My group focuses on understanding and quantifying the degradation of the performance of materials caused by interactions with their environments. These interactions impact the materials’ safety, reliability, and sustainability during the service lifetimes of the engineering structures. By understanding the controlling processes, we can develop predictive models of corrosion performance for real-life applications such as aircraft, ships, civil infrastructure, and biomedical devices.
Additively manufactured (AM) or 3D printed metallic materials are becoming increasingly important in ship and submarine construction due to a range of challenges in the supply chain for alloys made with traditional manufacturing. Assessing the resistance of these materials to corrosion by seawater is critical in their successful incorporation into marine structures. My group is at the forefront of characterizing and understanding the corrosion behavior of a wide range of metallic materials. The student project will involve performing and analyzing both electrochemical and immersion corrosion testing of AM stainless steel samples in collaboration with T.J. Montoya, one of my senior graduate students. The student will learn to use electrochemical methods extensively due to their high sensitivity and wide dynamic range in the measurement of reaction rates. The student will also apply advanced measurement methods including optical profilometry, electron microscopy, and multi-physics computational tools to help connect the electrochemical measurements to physical damage (e.g., loss of material, cracking). This information will inform material development and advancement of corrosion protection methods. The results of this work will have a direct impact on material selection decisions and improve the AM processing for the next generation of submarines.
1. Ability to ask questions about what they are being taught when they are unsure
2. Willingness to develop new skills
3. Good note-keeping
4. Ability to work in a team environment
1. The student will be able to determine whether they want to further pursue research as a possible career path.
2. The student will learn a range of materials science skills and concepts
3. The student will develop a better understanding of the role of materials in the performance of engineering structures.
4. The student will learn how to document their work and manage their time which will be helpful throughout their career.