Areas Of Specialization
ENGINEERING MATERIALS
ENGINEERING MATERIALS

13.2 Areas Of Specialization

Ph.D, M.A.Sc. and M.Eng. graduate programs in Engineering Materials are administered by Mechanical and Materials Engineering upon the advice of its Graduate Studies Committee for Engineering Materials. Research is concentrated on the physical, mechanical, tribological and chemical aspects of materials. The program hosts two industrial research chairs: i) Chair in Light Metals Casting Technology, jointly funded by Ford Motor Company-Nemak and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada; ii) Chair in Tribology of Lightweight Materials, jointly funded by General Motors of Canada and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada. Particular research topics include:

Material Design, Development: Aluminum alloys (wrought, cast, particulate, reinforced), computer calculation of phase diagrams; structure refinement, nanocrystalline alloys, solidification and precipitation processing; metal hydrides for energy applications, ceramics and cementitious materials.

Material Processing: Surface coatings, surface modification technologies (PVD, CVD, thermal spraying) friction stir welding, machining, galvanizing and galvannealing of steels.

Mechanical Properties of Materials: Creep and fatigue behaviour; deformation mechanisms; computer simulation of deformation; corrosion, erosion.

Light Metals Casting Technology: Advanced foundry processes for lightweight castings for automotive engines; aluminum and magnesium alloys; new generation foundry materials solidification modelling.

Tribology (Wear) Research: Friction and wear of metal matrix composites; amorphous, quasicrystalline, nanolayered materials for tribological applications, development of wear resistant cylinder liner and brake materials for automotive applications, micromechanical modeling of surface contacts.