PhD Fatigue behaviour of NiTi architectured materials obtained by additive manufacturing

Attractive salary and international project ! 

In addition to international collaborations (6-12 months in Australia), and to the work in I2M Bordeaux, the student will work with the PIMM in Paris and a start-up in the field of additive manufacturing.

Apply here before end of January: https://aufrande.eu/position/dc-40/ . 

The superelastic or shape-memory effects of NiTi alloys make them excellent candidates for applications in the transport, space and medical sectors. Superelasticity (SE) allows the alloy to deform reversibly over very large deformation ranges. The shape memory effect (SMA) is the ability of a part to change shape by heating, even after significant deformation, for example actuators that allow the solar panels on satellites to be deployed simply by heating a shape memory part. Applications cover a wide range of fields, from medical applications (stents, endodontic files, flexible glasses) to smart wheels for cars and even in the space industry for the superelastic wheels on the Mars rover. What remains limiting is the difficulty of shaping and machining NiTi alloys, which means that complex shapes are difficult to obtain (production limited to wires and plates).

Additive manufacturing makes it possible to manufacture complex parts such as architected structures, producing superelastic or shape memory metamaterials that combine the properties of the material and those of the structures. These structures could find applications in the field of advanced mobility, to absorb shocks or vibrations, or to create deployable structures or customised medical implants.

A methodology will be developed to (1) understand the link between the microstructures and the manufacturing parameters, using different microstructure characterisation techniques such as transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD), (2) understand the effect of thin walled specimens on the microstructure, (3) understand the quasi-static behaviour of bulk and thin walled specimens in link with the microstructure, (4) to address the cyclic loading response of selected NiTi grades obtained by different process parameters.

This project is being carried out jointly by an Australian laboratory, Swinburne University, two French laboratories, I2M and PIMM, and in collaboration with French and Australian industries.