James N. and Margie M. Krebs Professor of Materials Science and Engineering

Co-Director, Initiative for Sustainability and Energy at Northwestern (ISEN)

Werkstoffingenieur, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETHZ), 1986
PhD, metallurgy, 1991 Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Contact Info

Research Group Website

 

  Physical and Mechanical Metallurgy of Multiphase Metallic Materials

Our research focuses on metallic alloys, composites, and foams, with particular emphasis on measuring and modeling their mechanical properties. Three main families of materials are being investigated:

1. Dispersion-strengthened metals: aluminum with Al3X (X=Sc, Ti, Zr, Li, rare-earth elements) nano-size precipitates, for energy-efficient transportation.

2. Metal matrix composites: magnesium with superconducting MgB2 fibers and aluminum composites.

3. Metallic foams:
     - Foams based on titanium (Ti, Ti-6Al-4V) for aerospace or implant implications;
     - Foams from shape-memory alloys (Ni-Ti, Ni-Mn-Ga) for biomedical implants or actuators;
     - Fe- or Ni-based foams for fuel-cell interconnects;
     - Zr-based amorphous alloy foams for armor and other high-stregnth applications;
     - Au foams with nano-size porosity for catalysis.

An additional area of study is the use of synchrotron X-ray radiation to study strains, phase composition and texture in technical metallic composites, archeological alloys, and biomineralized materials (bone and tooth).

Associations and Awards

• Minerals Metals and Materials Society Structural Materials Division Distinguished Scientist/Engineering Award, 2008
• Fellow, ASM International, 2007
• James and Margie Krebs Professorship, 2005-present
• Visiting professor, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (Switzerland), spring 2000
• Member, editorial board of Revue de Metallurgie, 1998-present
• Member, editorial board, Metallurgical and Materials Transactions, 1998-present
• Member, user group executive committee, Los Alamos Neutron Science Center, 1998-00
• Department Teacher of the Year, 1998
• AMAX career development chair, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1991-96
• Visiting professor, École Nationale de Chimie (France), summer 1994

Publications

Y.K. Chen, Y.S. Chu, J.M. Yi, I. McNulty, Q. Shen, P.W. Voorhees, D.C. Dunand, “3D Morphological and Topological Analysis of Coarsened Nanoporous Gold by X-ray Nano-tomography”, Applied Physics Letters, 96, 043122 (2010).

Chmielus M., Zhang X.X., Witherspoon C., Dunand D.C., Müllner P, “Giant magnetic-field-induced strains in polycrystalline Ni-Mn-Ga foams” Nature Materials, 8(11), 863-866 (2009).

Y. Boonyongmaneerat, D.C. Dunand
"Effects of Strut Geometry and Pore Fraction on Creep Properties of Cellular Materials"
Acta Materialia, 57(5), 1373-1384 (2009).

M.E. Van Dalen,  D.N. Seidman, D.C. Dunand
"Creep- and Coarsening Resistance of Al-0.06 at.% Sc-0.06 at.% Ti at 300-450"
Acta Materialia, 56(16), 4369-4377 (2008).
 
K.R. Erk, D.C. Dunand, K.A. Shull
"Titanium with Controllable Pore Fractions by Thermoreversible Gel-Casting of TiH2"
Acta Materialia, 56(18), 5147-5157 (2008).

H. Choe, C.A. Schuh, D.C. Dunand
"Superplastic Deformation Induced by Cyclic Hydrogen Charging"
Journal of Applied Physics A, 103, 103518.1-9, (2008).
 
Y. Chino, D.C. Dunand
 "Titanium Foam with Aligned Elongated Pores Processed by Freeze Casting"
 Acta Materialia, 56(1), 105-113 (2008).

 A. Bansiddhi, D.C. Dunand
"Shape-memory NiTi Foams Produced by Replication of NaCl Space-Holders"
Acta Biomaterialia, 4(6), 1996-2007 (2008).
 
J.D. DeFouw, D.C. Dunand
"Mechanisms and Kinetics of MgB2 Synthesis from Boron Fibers"
Acta Materialia, 56(19), 5751-5763 (2008).