Advancements in MEMS materials and processing technology

From achievements in display imaging to air bag deployment, microelectromechanical systems are becoming more commonplace in everyday life. With an abundance of opportunities for innovative R&D in the field, the research trends are not only directed toward novel sensor and actuator development, but also toward further miniaturization, specifically achieving micro- and nanoscaled integrated systems. R&D efforts in space, military, and commercial applications are directing specific research programs focused on the area of materials science as an enabling technology to be exploited by researchers and to further push the envelope of micrometerscaled device technology. These endeavors are making significant progress in bringing this aspect of the microelectro-mechanical field to maturation through advances in materials and processing technologies. John D. Olivas earned his Ph.D. in mechanical engineering and materials science from Rice University in 1996. He is currently a program element manager and staff engineer senior for the Advance Interconnect and Manufacturing Assurance Program at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Stephen R. Bolin earned his M.S. in materials science from Stanford University in 1970. He is currently staff engineer senior and supervisor of the Applications Engineering Group in the Quality Assurance Office at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.     

Magnesium technology 2002, part I: Primary production,environmental issues,high-temperature alloys

Conclusion It is expected that the research in high-temperature alloy development will reach a critical mass in about five years. This will not only raise the materials science of magnesium to a higher level but will also increase the confidence of the industry in magnesium as a structural performance material. Currently, applications are being actively pursued in United States Council for Automotive Research power train programs and European Council for Automotive R&D engine block programs to develop the technology for elevated-temperature magnesium. More research is still needed in this interesting materials field.     

Release-Engineering — An Approach to Control Rising System-Complexity

This paper presents an innovative approach to augment R&D effectiveness and manage increasing system complexity. Release-Engineering is a principle of software engineering which can be transferred to complex automotive systems. Simulations based on features show significant reduction of internal complexity. Without reduction of necessary marketwise diversity, a time wise bundling of component changes exponentially lowers system complexity. The approach represents a major step towards more significant innovation programmes through suitable, dedicated R&D efforts on system variants. Another meaningful implication of Release-Engineering is its impact on innovation frequency by providing significant increases in innovation rates.     

Technological and scientific landscape of laser cladding process in 2007

In the last 30 years, public and private organizations involvement in laser cladding R&D activities is increasing. These activities are mainly conducted in universities, public research institutes and technical centres of private companies worldwide. This study shows a bibliometric analysis of the patents and scientific publications in the laser cladding field for the period ranging from 1985 to 2007. This seeks to identify the activity and trends in its environment for strategic purposes. All the laser cladding processes and all the substrates (steel, aluminium and superalloys) used for coating, repairing and 3D fabrication were taken into account. At first, the world patent production was analysed in terms of volume (580 patent families found since 1985), frequency and applications. Then, the same strategy was applied to the scientific publications for a total volume of 588 targeted papers. Using bibliometric techniques, an analysis and mapping of the information was performed to highlight the temporal, geographical and institutional aspects of R&D activities. The patented applications were also classified in order to identify opportunities. This study shows the evolution of the scientific and technological environments of the laser cladding technology and can help public or private organizations to generate new ideas, gain awareness of emerging trends and validate the relevance of projects.     

Borosilicate glass and synroc R&;D for radioactive waste immobilization: An international perspective

This article provides a content analysis of publications on borosilicate glass and synroc, which are most widely used today for the immobilization of high-level radioactive wastes. Covering a period of 30 years, this study highlights the publication trends, the most productive countries, the language most frequently used, and the different categories of publications in these two subject areas. The research focuses on R&D efforts of different institutions and laboratories in these fields. For more information, contact S. Deokattey, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Library & Information Services Division, Trombay, Mumbai-400 085, India; e-mail clibscd6@magnum.barc.ernet.in.     

The development of titanium science and technology in India

India occupies a prominent place among the countries with titanium resources. Although there is no domestic commercial production of titanium sponge, tonnage quantities of imported sponge are melted and converted into mill products and fabricated into equipment. A wide spectrum of R&D activities have been carried out in the last 20–30 years pertaining to beneficiation of ilmenite, production of primary metal, refining, alloy development, products development, characterization, melting, mechanical processing, forging, casting, welding, and coating. In this paper, the developments and current status of titanium science and technology in India are reviewed. S. Rao earned his Ph.D. in metallurgy-technology at Bombay University in 1982. He is currently a research scientist at the Defence Metallurgical Research Laboratory, Hyderabad, India.     

Laser-aided manufacturing in Ukraine

Started in the early 1960s, R&D development in laser technology in Ukraine is still in progress in spite of some decline in 1990–1993 caused by drastic political and economic changes in the country. There are, indeed, some interesting and original results in all known industrial applications. Some of them are presented in this report. The international ties with colleagues and joint projects with copartners from different countries are becoming common practice. The significant intellectual potential and gained research and industrial experience serve as a basis for more than 40 years of academic activity in laser technology in the country. Graduates of the Laser Technology and Materials Science Department of the Kiev Polytechnic Institute (engineers, masters, PhD holders) are quite successful in their career both in Ukraine and in different countries of the world. Collaboration within the framework of the European Union as well as with different institutions in North America and Asian countries is increasing quite rapidly. The text was submitted by the author in English.     

