CIEFMA

 

 

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Key words

  • High temperature applications – structural materials
  • Fracture, fatigue and creep
  • SOFCs interconnect (ferritic steels); YSZ
  • Surface modification technology
  • Wear, friction

Structural Integrity and Reliability of Engineering Materials

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General description of the activity

CIEFMA is a Research Center of the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC) whose main aim is to carry out basic science and applied industrial research projects on the field of Structural Integrity, Micromechanics and Reliability of Engineering Materials. Concerning research subjects, CIEFMA’s activities are mainly focused in five specialized areas: (1) structural integrity retention under service conditions of structural (stainless steels, titanium alloys, composites) and tool materials under quite diverse range of applications; (2) mechanical behavior of advanced ceramics and multilayer composites, at both room and high T’s; (3) microstructural design of metallic alloys processed by different manufacturing routes; (4) contact behavior of advanced structural materials; and (5) micromechanics and nanomechanics of both thin films and thick (e.g. thermal- and environmental barrier) coatings. The facilities used for conducting the referred investigations are mechanical testing systems as well as scanning and transmission electron microscopes. Mechanical testing facilities include capabilities for assessing damage evolution, fracture, fatigue and creep behavior under different environments, at both low and high temperatures, and through a wide range of size scales, i.e. from macro- to nano-levels. Micro- and nanomechanical approaches are worked out in close collaboration with UPC’s Center for Research in NanoEngineering (CRnE). 


Specific areas of research energy field

Regarding energy-related aspects, CIEFMA’s research covers different subjects:

 

  • High-temperature structural materials: Turbine technology // Fission and Fusion Energy: The use of structural materials in new applications involving high-temperature oxidation and corrosion requires advanced materials with optimized properties. CIEFMA is equipped to conduct fracture and fatigue tests at medium (300-600 ºC) and high (above 600ºC up to 1400 ºC) temperatures, and shows an extended expertise in such characterization activities in high-T metallic and ceramic materials. 
  • Solid Oxide Fuel Cells (SOFC) – Fuel cell technology: SOFCs are an attractive option relative to other fuel cells. CIEFMA’s research in this area focused on the optimization of ferritic stainless steels (surface texture) as interconnects as well as assessment of the functional behavior of Yttria Stabilized Zirconia (YSZ) layer as electrolyte (higher ion conductivity combined to reduced thickness).
  • Reduction of wear and friction in components: Low friction and hard coatings are increasingly being used to improve the tribological performance of engineering components. Among them, diamond like carbon (DLC) coatings are those of most extended use. CIEFMA’s research in this subject aims to optimize the microstructural design of DLC-coated systems through an understanding of the micromechanical damage resulting from contact and repetitive loading.