillsets and unique research facilities. Professor Kouzani says the development of novel scalable technologies that can address real-world problems is a significant challenge for the Australian recycling industry and one that he and his team are very enthusiastic about working on. “Innovations in this space have potential for immediate global impact and can assist in solving a pressing environmental pollution problem.” While tyre recycling is happening in places around the world, including the United States, China and Turkey, what makes this project special is its focus on developing a technology that will produce no harmful emissions – not only taking us a step closer to solving one of our landfill problems but also creating a new way to generate energy without harm to the environment.

Australian scientists have successfully found a way to inject beneficial genetic material into white blood cells. Image credit: Deakin University.

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“This project is the culmination of 30 years of work by members of the CER team and research across the world in recycling, which in the past 10 years has focused on zero emissions solutions for the problems the world faces with all forms of waste,” said Kouzani.

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BREAKING NEWS Country Road Funds IFM Fashion Fibre Project An Institute for Frontier Materials project is one of the first grant recipients of Australian lifestyle brand, Country Road’s inaugural Climate Fund. Three projects will receive a share in the $1.5 million Climate Fund, which aims to invest in projects with a positive climate impact. Of the successful projects is Mud to Marle – a fashion industry collaboration led by Full Circle Fibres, a B Corp certified social enterprise, alongside Deakin University’s Institute for Frontier Materials and local fibre producers including Geelong Textiles, Geelong Dyers, Ridgehaven (wool grower) and Australian Super Cotton (cotton grower). Mud to Marle will focus on turning low value wool fibre into a high value product. The project will pilot and test proof of concept end-to-end on-shore manufacturing, including spinning, knitting, weaving and dyeing in Australia. Circularity and climate is central to this project, which in addition to using ‘waste’ wool fibres, will support local production and low impact production methods. The longterm aim of this project is to grow on-shore manufacturing capabilities and circular production systems within Australia. Some of the research for this project will be completed at the Futures Fibres Facility at IFM, which is supported by the Australian National Fabrication Facility (ANFF). The Climate Fund grant will contribute $147,000 to fund production, including the sourcing of raw fibre, dyeing, spinning, knitting and weaving as well as sampling. Country Road will act as an industry mentor, supporting the project team with guidance and feedback throughout the process. A percentage of the grant will also contribute towards storytelling to share project learnings and opportunities. Elle Roseby, managing director of Country Road, said the brand is excited to support the first year of Climate Fund grant recipients in driving positive change. “We believe that partnerships are key to tackling industry-wide challenges and driving deep, long-term change. We are thrilled to be able to support those driving innovation at the grassroots level, and look forward to working alongside the first three finalists.”

Vanessa Olaya Agudelo and Dr Christophe Valahu in front of the quantum computer in the Sydney Nanoscience Hub used in the experiment. Image credit: Stefanie Zingsheim.

Scientists Use Quantum Device to Slow Chemical Process by Factor of 100bn New research - and a world-first experimental result - display the potential for using quantum technology to explore new designs in material science, drugs or solar energy harvesting. Scientists at the University of Sydney have, for the first time, used a quantum computer to engineer and directly observe a process critical in chemical reactions by slowing it down by a factor of 100 billion times. Joint lead researcher and PhD student, Vanessa Olaya Agudelo, said, “It is by understanding these basic processes inside and between molecules that we can open up a new world of possibilities in materials science, drug design, or solar energy harvesting. It could also help improve other processes that rely on molecules interacting with light, such as how smog is created or how the ozone layer is damaged.” Specifically, the research team witnessed the interference pattern of a single atom caused by a common geometric structure in chemistry called a ‘conical intersection’. Conical intersections are known throughout chemistry and are vital to rapid photo-chemical processes such as light harvesting in human vision or photosynthesis. Chemists have tried to directly observe such geometric processes in chemical dynamics since the 1950s, but it is not feasible to observe them directly given the extremely rapid timescales involved. To get around this problem, quantum researchers in the School of Physics and the School of Chemistry created an experiment using a trapped-ion quantum computer in a completely new way. This allowed them to design and map this very complicated problem onto a relatively small quantum device – and then slow the process down by a factor of 100 billion. “In nature, the whole process is over within femtoseconds,” said Olaya Agudelo from the School of Chemistry. “That’s a billionth of a millionth – or one quadrillionth – of a second.”

Meriel Chamberlin, owner and founder, Full Circle Fibres; Associate Professor Christopher Hurren, Deakin Institute for Frontier Materials; Sam Yearwood, commercial manager, Geelong Textiles. Image credit: Country Road.

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“Using our quantum computer, we built a system that allowed us to slow down the chemical dynamics from femtoseconds to milliseconds. This allowed us to make meaningful observations and measurements. This has never been done before.”

