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The American Ceramic Society is pleased to announce that 18 members will be elevated to Fellow status in 2013. The Fellow designation recognizes ACerS members who have distinguished themselves through outstanding contributions to the ceramic arts or sciences, broad and productive scholarship in ceramic science and technology, conspicuous achievement in ceramic industry, or by outstanding service to the Society.

The 2013 Class of Fellows comes from an international cross-section of leaders in academia, research labs, industry and government. The new Fellows will be recognized at ACerS’ Annual Honors and Awards Banquet on Oct. 28, 2013 in Montréal, Québec Canada. The event is part of the Society’s Annual Meeting, which will be held in conjunction with Materials Science & Technology 2013 Conference and Exposition (MS&T’13).

• Monika Backhaus-Ricoult, Corning Incorporated, Corning, N.Y
• Alida Bellosi, CNR-ISTEC, Faenza, Italy
• Lennart Bergström, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
• Christopher Berndt, Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
• Susmita Bose, Washington State University, Pullman, Wash.
• Xiang Ming Chen, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
• Paul Clem, Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, N. Mex.
• Bill Hammetter, Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, N. Mex.
• Yoshihiko Imanaka, Fujitsu Laboratories Ltd., Kawasaki, Japan
• Jacqueline A. Johnson, University of Tennessee Space Institute, Tullahoma, Tenn.
• Yutai Katoh, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tenn.
• Allan P. Katz, Air Force Research Laboratory, Dayton, Ohio
• Do Kyung Kim, KAIST (Korea Advanced Inst. of Sci. & Tech.), Daejeon, Republic of Korea
• Martha Mecartney, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, Calif.
• Shashank Priya, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, Va.
• Jeffry W. Stevenson, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, Wash.
• Omer Van der Biest, Leuven University, Leuven, Belgium
• Zhong Lin Wang, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Ga.

Congratulations to the new Fellows!

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The editors of R&D Magazine have announced the R&D 100 winners for 2012.

In a press release, editorial director Rita Peters said, “As the R&D 100 Awards marks 50 years of celebrating innovation, the editors are pleased to present this year’s winners as prime examples of advances in science and technology. Despite a slow economy, the competition experienced a near record number of entries from around the world. This demonstrates that researchers are committed to innovate.”

The award recipients will be recognized at the R&D 100 Awards banquet in November. This year’s winners come from the ranks of industry (large and small), national labs, academia and international entities. As in previous years, many of the award-winning innovations are in materials science. Here is a sampling.

High-Energy Concentration-Gradient Cathode Material for Plug-in Hybrids and All-Electric Vehicles (Energy Technologies)
Argonne National Laboratory with Hanyang University and ECOPRO Co. Ltd.

Ultra-fast and Large-scale Boriding
Argonne National Laboratory with Istanbul Technical University and Bodycote Thermal Processing

Plexiglas Rnew Biopolymer Alloys
Arkema Inc. with Arkema France - G. R. L.

Platinum Monolayer Electrocatalysts for Fuel Cell Cathodes
Brookhaven National Laboratory with N.E. Chemcat Corporation

Landmark Solaris Platinum solar reflective roofing shingles
CertainTeed

ae Plasma - Atmospheric environment plasma coating technology
Industrial Technology Research Institute, Taiwan

Light&Light - A19 LED Light Bulb Technology
Industrial Technology Research Institute, Taiwan

PComP
MesoCoat Inc. with Powdermet Inc.

Concrete Coth
Milliken & Company with Concrete Canvas Ltd.

ResQ FR Fabrics
Milliken & Company

NPM 3100
NanoSteel Company Inc.

SJ3 Solar Cell
National Renewable Energy Laboratory with Solar Junction

Highest Pinning Force, High-Temperature Superconducting Wires with Double-Perovskite, Tantalate, Nano-Pinning Centers
Oak Ridge National Laboratory

NanoSHIELD Coatings [Nano - Super Hard - InExpensive - Laser Deposited Coatings]
Oak Ridge National Laboratory

Graphene Nanostructures for Lithium Batteries
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory with Vorbeck Materials and Princeton University

Hybrid Ceramic-Sand Core Casting Technology
Southwest Research Institute with Grainger and Worrall Ltd

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A new paper out of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory reminds us that alternative energy technologies are systems composed of many elements, and that the supporting elements of the system can affect overall efficiency as much as the energy conversion technology itself. In this case, the researchers gained record efficiencies of nearly 60 percent for small solid oxide fuel cells through a clever design of the fuel delivery system.

The PNNL team led by Vincent Sprenkle, chief engineer of PNNL’s SOFC program, built a pilot system that could generate about 2 kilowatts of power, enough to power a typical American home. This approach is different from the usual SOFC development tack. In a press release from PNNL, Sprenkle says, “Solid oxide fuels cells are a promising technology for providing clean, efficient energy. But, until now, most people have focused on larger systems that produce 1 megawatt of power or more and can replace traditional [utility] power plants.” With this research, the group was interested in SOFC-generated power that could be scaled in a distributed-power model for a neighborhood of 50-100 homes.

