Materialism: A Materials Science Podcast

10 Episodes
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By: Taylor Sparks and Andrew Falkowski

In this podcast, Taylor and Andrew investigate the past, present, and future of materials science and engineering. Topic areas ranging from cutting edge materials technology, the history of different materials, the commercialization of new materials, and exciting advances in processing and characterization are all covered in detail. Our episodes include things like the unlikely discovery of superglue or teflon, the fascinating backstories about modern biomaterials like dialysis filters, and updates on new technologies including wearable electronics, next generation batteries, and nanomaterials. In short, we hope to help listeners understand the critical role that materials have played in society and even...

PHAs and Biodegradable Plastic
#86
04/10/2024

The challenge of plastic pollution in our environment will be a defining issue in the coming decades. To address this problem, scientists have developed a host of next generation biodegradable plastics that have the potential to improve the sustainability of single use products. Among these are a class of materials called PHAs which are of particular interest as their microorganism origins are also the means of their decomposition. Join us for a discussion with Nick Sandland as we explore the fascinating world of biodegradable polymers and what the future of plastics will look like.

The Materialism Podcast...


Electron Backscatter Diffraction
#85
03/28/2024

There’s more to a material’s microstructure than meets the eye! In this episode of the Materialism Podcast we dive into the world of Electron Backscatter Diffraction (EBSD) characterization, and discuss some of the important properties you can measure with it including grain size, phase distribution, texture, and more! To help us navigate this topic, we sat down with Stuart Wright and Matt Nowell from AMETEK who lend us decades of experience and intimate knowledge of the technique to provide thorough coverage of the past, present, and future of EBSD.

This episode is sponsored by Gatan. A le...


The ICME Method with QuesTek
#84
03/13/2024

Meeting the demands of next-generation technologies will require materials to be designed and qualified at faster rates than ever before. The ICME (integrated computational materials engineering) approach is at the forefront of this innovation, blending advanced computational modeling with experimental validation to accelerate the development of new materials and open up the possibility of concurrent design. In this episode, we sit down with Jason Sebastian from QuesTek to learn how they have successfully applied the ICME method to the design of aerospace alloys and ICMD® software they built to enable other companies to implement the method.

Selected R...


Computed Tomography at Zeiss
#83
02/27/2024

Examining the inside of a material is often a destructive process that risks obscuring or deforming critical details. However, advances in computed tomography have opened new opportunities to obtain high resolution, three-dimensional reconstructions of materials in a non-destructive manner. Through this technique materials scientists can now identify cracks and voids in materials without the need for mounting and polishing, observe processes like battery degradation and dendrite growth in real time, and even obtain 3D diffraction data for identifying phase distributions in a material. In covering this fascinating topic, we are joined by William Harris from Zeiss Microscopy who shares...


Radar Absorbing Materials
#82
02/15/2024

The ability to avoid detection is one of the most useful tricks of modern day combat aviation. In this episode we dive into some of the history of various stealth endeavors ranging from painting ships with fun stripes to creating radioactive fuel additives. All culminating in a discussion of the materials that make a plane stealthy.

References:

History of Radar [LINK]

How do radars work? [LINK]

Radar and the kill web [LINK]

Review of Radar Absorbing Materials [LINK]

Synthesis of radar absorption material for stealth application [LINK]<...


New Materials for Carbon Capture
#81
01/29/2024

Taylor sits down with Dr. Hayden Evans of NIST and Sir Dr. Anthony Cheetham of UCSB/Cambridge/National University of Singapore to talk about their research on carbon storing materials. Learn what special characteristics makes the materials they are researching well suited for CO2 capture.

Articles:

Perovskite-related ReO3-type structures

Aluminum formate, Al(HCOO)3: An earth-abundant, scalable, and highly selective material for CO2 capture

Noncryogenic Air Separation Using Aluminum Formate Al(HCOO)3 (ALF)

Exclusive Recognition of CO2 from Hydrocarbons by Aluminum Formate with Hydrogen-Confined Pore Cavities

Hydrogen...


Ceramic Innovation with Delta Faucet
#80
01/03/2024

Join us as we speak to Delta Faucet about a new way of ceramics processing. Learn how the process works and why they aren't pursuing it further at the moment.

This episode is sponsored by Delta Faucet, learn more about their work and services by visiting their website.

This episode is sponsored by Materials Today, an Elsevier community dedicated to the creation and sharing of materials science knowledge and experience through their peer-reviewed journals, academic conferences, educational webinars, and more.

Thanks to Kolobyte and Alphabot for letting us use their music in the...


Cryogenic Milling at Cal Nano
#79
11/29/2023

Cryogenic Milling, the name may be self explanatory but the process is not. We sit down with Eric Eyerman CEO of at Cal Nano to talk about what Cryogenic Milling is, how Cal Nano has used it in the past, and the benefits it offers to engineers.

This episode is sponsored by calnano, learn more about their work and services by visiting their website.

This episode is sponsored by Materials Today, an Elsevier community dedicated to the creation and sharing of materials science knowledge and experience through their peer-reviewed journals, academic conferences, educational webinars, and...


Flash Sintering at Lucideon
#78
11/16/2023

Delve into the new (ish) exciting world of flash sintering and learn how it compares to Spark Plasma Sintering. Also get ready for a little history lesson on ceramic production in the UK.

This episode is sponsored by Lucideon, learn more about their work and job opportunities by visiting their website.

This episode is sponsored by Materials Today, an Elsevier community dedicated to the creation and sharing of materials science knowledge and experience through their peer-reviewed journals, academic conferences, educational webinars, and more.

Thanks to Kolobyte and Alphabot for letting us use their...


Circular Construction Economy
#77
11/01/2023

The way in which we are using resources to produce materials is putting unsustainable strain on the ecosystem. The circular economy has the potential to make better use of resources, which is particularly important in the construction industry where demand for materials continues to increase. In this episode, we discuss the need for circularity in construction, some examples of where it has been applied and that this is only the beginning if we are to achieve a more sustainable future.

This episode was sponsored by Innovate UK Transforming Foundation Industries Challenge. This challenge is providing funding and...