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BREAKING NEWS World-First Fusion Device to be Built at UNSW Sydney The first ever nuclear fusion device to be wholly designed, built and operated by students is being planned for UNSW Sydney. The program is part of the University’s Vertically Integrated Projects (VIP) scheme that is designed to engage undergraduate and postgraduate students in ambitious, long-term, multidisciplinary challenges led by UNSW academics. The fusion construction project is headed up by nuclear engineering expert Dr Patrick Burr and aims to have a working device operating within two to three years. UNSW’s first fusion-capable machine will be 'tokamak', a doughnut-shaped vacuum chamber with powerful magnets to control and heat streams of plasma to extreme temperatures, at which point nuclear fusion is possible. This will potentially be followed by other devices that could achieve fusion using different methods, such as highpower lasers. The program is being supported by the UNSW Digital Grid Future Institute and industry partners Tokamak Energy and HB-11 Energy and Dr Burr, from the UNSW School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, said: “This project will be the first in the world where students will design, build and manage a fusion reactor. “We want to excite the next generation of innovators and make them realise how they can make a big change in the world. “The students involved in this project will have to develop solutions to big engineering challenges, work closely with industry partners, and push the boundaries of what is possible with fusion energy. "They will have to master skills that are also highly-sought after in other industries, like safety-critical infrastructure, transportation, outer space, and of course conventional nuclear technologies.”

Dr Ruirui Qiao from UQ’s Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology. Image credit: University of Queensland.

Salt Water-Degradable Plastics to Help Oceans University of Queensland researchers are developing a plastic that breaks down in seawater to help turn the tide on marine waste. Dr Ruirui Qiao from UQ’s Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology is refining new polymerisation techniques for an affordable and biodegradable plastic to replace existing products. “Our oceans are being clogged by long-lasting plastic containers, bags and even microplastics - which pose a significant threat to ecosystems including millions of seabirds and mammals,” Dr Qiao said. “Awareness of the problem has risen in the past few years, but the sheer volume of waste going into the water means we need to find new solutions. We think plastic degradation technologies could be part of the answer.” Dr Qiao is working with AIBN colleague Professor Tom Davis and Professor Xuan Pang and Professor Xuesi Chen from the Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry on the project. The team is developing a range of high-value, customised seawater-degradable plastics using 3D printing techniques developed by Dr Qiao’s research group at AIBN, and polymeric materials generated by the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The collaboration has received $125,000 from the Queensland-Chinese Academy of Sciences Collaborative Science Fund to accelerate the work over the next two years.

A tokamak is a doughnut-shaped machine that uses very powerful magnets to confine plasma in a vacuum where it is heated to such high temperatures that nuclei can fuse together and release energy. Image credit: UNSW.

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Dr Qiao said one technique they’ll use, called ringopening polymerisation, allows them to precisely control the mechanical strength and shape of the plastics while giving the plastics a low-toxic polyester ‘backbone’. “This means the plastics are able break down to a molecular state in marine environments,” she said.

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BREAKING NEWS Australian Company Delivers Innovation in Additive Manufacturing Using Post Processing Technology at ANSTO Advanced manufacturing company Titomic Pty Ltd is applying Hot Isostatic Pressing, or HIPing at ANSTO, to improve the material performance of the titanium components it produces. The company uses commercially pure titanium as a powderised raw stock, as opposed to titanium alloy powder, in the additive manufacture of net shape products for extreme environments, such as aerospace components. “Titanium is a very sensitive material, probably one of the worst in terms of being affected by other elements, it is particularly sensitive to the effects of oxygen,” explained former aerospace engineer, Neil Matthews AM, now Senior Technical Fellow at Titomic. “We have been investigating the use of post-processing and HIPing to reduce porosity in the titanium part to less than one percent, which is comparable to the standard for conventionally produced titanium aluminium alloys.” The main issue is the formation of pores/voids generated as part of the layered deposition build-up. When under high loads, these voids compromise ductility which is the ability to stretch or bend, which in turn leads to catastrophic fracture modes. The presence of voids can also impact the durability of parts under cyclic loading “We look at the optimisation of all parameters, particle size, particle velocity, and subsequent mechanical behaviour during additive manufacturing,” said Matthews. He said that using particles with an irregular shape, rather than spherical, in the cold spray, was found to improve the speed of the build and reduce voids. Therefore, porosity had to be addressed for the conditions in which these materials operate. The presence of voids increases the likelihood of multiple crack initiations, which can join up to make a part brittle —compromising structural integrity.

Cold sprayed titanium sample before HIPing (top) and after HIPing (below). Image credit: ANSTO.

Tandem solar cells cannot overtake existing technology unless they are redesigned. Image credit: CSIRO.

