Termine

This lecture will present several applications of digitalization in the area of material science that have been developed at Fraunhofer HTL. We will touch on multiple steps along the chain of material development, from the analysis of a given materials, to the design of new materials, and finally to the optimization of production processes.

In the first part of the lecture, we will talk about the analysis of ceramic materials using non-destructive testing. As an example, we will consider refractories, which play an important role in energy-intensive industries. We will demonstrate the application of neural networks for 3D-segmentation of computed tomography images of the microstructure of refractory samples. The information from the analysis can be combined with simulations in order to understand how defects in a material limit its lifetime and to identify potential improvements.

The second part of the lecture will be about the design of novel materials. Here, we will show how microstructure simulations are used to predict the material properties of composite ceramic materials in the Alumina-Zirconia system. This approach allows us to rapidly sample the multi-dimensional design space and develop new compositions tailored to achieving desired material properties.

Finally, we will present how digital methods can help increase efficiency in debinding and sintering processes of ceramics materials. Using custom material models, we can predict the degree of debinding and the shrinkage of ceramic green bodies based on the ambient conditions in the production furnace. In this way, optimal temperature cycles can be determined to maximize energy efficiency or reduce the likelihood of defective parts.