A new UK research initiative announced today will explore new methods to manufacture materials for extreme environments, starting with those used in fusion machines.
The project, called DIADEM (Design of Interfaces for Additively Engineered Metamaterials), is led by researchers at the Centre for Additive Manufacturing (CfAM) at the University of Nottingham, an internationally leading additive manufacturing research group, in partnership with the UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA), the UK's national fusion energy research organisation. The initiative is funded by the UKRI Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council's (EPSRC) Adventurous Manufacturing programme, and supported by industrial partners including Rolls Royce, the MTC and Aerosint.
DIADEM is initially focusing on solving one of the key challenges in the development of fusion technology – how to simultaneously process two fundamentally different materials – tungsten and copper – together, in order to manufacture the components that will be used in future fusion power plants.
Fusion machines require specific materials that can operate under complex conditions including extreme temperatures. Tungsten's exceptional heat resilience and copper's heat conductivity make them ideal candidates. However, combining these two metals presents a unique challenge due to their vastly different thermal properties, such as melting points, thermal conductivities, and mechanical behaviours. Traditional manufacturing methods are unable to combine the metals effectively, but emerging additive manufacturing techniques offer new opportunities.
The project will utilise a novel approach known as Multi-Metal Laser Powder Bed Fusion (MM-LPBF), an additive manufacturing technique that offers precise control over the composition and structure of materials at multiple scales, from micro to macro.
This method allows different metals to be fused together in a highly controlled manner to create new materials with unique properties. By using MM-LPBF, DIADEM will create 'metamaterials' with varying compositions at different scales. This process aims to improve on traditional manufacturing methods, which are more prone to cracking, void formation, and thermal stress at the metal-metal boundary. This will be particularly beneficial with components that need to endure complex conditions such as extreme heat flux, high neutron load and strong magnetic fields, such as plasma-facing components (PFCs).
DIADEM's innovations will support technology critical for a wide range of fusion programmes including STEP, the UK's prototype fusion power plant targeting operation in 2040, and private fusion projects, aiming to improve the energy efficiency and durability of future fusion power plants.
Allan Harte, Fusion Technology Research Portfolio Manager at UKAEA, said: "Fusion promises to be a safe, low-carbon, sustainable part of the world's future energy supply, and the UK has a great opportunity to become a global exporter of fusion technology.
"However, achieving fusion means solving complex challenges. This project, leveraging additive manufacturing to help manufacture key fusion components, forms part of UKAEA's ongoing efforts to bring fusion energy closer to commercial reality."
Joining two dissimilar metals has been a critical problem for the fusion sector, where the ability to blend two metals together is imperative for progress in this area. Using this state-of-the-art multi-material additive manufacturing technique for fusion energy is just the first application - in the future, DIADEM will benefit any sector where high-performance, multi-metal components are required, such as aerospace, defence and healthcare. By mastering multi-metal additive manufacturing, we're opening the door to a new generation of engineered materials.
Dr Kedar Pandya, Executive Director for Strategy at EPSRC, said: "EPSRC are investing in adventurous research that pushes the boundaries of what's possible in manufacturing.
"By pioneering new ways to fuse metals for extreme environments, this project is helping to tackle one of fusion energy's toughest challenges. This research is working towards making fusion energy a reality with the potential to bring clean and sustainable energy to people across the country."
The launch of DIADEM complements UKAEA's recent deployment of new additive manufacturing technology at its Culham Campus in Oxfordshire and existing additive manufacturing technology at the Fusion Technology Facility in Rotherham.
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