Turbo-Charging Solar Panel Solar panel technology has made enormous progress in the last two decades. In fact, the most advanced silicon solar cells produced today are about as good as the technology will get. Enter ‘tandem solar cells’, the new generation in solar technology. They can convert a much greater portion of sunlight into electricity than conventional solar cells. The technology promises to fast-track the global transition away from polluting sources of energy generation such as coal and gas. But there’s a major catch. As CSIRO’s new research shows, current tandem solar cells must be redesigned if they’re to be manufactured at the scale required to become the climate-saving technology the planet needs. Tandem solar cells use two different materials which absorb energy from the Sun together. In theory, it means the cell can absorb more of the solar spectrum – and so produce more electricity – than if just one material is used (such as silicon alone). Using this approach, researchers overseas recently achieved a tandem solar cell efficiency of 33.7%. They did this by building a thin solar cell with a material called perovskite directly on top of a traditional silicon solar cell. Traditional silicon solar panels still dominate manufacturing. But leading solar manufacturers have signalled plans to commercialise the tandem cell technology. Such is the potential of tandem solar cells, they are poised to overtake the conventional technology in coming decades. But the expansion will be thwarted, unless the technology is redesigned with new, more abundant materials. Almost all tandem solar cells involve a design known as ‘silicon heterojunction’. Solar cells made in this way normally require more silver, and more of the chemical element indium, than other solar cell designs. But silver and indium are scarce materials. Silver is used in thousands of applications, including manufacturing, making it highly sought after. In fact, global demand for silver reportedly rose by 18% last year. Likewise, indium is used to make touchscreens and other smart devices. But it’s extremely rare and only found in tiny traces.

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FEATURE – Machine Learning in Materials Science

Machine Learning in M

A Deep Dive with an Australia

Machine Learning (ML) is redefining what's possible across a wide array of disciplines. Materials Science, traditionally seen as a domain of hands-on experimental research and empirical formulae, is not immune to this sweeping transformation. By intertwining the complex world of materials with cutting-edge machine learning models, researchers are opening doors to a future where material discovery and design are vastly accelerated. By juxtaposing materials science with the algorithms of ML, a new horizon appears, promising unprecedented advancements in material discovery and design.

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Defining Machine Learning in Materials Science In essence, Machine Learning in Materials Science is the application of data-driven algorithms to predict and understand material properties and behaviours based on their structures and compositions. Instead of the traditional trial-and-error method, ML provides an efficient approach to navigate the vast design space of materials, thereby guiding experimentalists to promising regions with desired properties. The intrinsic appeal of ML in this context lies in its potential to make rapid predictions. While traditional

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computational methods, such as Density Functional Theory (DFT) and Molecular Dynamics (MD), offer accurate predictions, they can be computationally taxing. ML models, post their training phase, can provide swift and accurate predictions.

A Brief History: The Convergence of Two Worlds The intersection of Materials Science and Machine Learning isn't as new as one might assume. Computational materials science has been around for decades, with researchers using physics-based models to predict material properties. However, these methods, as mentioned, are

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FEATURE – Machine Learning in Materials Science

Materials Science:

an Perspective

computationally intensive. The breakthrough came with the datadriven era. Around the early 2010s, with the rise of "Big Data" and improved algorithmic designs, machine learning techniques began to show promise in predicting material properties with high accuracy, using databases of material structures and properties as the training data.

The Materials Project The Materials Project, launched in 2011, is a notable milestone. It's an open-source project that uses highthroughput computing to predict the properties of all known inorganic

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materials and even some yet-to-bediscovered ones. This venture set a precedent, showcasing the viability and potential of integrating ML into materials research. The Materials Project is a multiinstitution, multi-national effort to compute the properties of all inorganic materials and provide the data and associated analysis algorithms for every materials researcher free of charge. The ultimate goal of the initiative is to drastically reduce the time needed to invent new materials by focusing costly and time-consuming experiments on compounds that show the most promise computationally.

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By computing properties of all known materials, the Materials Project aims to remove guesswork from materials design in a variety of applications. Experimental research can be targeted to the most promising compounds from computational data sets. Researchers will be able to data-mine scientific trends in materials properties. By providing materials researchers with the information they need to design better, the Materials Project aims to accelerate innovation in materials research. Supercomputing clusters at national laboratories provide the infrastructure that enables the computations, data, and algorithms to run at unparalleled speed. The Project

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FEATURE – Machine Learning in Materials Science

leverages the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory's NERSC Scientific Computing Centre and Computational Research Division, and is also active with Oak Ridge's Leadership Computing Facility, Argonne's Leadership Computing Facility and San Diego's Supercomputer Centre. Computational materials science is now powerful enough that it can predict many properties of materials before those materials are ever synthesized in the lab. By scaling materials computations over supercomputing clusters, The Materials Project has predicted several new battery materials which were made and tested in the lab. Recently, The Project also identified new transparent conducting oxides and thermoelectric materials using this approach.

