Self-Organized Nanostructured Bonds through Transient Liquid Phase Dealloying

This proposal aims to overcome the challenges in welding/joining shape memory alloys by a solid-state bonding technique recently developed by the PI: transient liquid phase dealloying. While promising, this technique has a number of shortcomings that requires fundamental study. Our initial effect will focus on sputtered coatings in order to understand interlayer reaction kinetics, phase formation, morphological evolution, and bond strength as a function of composition. We plan to leverage the resources of the Advanced Photon Source at Argonne National Laboratory to conduct in situ X-ray diffraction to understand the reaction sequence during transient liquid phase dealloying. These results will be used to down-select formulations from which we will develop foil/shim stock that can be used on large components. The foil/shim stock will be fabricated (via forging or extrusion ink printing) from powder precursors that will be made in the PI’s gas atomizer, which is capable of producing custom alloys consisting of high-melting point elements such as the refractories. We will demonstrate the effectiveness of these interlayers on a variety of component sizes and geometries.