mineAlloy student completes industry placement

Daniel Grasser is in the final stage of his two-month placement at Gekko Systems in Ballarat, Victoria. Daniel used Discrete Element Method (DEM) simulations to understand particle flows inside mining equipment and to detect hot spots for wear.

The work was divided into two stages: The first stage was dedicated to setting up the DEM model and to study the particle flow behaviour (i.e. rock-surface interaction) inside the equipment of interest. Secondly, the mean shear power distribution was analysed and compared with the real wear patterns.

The objective was to assess the accuracy of the wear model implemented in DEM, its sensitivity to different modelling parameters and, ultimately, reproduce the wear pattern observed in worn components. This study will help researchers improve the modelling tools and propose design changes to increase the service life.

Daniel wants to express his gratitude to both Gekko Systems and the mineAlloy Centre for making this hands-on experience possible.

Abhishek joins the mineAlloy team at UQ

Abhishek Jain started his PhD at the University of Queensland in April 2019. He will be working on controlling the carbide morphology in high chromium white cast irons under the supervision of Prof Mingxing Zhang.

Abhishek obtained his bachelor’s degree in Material Science and Engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, and he subsequently completed his Master’s degree in Metallurgy at The University of Sheffield, under the supervision of Prof Richard Thackray.

His Master’s project was a collaboration with TATA Steel UK, and focused on the pyrolysis behaviour and life cycle assessment of biomass for industrial symbiosis in Steelmaking.

Monash uses SPH to model wear mechanisms

Alban de Vaucorbeil, a mineAlloy researcher from Monash University, has delivered a talk at IFM. In his presentation, Alban explained the results he obtained using a mesh-less method called Smooth Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH) to simulate the wear response of materials. Using this technique, he investigated the change in wear resistance and wear mechanism as a function of different plastic parameters of steels.

Deakin researchers visit Keech Castings

A group of researchers from Deakin University travelled to Bendigo to observe the casting of a set of test components for an industrial trial. The components and the test pieces will be subjected to extensive tests to optimise the heat treatment, the microstructure and the resulting mechanical properties, combining wear resistance with good fracture toughness.

UQ researchers visit IXL

Researchers from University of Queensland visited IXL Metal Castings to discuss casting and heat treatment practices. The researchers are completing a set of experiments on wear resistant white cast irons and Maziar Jokari, who is currently conducting his Masters at University of Queensland, will be seconded to IXL later this year as part of his training program.

Aussie, Aussie, Aussie…!

Nick Edghill has just started his PhD at Deakin University and is the first Australian student of the mineAlloy centre. In his project, Nick will exploit advanced manufacturing, testing and characterisation techniques to accelerate the development of wear resistant alloys.

Nick completed his Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering (Honours) at Deakin University in 2018. His thesis was titled “The Build and Modification of an Electrical Discharge Machine for Sample Testing with Modified Dielectric Fluid” and the project focused on ceramic deposition onto metallic surfaces for medical applications.