Globally Significant Research Endeavours Globally, there has been a surge of interest and initiatives in the convergence of ML and materials science.

in 2011. Its fundamental goal is to revolutionize the traditional process of materials discovery and deployment. By integrating advanced computational tools, high-throughput experimental techniques, and data analytics, the MGI aims to halve the time and cost traditionally needed to discover, manufacture, and commercialize novel materials. The initiative recognises materials as the cornerstone of several industries, from energy and transportation to health and defence. Therefore, by accelerating the materials development cycle, the MGI aspires to bolster US manufacturing, enhance energy security, and ensure that American industries remain globally competitive. Central to this initiative is the creation of shared, open-access digital repositories of materials data, which would foster collaboration, drive innovation, and train the next generation of materials scientists in these 21st-century techniques and tools.

The Materials Genome Initiative (MGI)

The NOMAD (Novel Materials Discovery) Project

The Materials Genome Initiative (MGI) is an ambitious multi-agency initiative launched by the U.S. government

The NOMAD (Novel Materials Discovery) Project is a pioneering initiative in the field of materials science, emphasizing

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the integration of data-driven methodologies and computational approaches. Funded by the European Commission, its objective is to create an extensive and comprehensive materials encyclopedia. This digital repository consolidates datasets from myriad computational and experimental projects worldwide. By harnessing the collective knowledge and data from these diverse sources, NOMAD aims to facilitate the rapid discovery of novel materials with desired properties. The project provides researchers with a unique platform to access, visualise, and analyse materials data, thereby promoting transparency, reproducibility, and interdisciplinary collaboration. The Japanese Materials Integration (MI) project The Japanese Materials Integration (MI) project represents Japan's strategic foray into the rapidly advancing realm of computational materials science. Sponsored by the Japanese government, this initiative underscores the increasing emphasis on integrating high-throughput simulations and data-driven methodologies for the expedited discovery and development of materials.

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FEATURE – Machine Learning in Materials Science

One of the foundational goals of the MI project is to establish robust computational platforms and databases tailored to handle extensive material simulations. This involves not just the computation of material properties but also the effective organisation and analysis of vast amounts of generated data. The platform aims to become a vital resource for researchers, bridging the gap between theoretical predictions and experimental validations. As the world leans more towards sustainability and technological advancements in various sectors, from energy to manufacturing, the MI project's endeavours are poised to play a crucial role in realising next-generation materials for these applications.

Australia's Role in This Fusion While many global efforts dominate the spotlight, Australia is no stranger to this frontier of research. Centre for Advanced Materials Technology Established at the University of Sydney, the Centre for Advanced Materials Technology is pioneering in the use of ML for designing new materials. Their recent work on ML-guided discovery WWW.MATERIALSAUSTRALIA.COM.AU

of high-performance piezoelectric materials is globally acclaimed. By integrating both computational and experimental methods, they are charting a course for the next generation of materials research. The Australian Institute for Machine Learning (AIML) While not strictly a materials science institution, The Australian Institute for Machine Learning (AIML) at the University of Adelaide, has collaborated with materials researchers on several projects. Their work on ML algorithms tailored for complex materials datasets has set them apart. CSIRO's Data61 Their active role in deploying machine learning for various sectors includes material science as well. Their recent work on predictive models for corrosion behaviour of metals in marine environments is a testament to their commitment to this interdisciplinary research. Collaborative Ventures and Grants Australia has also seen a surge in collaborative grants aimed at fostering ties between ML experts and material scientists. The Australian Research BACK TO CONTENTS

Council, for instance, has been pivotal in funding projects at the intersection of these disciplines, signalling a strong commitment from academic bodies.

Challenges and the Path Forward Despite the optimism, challenges remain. Materials datasets are often heterogeneous, and there's a need for standardisation. Moreover, the interpretability of ML models is crucial; researchers need to know why a certain material is deemed promising, not just which one. However, with the growing synergy between these two domains, the path forward looks promising. Collaborative efforts, both globally and specifically within Australia, are pointing towards a future where the next breakthrough material might just be a computation away. In conclusion, Machine Learning's confluence with Materials Science offers a paradigm shift, a leap towards a more efficient and targeted approach to material discovery and design. With global efforts being mirrored by robust initiatives in Australia, the future seems poised for accelerated advancements in the realm of materials.

