Within the structure of Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University, the laboratory is a scientific division of the Institute of Machinery, Materials, and Transport.
The laboratory was founded in 2014 with the support of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation as part of a mega-grant allocation in accordance with Decree No. 220 of the Government of the Russian Federation. In 2014, the laboratory joined the "Lightweight and Reliable Structures" technology platform.
The scientific research conducted in the laboratory is relevant to Russia and consistent with the current state of global science. The stiffness of the new macro-structured single-layer and multi-layer materials and their products exceeds the stiffness of known similar materials of the same weight by more than eleven times. They also have aero- and hydrodynamic resistance 30% lower than materials with smooth surfaces. This means that components made from such materials can be relatively larger while maintaining energy efficiency. Heterogeneous materials for individual layers require new production methods and new models for product design, as well as extensive and in-depth research in materials science, plastic processing of materials, and welding.
In addition to establishing the general foundations of materials, the specifics of their application must be considered. Depending on the future use of the structures, comprehensive specialized innovative solutions must be developed and provided (for example, for transport vehicles such as ships and railcars, as well as for other structures).
The project goal is to establish a laboratory for lightweight materials and structures. The project objective is to develop single-layer and multi-layer lightweight semi-finished products and components with macro-structured surfaces, as well as technologies for their production and the fabrication of reliable structures.
The laboratory staff offers new specialized, patent-protected materials and production methods for new products for the transport, energy, and construction industries. The laboratory will also serve as a scientific and support base for high-level training of a new generation of engineers and young researchers in the field of developing technologies with greater material and energy efficiency.
Project Goal: Production of new lightweight structural materials and improvement of welding technologies
Practical significance of the research
Scientific results:
The laboratory was founded in 2014 with the support of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation as part of a mega-grant allocation in accordance with Decree No. 220 of the Government of the Russian Federation. In 2014, the laboratory joined the "Lightweight and Reliable Structures" technology platform.
The scientific research conducted in the laboratory is relevant to Russia and consistent with the current state of global science. The stiffness of the new macro-structured single-layer and multi-layer materials and their products exceeds the stiffness of known similar materials of the same weight by more than eleven times. They also have aero- and hydrodynamic resistance 30% lower than materials with smooth surfaces. This means that components made from such materials can be relatively larger while maintaining energy efficiency. Heterogeneous materials for individual layers require new production methods and new models for product design, as well as extensive and in-depth research in materials science, plastic processing of materials, and welding.
In addition to establishing the general foundations of materials, the specifics of their application must be considered. Depending on the future use of the structures, comprehensive specialized innovative solutions must be developed and provided (for example, for transport vehicles such as ships and railcars, as well as for other structures).
The project goal is to establish a laboratory for lightweight materials and structures. The project objective is to develop single-layer and multi-layer lightweight semi-finished products and components with macro-structured surfaces, as well as technologies for their production and the fabrication of reliable structures.
The laboratory staff offers new specialized, patent-protected materials and production methods for new products for the transport, energy, and construction industries. The laboratory will also serve as a scientific and support base for high-level training of a new generation of engineers and young researchers in the field of developing technologies with greater material and energy efficiency.
Goals and Objectives
Research area: Development of new materials, their production technologies, and joining methods in structuresProject Goal: Production of new lightweight structural materials and improvement of welding technologies
Practical significance of the research
Scientific results:
- Aluminum alloy structures with increased rigidity have been developed through the use of structured sheets instead of conventional flat ones. The application of structured sheets allows for weight reduction while maintaining required rigidity. Such sheets possess enhanced heat dissipation, enabling their use in the production of heating appliances.
- Various friction stir welding (FSW) modes have been investigated. Long joints of aluminum alloy sheets, joints of dissimilar materials (aluminum alloy + copper), and joints of sheets with different thicknesses have been produced. Aluminum-to-copper joints can be successfully used in electrical engineering to reduce the cost of electrical components (while aluminum has lower conductivity than copper, its cost is several times lower).
- A trimaran hull was constructed from elements of varying thickness (AMg5 material), and its load-bearing capacity was experimentally investigated. The hull withstood a load of 120 kg, compared to the 50 kg load specified in the task. It was found that with defect-free FSW, a 1 mm + 2 mm joint has a strength no less than that of a 1 mm thick hull element.
- All technological stages for the production of aluminum foam sandwich panels (AFS) have been developed and verified. Such panels are lightweight (they float in water), possess good sound-absorbing and thermal insulation properties, and are sufficiently rigid. AFS can be used in construction as external building envelopes, internal partitions, etc.
- Various modes of wire arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) for aluminum alloy parts have been investigated. The goal is to achieve the maximum deposition rate while maintaining high weld quality and producing increasingly complex shapes. Transitioning to additive manufacturing allows for a high material utilization rate (up to 0.9). This is often the most cost-effective method for producing complex parts. The WAAM method compares favorably to laser cladding due to the lower cost of the base material (welding wire instead of metal powder) and higher deposition rates. This method is effective for large-scale components.
Implementation of research results
The design of a lifting mechanism base was optimized for Semargl LLC, a company specializing in the production and maintenance of lifting and transport equipment. Structuring and material replacement together reduced the structure's weight by 26 kg, thereby increasing the lifting capacity by 26 kg. Further application of structured sheets in mechanical engineering is possible to lighten various complex structures.Education and personnel retraining
- Young specialists from third-party organizations completed professional retraining/advanced training: 2 employees of Khimmet LLC, 2 employees of the Saint Petersburg University of Architecture and Civil Engineering, and 2 employees of Astrakhan State University.
- Defenses: 1 candidate dissertation, 13 master's final qualifying works.
- 10 laboratory employees were admitted to postgraduate studies.
- 7 laboratory employees completed advanced training.
- Conducted: opening seminar of the Lightweight Materials and Structures Laboratory, a seminar on "Modeling the processes of structure formation and properties of light alloys," and two annual scientific events dedicated to the laboratory's research.
- Educational courses implemented: advanced training program "Mathematical modeling of plastic processing of aluminum alloy sheet metal"; postgraduate program for training scientific and pedagogical personnel "Physicochemistry of nanostructured materials"; additional professional advanced training program "Friction stir welding technology."
- Participation in 13 conferences, 2 seminars, and 2 symposiums.
Cooperation
- VNICTTV LLC (Russia): expert work to determine the causes of crack formation in weld seams
- BPK CJSC (Russia): industrial partner that co-financed a wide range of research activities provided for in the schedule
- Technical University (Germany): internships, joint scientific publications, research under joint grants – ERA.NET.RUS Plus (since 2015)
- Shanghai Jiao Tong University (China): internships (since 2018)
Website: https://lwms.spbstu.ru/
Contact person: Oleg Vladislavovich Panchenko, Head of Laboratory
Address: 29 Politekhnicheskaya St., Research Building, A.2.19-A.2.21
Phone: +7 (921) 946-86-99, +7 (921) 418-73-94
Email: panchenko_ov@spbstu.ru, anton.naumov@spbstu.ru
Contact person: Oleg Vladislavovich Panchenko, Head of Laboratory
Address: 29 Politekhnicheskaya St., Research Building, A.2.19-A.2.21
Phone: +7 (921) 946-86-99, +7 (921) 418-73-94
Email: panchenko_ov@spbstu.ru, anton.naumov@spbstu.ru
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