Real-time in-line microstructural engineering for new generation steels using electromagnetic NDT sensors

This project is a fantastic opportunity for someone to join the Advanced Steels Research Centre, at WMG, University of Warwick. An internationally leading centre for steel research, the ASRC is located in the new Advanced Manufacturing and Materials building and has benefited from over £3 million investment in new equipment.

The steels processing group consists of five academic staff, over ten research fellows, and twenty PhD students working in steel processing, characterisation and applications. You will join an established group with opportunities for collaborative as well as individual research, and benefit from new facilities and a supportive environment. The ASRC has strong links with industry, with many projects being sponsored and opportunities exit for placements within industry.

PROJECT OVERVIEW
Steel continues to be the most used material in the world by value, and plays an essential role in all aspects of society, from construction to transport, energy generation to food production.

The ability to measure the microstructure of steel in a non-contact, non-destructive fashion can lead to dramatic improvement in the understanding of the material and its behaviour during processing and in service.

Improved control during processing will increase efficiency in production of complex steel microstructures and allow new generation alloys to be made. Recent development of an on-line electromagnetic (EM) measurement system, EMspecTM (developed during collaborations between research groups at WMG, the University of Manchester, Tata Steel and Primetals Technology Limited) means the microstructure of strip steel can be monitored during hot processing in a steel strip mill.

This project will investigate the potential for real-time microstructure engineering during processing via dynamic control of cooling strategies or heat treatment using EM sensor feedback, in particular consideration on how to engineer microstructures that were previously either impossible to achieve in full scale production or could not be reliably achieved.

The work will involve investigation of the full magnetic – electrical – temperature – stress behaviour of steels (experimentally and by modelling) and use a dynamic thermal simulator, consisting of a furnace, run out table with cooling sprays and EMspecTM system, to engineer specific microstructures.

You will join a team of six researchers working on EM sensors, and undertake work in the non-destructive testing laboratory within the ASRC. The project is co-funded by WMG and Tata Steel UK. You will be based at WMG, University of Warwick.