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FEATURE – Machine Learning in Materials Science

Application of Optimisation Algorithms and Machine Learning in Materials Science and Engineering Source: J. Choi, O. Muránsky, J. Avila Molina, L. Bortolan Neto, J. J. Kruzic, R. N. Wright, M. Messner Understanding material behaviour in real-world operating conditions holds technological significance in ensuring the safe and reliable operation of engineering systems. This significance is further accentuated when the consequences of material failure have the potential to put human lives and critical infrastructure at risk. Industries such as energy generation and aviation exemplify high-stakes domains where an in-depth understanding of material behaviour in operational settings is nothing short of imperative. To ensure the safety of an engineering system, engineers rely on predictive models capable of describing how materials respond to different in-service operating conditions (i.e., temperatures, stresses, configurations). Hence, the accuracy of predictive material models is of technological importance when it comes to the safety and reliability of engineering systems. The Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO), in collaboration with Idaho National Laboratory (INL), Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) and the University of New South Wales (UNSW), has been developing various material models, ranging from simple mathematical

representations of empirical data to more advanced physics-based multi-scale models that account for the multi-scale nature of material failure mechanisms. Despite the promise of novel advanced models, their widespread deployment in engineering applications remains hindered by their substantial computational requirements. As a result, empirical and semi-empirical material models are the most broadly employed in the day-to-day operation of engineering systems. Even though these predictive models are mathematically simple, their calibration against the experimental data remains non-trivial and timeconsuming, often relying on the pre-existing expertise of an analyst. Lastly, the recent emergence of machine learning-based material models holds the potential to offer more accurate predictions than empirical models while simultaneously being computationally faster than the more accurate, yet resource-intensive, physics-based models. In what follows, we first present an example of the application of a multi-objective genetic algorithm (MOGA) to calibrate a semi-empirical, high-temperature creep model. This study underscores the capacity of

optimisation algorithms to address some of the challenges associated with the calibration of empirical and semi-empirical models against experimental datasets. Subsequently, we explore further applications of machine learning models by investigating their usefulness as surrogate models and their potential for predicting material failures by mechanisms such as fatigue. It is well-publicised in the popular media that machine learning models have the potential to impact our lives significantly, and this research focuses on their applicability in predicting material behaviour. Empirical and semi-empirical material models need to be calibrated against experimental data before they can be used in an engineering design or a fitness-for-service assessment of an engineering system in operation. The model calibration process involves finding values of multiple material model parameters, which can accurately describe the experimentally measured behaviour of a material. Generally, the parameter values are optimised by minimising user-defined objective functions which describe the difference between the experimental data and the model’s prediction. Various mathematical methodologies

Figure 1. Flowchart of our multi-objective genetic algorithm.

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FEATURE – Machine Learning in Materials Science

have been employed for material model calibration, however, most of them rely on prior experience and good knowledge of the expected material model’s parameter values. This often makes the calibration of these types of material models a lengthy trial-and-error process despite their relatively simple mathematical representations. To simplify the material model calibration process, we have employed a multi-objective genetic algorithm (MOGA), which is an optimisation algorithm based on a randomised search technique inspired by the principles of natural selection. The flow chart of our employed MOGA is shown in Figure 1. During the calibration process, the material model is repeatedly evaluated using different sets of material parameters suggested by the MOGA, and the optimality of the parameters is assessed by predefined objective functions, which measure how far the predictions are from the experimental datasets. Our recent publication in Ref. [1] used the MOGA to calibrate a semiempirical, high-temperature creep model using experimental creep data. Four objective functions were used to find an optimal set of material parameters describing the hightemperature creep behaviour of Alloy 617 under different temperature and stress conditions. Using the predefined objective functions, the MOGA could consistently find a suitable set of material parameters for the creep model to accurately capture the alloy’s long-term creep behaviour. The predicted creep curves at 800 °C are compared with the experimental observations in Figure 2. It is clear

Figure 2. Plot of experimental results compared to the predicted high-temperature creep curves at 800℃.

that the time-to-failure is predicted with excellent accuracy at all stress levels. This is of key importance since the time-to-failure dictates how long a component can stay operating in service at a given stress and temperature. While optimisation algorithms, such as the MOGA, can help with finding unknown material parameters in a large parameter space, they typically require a large number of evaluations. This is not an issue when calibrating the empirical and semi-empirical models since they have low computational costs. However, it becomes an issue for more advanced material models that are computationally expensive. Specifically, the direct calibration of physics-based, multi-scale models using an optimisation algorithm may not be feasible due to the significant computational expense of running such a model thousands of times during its calibration.