美国热处理技术发展路线图在行动

美国能源部工业技术局（DOE—OIT）、金属学会热处理学会（ASM—HTS）和热处理协会（HTI）于1996年2月召集20名热处理专业厂、全能厂、设备制造厂的专家和领导讨论并提出了美国热处理2020年设想和目标，于1997年由17名专家组成的热处理学会研发委员会提出了热处理技术发展路线图初稿和70个重点研发项目。2004年公布了“2004年热处理技术路线图HTS修订稿”。该路线图提出了2020年美国热处理生产技术发展的目标是：能耗降低80％，工艺周期缩短50％，生产成本降低75％，热处理畸变为0，热处理件质量分散度为0，热处理炉寿命提高到原来的10倍，热处理炉价格降低50％，热处理生产对环境的影响是0。为实现路线图目标和完成众多的重点研发项目，ASM—HTS采取了（a）成立热处理技术研发中心和（b）鼓励和组织全行业参与研发两项措施，建立了“热处理高新技术中心”和“热加工技术中心”。本文综述了这两个中心的组织机构、资金来源、研究方向、研发项目（包括热处理工艺、技术管理、数据库、材料、相变、模拟技术、表面改性等）以及研发工作的进展。     

Talking with members of the globalization of materials R&D study

The Committee on Globalization of Materials Research and Development was appointed by the U.S. National Research Council in December 2003. Its charge: to assess the status and impacts of the globalization of materials R&D. The 12-member committee, which included representatives from both U.S. and international academia and industry, published its findings in August 2005 in the form of a report Globalization of Materials R&D —Time for a National Strategy. To gain some perspective on the report's findings, JOM spoke with representatives of the committee, retired from Alcoa; Gordon Geiger, director of the engineering management program and professor of industrial engineering at the University of Arizona; Jennie Hwang, president of H-Technologies Group in Cleveland. Ohio: and Michael Jaffe, director, Medical Device Concept Laboratory of New Jersey Institute of Technology and associate research professor at Rutgers University in Newark, New Jersey. See the sidebar for a listing of the committee's recommendations. The interviews were conducted by e-mail and telephone; respondents chose which questions to answer.     

The integration of process and cost modeling—A powerful tool for business planning

Recent developments in modeling can eliminate much experimental laboratory work and can provide quick answers in a more cost-effective manner. This article presents a brief outline of technical cost modeling, a combination of physical modeling and cost modeling, which may be used to the mutual benefit of both the managerial decision makers and the R&D community within the materials processing field.     

贵金属三效催化剂性能模拟评价方法研究现状

贵金属三效催化剂主要应用于汽油车、压缩天然气车、混合动力车等车型的尾气催化净化,其装车排放及耐久性能的评价是实现高效催化剂研发与应用的关键。基于对近20年来40余篇文献的分析,综述了三效催化剂空燃比特性、起燃特性、储/放氧性能、稳定性的实验室模拟评价方法研究现状,分析了不同模拟评价方法的优势和不足,阐述了模拟评价性能与催化剂装车性能之间的关联性,展望了模拟评价方法研究的重点方向。     

The volume production of GaAs and related compounds by MOVPE

An increasing market for advanced telecommunications has dramatically increased the demand for high-performance heterostructure compound semiconductor devices. Among a variety of epitaxial technologies for compound semiconductor materials growth, metalorganic vapor-phase epitaxy has succeeded in producing a wide variety of epitaxial wafers for optical devices such as laser diodes, optical detectors, and high-brightness light-emitting diodes. Although molecular-beam epitaxy has been applied to high-speed electronic devices, the continuous R&D efforts on metalorganic vaporphase epitaxy have made the technology a valuable alternative. The performance of the most advanced heterostructure devices, such as pseudomorphic high-electron mobility transistors or heterostructure bipolar transistors, greatly depends upon the qualities of the epitaxial wafer, as does the manufacturing cost. In the future, epitaxial materials supply must become a robust, real-production technology in order to keep the cost-performance ratio of the heterostructure devices competitive with other technologies (such as ion-implanted GaAs metal-semiconductor field-effect transistors) and silicon-based devices. Masahiko Hata earned his M.S. in solid-state photochemistry at the University of Kyoto in 1981. He is currently a senior research associate at Sumitomo Chemical Company, Ltd.     

Contribution to the environmental performance of the dry-vibratory drilling technology

The self-vibratory drilling (SVD) is an innovative technology that allows increasing the productivity, without coolant. The aim of this paper is to prove that the environmental impacts of SVD are significantly less than those of traditional drilling (TD) and to quantify them. The study is based on a life cycle analysis of both processes. The major contributor to the environmental impacts in TD is the coolant. The new major contributors in SVD are the twist drills. A model that links the lifespan of the twist drills and the environmental impacts of SVD has been developed to support decisions for R&D.     

