The University of Arizona was awarded a $108,067 Project Grant by the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Mathematical and Physical Sciences (CFDA 47.049) program. The grant funds a 5-year research project to investigate how damage and failure depends on the composition and microstructure of aluminum alloys with high levels of recycled scrap-related impurities. The goal is to establish compositional limits that identify aluminum alloys suitable for high-performance wrought applications despite the presence of impurities. The research integrates experimental studies, crystal plasticity simulations, and machine learning models to elucidate the relationships between intermetallic compounds, microstructure, dislocations, and damage behavior in these recycled aluminum alloys. The insights gained have the potential to reduce the carbon footprint of aluminum production and enable greater reuse of recycled scrap material in advanced structural applications. In addition to the technical research, the project includes an educational component to promote computational literacy among materials science students.
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