LightForm: Embedding Materials Engineering in Manufacturing with Light Alloys

Completed

Energy Efficiency(Transport)
Not Energy Related

Basic and strategic applied research

PHYSICAL SCIENCES AND MATHEMATICS (Metallurgy and Materials)
ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY (Mechanical, Aeronautical and Manufacturing Engineering)

Not Cross-cutting

Dr J Quinta da Fonseca
Materials
University of Manchester

Standard

EPSRC

19 October 2017

18 October 2023

72 months

£4,827,337

Mathematical sciences

North West

NC : Engineering

Dr J Quinta da Fonseca, Materials, University of Manchester

Dr M Curioni, Materials, University of Manchester
Dr SJ Haigh, Materials, University of Manchester
Dr J J Jiang, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Imperial College London
Dr N Li, Design Engineering (Dyson School, Imperial College London
Professor J Lin, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Imperial College London
Professor P Prangnell, Materials, University of Manchester
Dr JD Robson, Materials, University of Manchester
Dr P Shanthraj, Materials, University of Manchester
Dr H R Shercliff, Engineering, University of Cambridge
Dr X Zhou, Materials, University of Manchester

Project Contact, Rolls-Royce PLC
Project Contact, Otto Fuchs KG, Germany
Project Contact, Luxfer Gas Cylinders Limited
Project Contact, Innoval Technology Ltd
Project Contact, Institute of Materials, Minerals & Mining (IOM3)
Project Contact, BAE Systems Integrated System Technologies Limited
Project Contact, Stadco Automotive Ltd
Project Contact, Bombardier Aerospace, Canada
Project Contact, Doncasters Group Ltd
Project Contact, Jaguar Land Rover Limited
Project Contact, Novelis Global Technology Centre, USA
Project Contact, ESI Group, France
Project Contact, Crown Packaging Plc
Project Contact, Bentley Motors Ltd
Project Contact, Hermith GmbH, Germany
Project Contact, Northern Automotive Alliance
Project Contact, Impression Technologies Ltd
Project Contact, PAB Coventry Limited
Project Contact, Magnesium Elektron Ltd
Project Contact, Beijing Institute of Aeronautical Materials (BIAM)
Project Contact, WMG Catapult
Project Contact, Norsk Hydro ASA, Norway
Project Contact, Primetals Technologies Ltd (UK)
Project Contact, Airbus UK Ltd
Project Contact, Timet UK Ltd
Project Contact, DSTL - Defence Science and Technology Laboratory
Project Contact, Constellium UK Limited

Forming components from light alloys (aluminium, titanium and magnesium) is extremely important to sustainable transport because they can save over 40% weight, compared to steel, and are far cheaper and more recyclable than composites. This has led to rapid market growth, where light alloys are set to dominate the automotive sector. Remaining globally competitive in light metals technologies is also critical to the UK's, aerospace and defence industries, which are major exporters. For example, Jaguar Land Rover already produces fully aluminium car bodies and titanium is extensively used in aerospace products by Airbus and Rolls Royce. 85% of the market in light alloys is in wrought products, formed by pressing, or forging, to make components.Traditional manufacturing creates a conflict between increasing a material's properties, (to increase performance), and manufacturability; i.e. the stronger a material is, the more difficult and costly it is to form into a part. This is because the development of new materials by suppliers occurs largely independently of manufacturers, and ever more alloy compositions are developed to achieve higher performance, which creates problems with scrap separation preventing closed loop recycling. Thus, often manufacturability restricts performance. For example, in car bodies only medium strength aluminium grades are currently used because it is no good having a very strong alloy that can't be made into the required shape. In cases when high strength levels are needed, such as in aerospace, specialised forming processes are used which add huge cost.To solve this conundrum, LightForm will develop the science and modelling capability needed for a new holistic approach, whereby performance AND manufacturability can both be increased, through developing a step change in our ability to intelligently and precisely engineer the properties of a material during the forming of advanced components. This will be achieved by understanding how the manufacturing process itself can be used to manipulate the material structure at the microscopic scale, so we can start with a soft, formable, material and simultaneously improve and tailor its properties while we shape it into the final product. For example, alloys are already designed to 'bake harden' after being formed when the paint on a car is cured in an oven. However, we want to push this idea much further, both in terms of performance and property prediction. For example, we already have evidence we can double the strength of aluminium alloys currently used in car bodies by new synergistic hybrid deformation and heat treatment processing methods.To do this, we need to better understand how materials act as dynamic systems and design them to feed back to different forming conditions. We also aim to exploit exciting developments in powerful new techniques that will allow us to see how materials behave in industrial processes in real time, using facilities like the Diamond x-raysynchrotron, and modern modelling methods. By capturing these effects in physical models, and integrating them into engineering codes, we will be able to embed microstructure engineering in new flexible forming technologies, that don't use fixed tooling, and enable accurate prediction of properties at the design stage - thus accelerating time to market and the customisation of products.Our approach also offers the possibility to tailor a wide range of properties with one alloy - allowing us to make products that can be more easily closed-loop recycled. We will also use embedded microstructure engineering to extend the formability of high-performance aerospace materials to increase precision and decrease energy requirements in forming, reducing the current high cost to industry.

04/01/19