Methane is used the fuel source, and the group developed an external steam reforming process to convert the methane to hydrogen and carbon monoxide. The heat required to drive the steam reforming process is harvested from the exhaust from the SOFC, which is fed through a microchannel heat exchanger. The microchannels are narrower than a paper clip wire, and by using several of them, the surface area of the heat exchanger is maximized, making the process more efficient. Also, any fuel that passes through the SOFC is captured and recirclulated through the system, also increasing efficiency.

According to the paper’s abstract, “the single-pass fuel utilization is only about 55 percent, [but] because of the anode gas recirculation the overall fuel utilization is up to 93 percent.” The demonstration system achieved power outputs ranging from 1.65 kilowatts to 2.15 kilowatts. The maximum efficiency of 56.6 percent occurred at 1.72 kilowatts output. The group expects that the system’s efficiency can be pushed to over 60 percent with the use of properly sized blowers.

For full details, see “Demonstration of a highly efficient solid oxide fuel cell power system using adiabatic steam reforming and anode gas recirculation,” M. Powell, K. Meinhardt, V. Sprenkle, L. Chick and G. McVay, Journal of Power Sources, Volume 205

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ARPA-E announced $31.6 million in awards to develop new, rare-earth-free permanent magnet materials. Credit: ARPA-E

Rare earth permanent magnets are key components in electric vehicle motors and in wind turbine electricity generators, and international concern over the economics of rare-earth raw materials has been well documented here and elsewhere. DOE is addressing the issue from the technology side through its ARPA-E program, REACT—Rare Earth Alternatives in Critical Technologies—whose mission is to develop substitute materials for rare earth permanent magnets.

Last Friday ARPA-E director, Arun Majumdar, announced awards of $156 million for 60 projects in five of the agency’s program areas. In the REACT program, 14 projects were funded with $31.6 million in awards that ranged from about $400k to $3.4 million.

Here is a capsule summary of the projects. Except for the first two projects, awardees are partnering with other organizations. Only the lead organization is listed.

• Case Western Reserve University
  “Transformation Enabled Nitride Magnets Absent Rare Earths”
  Investigators will use micro-alloying of iron-nitride alloys with the goal of demonstrating a new magnet system, containing no rare earths, in a prototype electric motor.
• Dartmouth College
  “Nanocrystalline τ-MnAl Permanent”
  Investigators will create bulk nanocrystalline manganese-aluminum alloys with the goal of developing a subsequently scalable process that demonstrates magnetic properties for bulk magnets.
• University of Houston
  “High Performance, Low Cost Superconducting Wires and Coils for High Power Wind Generators”
  The UH team will develop a high-performance, low-cost superconducting wire and demonstrate an advanced manufacturing process that, if successful, has the potential to yield a several-fold reduction in wire costs.
• Northeastern University
  “Multiscale Development of L1₀ Materials for Rare-Earth-Free Permanent Magnets”
  A unique iron-nickel crystal structure is found naturally in meteorites and the team will apply advanced synthesis to artificially create this magnetic material structure. The goal is to demonstrate bulk magnetic properties with subsequently scalable fabrication processes.
• QM Power
  “Advanced Electric Vehicle Motors with Low or No Rare Earth Content”
  The team will develop a motor that uses no rare earth materials, is light and compact, and potentially delivers more power with greater efficiency at less cost. Key innovations will include a new motor design, emerging materials and advanced manufacturing techniques to reduce costs.
• Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
  “Manganese-Based Permanent Magnet with 40 MGOe at 200°C”
  PNNL will develop a composite using manganese materials, which have the potential to double the magnetic strength relative to those being used today, by leveraging high-performance supercomputer modeling and synthesis experiments of various metal composite formulations that do not contain rare earths.
• University of Alabama
  “Rare‐Earth‐Free Permanent Magnets for Electrical Vehicle Motors and Wind Turbine Generators: Hexagonal Symmetry Based Materials Systems Mn‐Bi and M‐type Hexaferrite”
  The team will demonstrate advanced magnetic properties of new magnetic composite materials.
• Argonne National Laboratory
  “Nanocomposite Exchange-Spring Magnets for Motor and Generator Applications”
  ANL will create a new class of permanent magnets based on a metal composite magnet design containing a blend of very small particles embedded in a matrix in aligned arrays.
• Brookhaven National Laboratory
  “Superconducting Wires for Direct-Drive Wind Generators”
  In this project, the team will develop a new high-performance superconducting wire that can handle significantly more electrical current, and will demonstrate an advanced manufacturing process that has the potential to yield a several-fold reduction in wire costs.
• Baldor Electric Company
  “Rare Earth-Free Traction Motor for Electric Vehicle Applications”
  The project goal is to develop a new type of electric motor with the potential to efficiently power a next generation class of electric vehicles. Key innovations include an innovative motor design a unique cooling system, and development of advanced materials manufacturing techniques.
• General Atomics
  “Double-Stator Switched Reluctance Motor Technology”
  This project will focus on improving the performance and enhancing the manufacturability of the unique “double stator” motor design, initially investigated at UT-Dallas, for transportation applications.
• Virginia Commonwealth University
  “Discovery and Design of Novel Permanent Magnets using Non-strategic Elements having Secure Supply Chains”
  The project will demonstrate a new class of permanent magnets based on a carbide-based composite magnet.
• University of Minnesota
  “Synthesis and Phase Stabilization of Body Center Tetragonal Metastable Fe-N Anisotropic Nanocomposite Magnet- A Path to Fabricate Rare Earth Free Magnet”
  This is a project to develop an early-stage prototype of bulk iron-nitride permanent magnet material.
• Ames Laboratory
  “Novel High Energy Permanent Magnet Without Critical Elements”
  Ames Laboratory and its team members will develop a new class of permanent magnets from on cerium based alloys. Cerium is four times more abundant than neodymium.