To address this issue, machine learning can be used to develop a surrogate model, which aims to approximate the input-output relationship of a computationally expensive model while using significantly fewer computational resources. The surrogate model can imitate the physics-based model such that a single evaluation can be completed in seconds instead of days. The inputs of the surrogate model will correspond to the material parameters of the physics-based model, whereas the outputs of the surrogate model will correspond to the response of the physics-based model. Once developed, the surrogate model could replace the physics-based model during the calibration process, allowing the optimisation algorithm to indirectly calibrate the physics-based model in an acceptable amount of time. Figure 3 shows the flowchart of training a surrogate model and using it to indirectly calibrate a physics-based model. Machine learning can also be used to develop data-driven material models that describe material behaviour solely from the experimental data. These models could potentially achieve the high accuracy of physics-based models with the low computational costs of empirical models. The widespread deployment of such models could save thousands of hours of experimentation and lower the costs associated with maintaining crucial engineering systems. As an example of this approach, in Ref. [2], we developed a machine learning model to predict the fatigue life of Alloy 617 at 850 °C and 950 °C. The machine learning model was developed with a

Figure 3. Flowchart of indirect calibration using a surrogate model.

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SEPTEMBER 2023 | 49

FEATURE – Machine Learning in Materials Science

Figure 4. Simplified schematic of a recurrent neural network.

recurrent neural network (RNN), which is commonly used for various other applications such as language models, weather predictions, and stock market predictions. A simplified schematic of the RNN is shown in Figure 4. Our machine-learning model was compared with a temperature-dependent semi-empirical model trained on the same experimental data. In this study, the training and calibration of the machine learning model were comparable in duration with the semi-empirical model. However, the machine learning model outperformed the semi-empirical

model while being able to predict the performance at both temperatures using a single model calibration. This is shown in Figure 5, where the machine learning model was able to predict the fatigue life with greater accuracy, indicated by its closer proximity to the 1:1 line. While the machine learning model was shown to be more accurate and flexible, it was also shown to be unable to extrapolate beyond the training dataset. As such, care needs to be taken when using these ‘black-box’ machine learning models for fitness-forservice assessments of engineering systems in operating conditions. In summary, our exploration of optimisation algorithms and machine learning models in materials science and engineering reveals their potential for enhancing safety and reliability predictions for critical engineering systems. From empirical to advanced machine learning models, we have various tools at our disposal. While optimisation algorithms like MOGA streamline calibration for simpler models, machine learning offers efficiency gains, and data-driven models show promise in achieving precision while using fewer computational resources. Nevertheless, caution is warranted when applying machine learning models beyond their training data. The key takeaway is to judiciously select the suitable material model for the task at hand, balancing potential benefits with potential limitations to ensure the effectiveness of the material models for predicting realworld engineering scenarios.

References [1] J. Choi, L. Bortolan Neto, R.N. Wright, J.J. Kruzic, O. Muránsky, On the prediction of the creep behaviour of alloy 617 using KachanovRabotnov model coupled with multi-objective genetic algorithm optimisation, International Journal of Pressure Vessels and Piping 199 (2022) 104721. Figure 5. Comparison of experimentally observed and predicted fatigue life of the machine learning model and the semi-empirical model; the scatter lines parallel to the 1:1 lines represent 2x error bands, and the shaded regions represent non-conservative predictions.

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[2] J. Avila Molina, O. Muránsky, L. Bortolan Neto, J.J. Kruzic, R.N. Wright, Development and performance of data-driven models for the prediction of the high-temperature fatigue life of alloy 617, International Journal of Pressure Vessels and Piping 206 (2023) 105022.

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FEATURE – Machine Learning in Materials Science

Fast-tracking Materials Innovation: Unveiling the Power of Machine Learning Source: Tu Le Machine learning has emerged as a transformative force in materials research, revolutionizing the way researchers explore and understand the properties of various substances. By leveraging sophisticated algorithms and large datasets, machine learning can accelerate the discovery and optimization of materials with unprecedented efficiency. This significance is further This technology enables researchers to predict material behaviours, such as conductivity, strength, thermal properties, and catalytic activities with remarkable accuracy, guiding them toward promising candidates for specific applications. Moreover, machine learning facilitates the identification of novel materials and the design of tailored compositions for enhanced performance. The ability to analyse complex relationships within datasets allows for the extraction of valuable insights, paving the way for innovative materials with applications

ranging from advanced electronics to sustainable energy solutions. The power of machine learning in materials research lies in its capacity to unravel intricate patterns, predict material characteristics, and catalyze the development of materials that were once challenging to discover through traditional methods. The integration of machine learning into materials research has been a fascinating journey that has significantly evolved over the years. Initially, in the late 20th century, machine learning algorithms such as symbol methods and artificial neural networks were employed to predict the corrosion behaviour as well as the tensile and compressive strengths of fiber/matrix interfaces in ceramicmatrix composites [1,2]. As computing power increased and data became more accessible, the field experienced a transformative shift. In the 21st century, machine learning techniques, such as support vector machines, deep neural networks, decision