Treating hazardous wastes with pulsed-plasma technology

A new, efficient, and environmentally friendly pulsed-plasma technology for hazardous waste treatment is presented. Tests were successfully carried out using modular, transportable laboratory equipment. Experiments were performed using perchloroethylene and trichloroethylene as reference materials and real industrial waste comprising mono- and dichlorobenzene (30–70%). Although the process was not optimized, it was found that complete destruction of about 2 cc of waste per pulse could be achieved with an energy consumption of 7–9 kJ/pulse, which is at least 50% less than the amount of energy required in other thermal methods. This work was performed within the framework of the 4th European Brite Euram R&D Program—“Prometheus.” Handte is with Jakob Handte & Co. GmbH. For more information, contact S. Wald, Soreq NRC, Ballistics and Applied Plasma Sector, Propulsion Physics Laboratory, Yavne, Israel 81800; +972-8-9434347; fax +972-8-9434227; e-mail wald@soreq.gov.il.     

与我国核电发展相关的堆芯关键材料——锆合金国产化问题

评述了我国“十五”期间在堆芯关键结构材料——锆合金的研发与产业化方面的最新进展。说明我国在改进Zr-4和新一代锆合金研究方面取得了明显的突破，材料研究已达国际先进水平；同时进一步完善了2条包壳管材生产线，为我国核电用包壳管的国产化生产提供了基础保障。结合我国核电发展的实际情况，提出了我国要加快建设海绵锆生产厂，建立格架用条带生产线，完善管、板材开坯设备等建议，并指出锆铪分离技术、条带制造方面的织构控制及在线检测技术是需解决的关键技术。文章强调，高燃耗组件用新一代锆合金的研发仍是科研的主要任务。     

Producing thin strips by twin-roll casting—part II: Process modeling and development

Extensive modeling work has appeared over the last decade and has contributed significantly to the fundamental understanding of the physical phenomena involved in twin-roll casting, such as fluid flow, heat transfer, and thermomechanical processing. The commitment of metals producers to the technology is strong, which is evidenced by numerous pilot-scale casters that have been constructed worldwide. Together with the process models, these casters have been instrumental in developing new process designs and in improving and optimizing the performance of existing twin-roll casters. Current R&D efforts are intensive in both the aluminum and the steel industries, with the former aiming to gain a higher productivity and the latter striving to scale up from pilot plants to commercial production.     

The government <Emphasis Type="Italic">is</Emphasis> here to help: a small business perspective

Public-private partnerships between government and industry have been increasingly used as a vehicle for defining and executing R&D activities. Stimulus of smaller technology enterprises in particular is important, and this article explores this topic from the policy level as well as from organizations “on the ground.” The story in brief: challenges and opportunities. Editor’s Note: A hypertext-enhanced version of this article is available on-line at www.tms.org/pubs/journals/JOM/0412/Hunt-0412.html Warren H. Hunt, Jr. is technical consultant at TMS.     

IFHTSE Global 21: heat treatment and surface engineering in twenty-first century Part 17 – Heat treatment and surface engineering in the metals industry in Thailand

Abstract

Manufacturing and the metallurgical industries in Thailand have developed rapidly over the past 30–40 years. For example, the Thai automotive industry has a production capacity of two million vehicles and is now the thirteenth largest in the world. Nearly all large manufacturing plants in the auto- and electronics sectors are joint ventures with multinational companies; the levels of equipment, tooling and technology in these plants, established on purpose built industrial estates, are world class. However, the engineering and parts manufacturing sector in general consists mainly of smaller companies which cannot afford the same levels of investment. In striving to meet increasing competition, these smaller companies encounter problems in productivity, quality, cost reduction, energy efficiency and environmental performance. Against this background the status and future development of heat treatment and surface engineering (HTSE) processes across manufacturing industry in Thailand is reviewed. The increased contributions to improvements in HTSE practice and understanding required from education and training, R&D and technical bodies such as The National Metal and Materials Technology Centre and IFHTSE are considered. It is concluded that, as for other Thai industrial sectors, there should be a ‘master plan’ for HTSE in Thailand.     

Virtual production platform for intelligent quench hardening of large steel moulds for plastic forming

Abstract

An innovative R&D route to improve process design, recently successfully employed by Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU) in cooperation with Fushun Special Steel Co. Ltd and Yanshan University, is described.     

Geothermal energy—A sustainable resource of enormous potential

Geothermal energy is available at many locations on the earth’s surface. This clean and reliable energy has enormous potential and can be used to partially replace the conventional fuels that are currently used; the total magnitude of this resource is much larger than the potential contained in all of the fossil and uranium reserves worldwide. Geothermal energy will become increasingly significant during the next century; enhanced thermal energy R&D is expected to lead to commercial development some time after 2010, depending on energy costs at that time. Phillip M. Wright earned his Ph.D. in geophysics from the University of Utah in 1966. He is currently a research professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and deputy director of the Energy and Geoscience Institute at the University of Utah.