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While nuclear energy policy issues are being worked out on a nation-by-nation basis, research on technological challenges continues apace, at least for now. Disposal of high-level nuclear waste is an essential, but expensive, part of the nuclear energy cycle.

Nuclear waste glasses are borosilicate compositions. Aluminum from fuel rod claddings enters the waste stream and brings a fair amount of sodium along with it. (Aluminum cladding is dissolved in nitric acid, which is then neutralized with sodium hydroxide.) The aluminum concentration limits the amount of waste that can be loaded into a glass composition because the presence of it and sodium leads to crystallization of nepheline (NaAlSiO₄).

Precipitation of nepheline has two detrimental effects. First, it pulls glass forming constituents out of the glass, and second, nepheline has less long-term durability than the glass phase. The first effect-loss of glass formers-reduces the waste load that can be accommodated, which means increased costs to produce and store larger volumes of waste glasses.

A key question is how much aluminum can be loaded into the glass formulation. A new paper published in the International Journal of Applied Glass Science looks at this question. A group out of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory compiled historical data for 523 simulated waste glass compositions and analyzed the amount of nepheline crystallized as a function of composition.

Two approaches were used: plotting of nepheline volume fractions on the Al₂O₃-SiO₂-Na₂O phase diagram for three boron content ranges, and mapping of compositions into a quadrant system based on two indicators, those being “nepheline discriminator” and “optical basicity.”

Using the phase diagram approach, nepheline volume fractions were plotted on the ternary diagram for three ranges of boron content (less than 5 weight percent, 5 to 10 weight percent, and more that 10 weight percent).

The quadrant system evaluates compositions based on a plot of optical basicity against “nepheline discriminator.” The ND is a composition-based index to predict compositions that are more susceptible to nepheline crystallization and is a function of the silica content normalized to the overall composition.

Optical basicity is related to the overall state of oxygen in the glass melt, and therefore is related to the glass structure. (It’s linked to the dissociation of silicates to produce oxygen ions in the melt, similar to the way acids dissociate to produce hydrogen ions in aqueous solutions.) OB is useful to predict trends in transport properties, such as viscosity, diffusion, electrical and thermal conductivity, etc. It is expected that nepheline will not form for compositions below a certain threshold ND and OB levels.

Data were analyzed with these two frameworks for 523 compositions.

Two results emerged from the phase diagram plots: the nepheline formation region is smaller for higher B₂O₃ compositions, and there are regions in the low-Na₂O side of the ternary where nepheline does not form, despite high alumina contents.

The ND analysis showed that nepheline formation is suppressed for high-silica compositions. Nepheline crystallization is not expected for low OB values. The paper explains, “Reducing OB requires adding acidic components or removing very basic components.” That is, to reduce the OB in high-Al₂O₃ glasses, Na₂O must be reduced (increasing Al₂O₃ content), or substituting in lower basicity alkali or alkaline earth elements, or increasing B₂O₃ content. The paper notes, “A trade-off is reached when adding components that reduce waste loading.”

By working the trade-off, for example, by using ND to identify favorable compositions on the ternary diagram and then modifying compositions for optimal OB, it may be possible to expand the “composition space [that] is available for formulating high waste loading.”

This study only considered the thermodynamic aspect of crystallization, but the authors note that the kinetics of cooling and heat treatment are important in the nucleation and crystal growth process. The researchers suggest that kinetics also may help expand the range of desirable waste glass compositions.

See “Nepheline Crystallization in Nuclear Waste Glasses: Progress Toward Acceptance of High-Alumina Formulations,” by John S. McCloy et al. (doi: 10.1111/j.2041-1294.2011.00055.x).

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