Figure 1. The workflow for target-driven narrow bandgap photocatalyst design. (A) Chemical features and photocatalysis data from the literature were compiled to build the dataset. (B) Machine learning models were trained using the compiled data. (C) The best models were used to scan unknown material space (~106 materials) and identity a list of high performing candidates, (D) and (E) Best candidates were synthesized and characterized (bandgap and H2 evolution measured), and (F) New experimental data can be added to the dataset to improve subsequent models, closing the loop. [3]

trees, random forest, and ensemble methods, gained prominence. Researchers started leveraging these tools to analyze vast datasets, identify patterns, and predict material properties with higher precision, leading to new material discoveries for a broad range of applications. To mitigate the impact of global warming and secure a sustainable future, substantial research efforts have been devoted to developing materials for clean energy generation. Electrocatalysts and photocatalysts play key roles in addressing such challenges, and machine learning has been employed across various domains to enhance the understanding of electro/ photocatalytic processes and improve the design of new and effective catalysts for the production of clean fuels. For instance, predictive machine learning models were built using data gathered from published articles and employed to rapidly screen a large space of materials (>10 million), leading to the discovery of very narrow bandgap oxide photocatalysts. [3] The workflow presented in Figure 1 outlines the typical steps involved in such studies that employs machine learning for material development. Machine learning can augment high-throughput experimentation to further expedite the discovery of new materials. Recently, new quasitwo-dimensional perovskite films have been reported to yield solar cells with power conversion efficiencies reaching 16.3%, using this combined approach. [4] Machine learning models were developed using data from 100 experimentally developed devices with different parameters. The models were then employed to find the optimum fabrication parameters that result in maximum performance, eliminating the need for the experimental development and testing of 16,000 possible devices. The impact and contribution of different parameters on the photovoltaic performance including the power

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FEATURE – Machine Learning in Materials Science

Figure 2. The effect and contribution of parameters on PCE, VOC, JSC and FF of solar devices. Parameters with positive coefficient values increase the photovoltaic properties, and parameters with negative coefficient value decrease the photovoltaic properties. [4]

systems and biomaterials. For instances, it was used to quantitatively extract design rules for bio-inert surfaces that are resistant to protein adsorption and bacterial growth. [7] The study investigated an old data set from which long-standing, empirical and qualitative rules were initially developed to guide the design of antifouling materials. With the use of machine learning, new design guidelines were identified, holds great promise in addressing challenges related to biofouling in various industries, including marine, biomedical, and water treatment. This approach can lead to the development of more sustainable and efficient antifouling solutions.

conversion efficiency (PCE), open circuit voltage (VOC), short circuit current density (JSC) and fill factor (FF) were quantitatively identified, providing insights into how certain modifications can enhance or diminish the performance (see Figure 2). In recent years, the integration of machine learning has ushered in a transformative era in the development of flexible electronic materials, particularly in the context of innovative substances like liquid metal alloys. For instance, targeting the application of liquid metals in robotic and electronic components, the solution enthalpy and diffusivity of solutes in liquid Na were calculated using various machine learning approaches, including neural networks, Gaussian approximation, and moment tensor potential.[5] It was demonstrated that ML can 52 | SEPTEMBER 2023

achieve comparable accuracy to direct calculation using first-principles molecular dynamics, remarkably reducing the calculation cost by a factor of 1/10 to 1/100. With potential applications in batteries characterized by long life cycles, low costs, and high safety, modelling efforts were extended to multi-element liquid metals. Two novel positive electrodes were designed, resulting in batteries with potentially high coulombic efficiency, energy efficiency, energy density and low energy cost. [6] This study also underscores the importance of identifying optimal features and optimizing their combination to achieve the desired target properties as illustrated in Figure 3. Machine learning has also been applied to the development of personalized medicine, drug delivery BACK TO CONTENTS

In recent times, machine learning has been increasingly applied to 3D printed materials to optimize the additive manufacturing process, enhance material properties, and facilitate the discovery of new materials. Machine learning algorithms can be used to optimize the printing parameters for specific materials. By analyzing the relationships between printing conditions (temperature, speed, layer thickness) and material properties, these algorithms can fine-tune the printing process to achieve better results in terms of structural integrity and surface finish. Machine learning can also be employed to detect and classify defects in 3D printed objects. This includes identifying issues such as layer misalignment, voids, or irregularities in the printed structure. Real-time quality control through machine learning can help ensure that the printed components meet the desired standards. Obviously, given sufficient training data, machine learning models can be constructed to predict the mechanical properties of 3D printed materials based on their composition and printing parameters. In summary, to expedite the discovery and optimization of novel materials while conserving resources, a transition to a data-driven approach utilizing machine learning is WWW.MATERIALSAUSTRALIA.COM.AU

FEATURE – Machine Learning in Materials Science

Dr. Tu Le Dr. Tu Le is a Senior Lecturer at the School of Engineering, RMIT University. Prior to joining RMIT, she was a research scientist at the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation. Over the last 14 years, her research has focused on functional materials development for different of applications using machine learning methods. Figure 3. Feature correlation and importance analysis in predicting melting point. (a) Histogram of the relative importance of all the features, (b) Heatmap of correlation coefficient between different features via the Pearson method. Descriptions of the numbers on the axis are provided on the right. [6]

imperative. The full potential of machine learning, however, hinges on the availability of high-quality, reliable, and reproducible datasets. These datasets can be sourced from published literature, existing databases, or, with the advent of robotics and automation, highthroughput experiments conducted under consistent lab conditions. Ensuring the even representation of elements or materials is crucial to prevent biases in the data. Additionally, careful data processing, including addressing missing data and removing noise or outliers, is essential to prevent the misclassification of high-performing materials. It is noteworthy that in the early stages of exploring the materials research field using machine learning, datasets for training were predominantly sourced

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from published articles, reflecting diverse laboratory conditions. Despite the absence of new experiments to validate predictions in many studies, these initial efforts pave the way for future work, enabling the development of more sophisticated machine learning platforms for efficient exploration of the expansive materials space, with ongoing experimental validations and feedback loops contributing to an evolutionary approach. 1. https://www.sciencedirect. com/science/article/ pii/092702569500002X 2. h ttps://www.sciencedirect. com/science/article/pii/ S2352847817300515#bib53 3. h ttps://doi.org/10.1016/j.

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Her research impact and contributions have been recognized through many awards and grants, such as the prestigious Vice Chancellor’s Fellowship at RMIT University, Jacques-Emile Dubois award, CASS Foundation travel grant, and the joint Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science – Australian Academy of Science grant for attending the HOPE meeting with Nobel Laureates.

isci.2021.103068 4. h ttps://chemrxiv.org/ engage/chemrxiv/articledetails/631d528a49042ad4acd30fcc 5. h ttps://doi.org/10.1021/acs. jctc.2c00270 6. https://doi.org/10.1016/j. ensm.2022.12.047 7. https://www.nature.com/articles/ s41598-018-36597-5

SEPTEMBER 2023 | 53

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https://www.materialsaustralia.com.au/training-courses-and-workshops/online-training BASICS OF HEAT TREATING

Steel is the most common and the most important structural material. In order to properly select and apply this basic engineering material, it is necessary to have a fundamental understanding of the structure of steel and how it can be modified to suit its application. The course is designed as a basic introduction to the fundamentals of steel heat treatment and metallurgical processing. Read More

HOW TO ORGANISE AND RUN A FAILURE INVESTIGATION

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This course provides students with a fundamental understanding of the design process necessary to make robust medical devices. Fracture, fatigue, stress analysis, and corrosion design validation approaches are examined, and real-world medical device design validations are reviewed. Further, since failures often provide us with important information about any design, mechanical and materials failure analysis techniques are covered. Several medical device failure analysis case studies are provided. Read More

HEAT TREATING FURNACES AND EQUIPMENT

This course is designed as an extension of the Introduction to Heat Treatment course. It discusses advanced concepts in thermal and thermo-chemical surface treatments, such as case hardening, as well as the principles of thermal engineering (furnace design). Read More

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PRACTICAL INDUCTION HEAT TREATING

This course provides essential knowledge to those who do not have a technical background in metallurgical engineering, but have a need to understand more about the technical aspects of steel manufacturing, properties and applications. Read More

Taking a fundamentals approach, this course is presented as an introduction to the world of induction heat treating. The course will cover the role of induction heating in producing reliable products, as well as the considerable savings in energy, labor, space, and time. You will gain in-depth knowledge on topics such as selecting equipment, designs of multiple systems, current application, and sources and solutions of induction heat treating problems. Read More

PRINCIPLES OF FAILURE ANALYSIS

TITANIUM AND ITS ALLOYS

METALLURGY OF STEEL FOR THE NON-METALLURGIST

Profit from failure analysis techniques, understand general failure analysis procedures, learn fundamental sources of failures. This course is designed to bridge the gap between theory and practice of failure analysis. Read More

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Titanium occupies an important position in the family of metals because of its light weight and corrosion resistance. Its unique combination of physical, chemical and mechanical properties, make titanium alloys attractive for aerospace and industrial applications. Read More

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Materials Australia Magazine | September 2023 | Volume 56 | No.3

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From the President