TheAerospaceandMechanicalEngineeringDepartmentofUniversityofLiegeandtheAutomotive ClusteroftheEuregioMeuseRhinearepleasetoinviteyouMay9,2011inLiegetotheworkshop:

Metallic Materials for automobile of the future

Near Net Shape Processing & Intelligent Surface Treatment
The importance of CO2 reduction in automotive sector is a driving factor for next decades. After focussingonthebetterefficiencyofthepowertrainandCO2tailpipeemissions,automotiveindustry investigates also the further reduction of the fuel consumption and the environmental footprint relatedtothevehicleconstruction.Inthissituation,thereisrevivedinterestforsteel.Steelisoneof themostcommonmaterials,butitisalsothemostunique.Itisbyfarthemostimportant,abundant, versatile, and adaptable engineering material due to its wide range of mechanical, physical, and chemical properties. Especially for the automotive industry, new steel grades, multimaterial applicationsusingsteel,andinnovativeformingprocessesareconstantlyimprovedorcreatedinorder tomeettheneedsofthemarket.Steelshavebecomethinnerandlighter,yetstrongerandsafer,more weldable and resistant to corrosion, and more formable. Thus, innovation in steel applications is a cornerstonefortakingoverthesustainabilitychallengeofautoindustry,whilepreservinghighsafety standardsaswellasacceptableoverallcostissuesinvehicleproduction. Designing lightweight automobile construction has become a crucial issue: Lightweight vehicles can achieve fuel savings while for the upcoming generation of electrical vehicles and emobility, the vehicle weight reduction is directly related to the vehicle drive range, necessary battery size and battery costs. The new manufacturing processes with improved near netshape capabilities, such thixoforming, aim at reducing the components weight and their manufacturing costs. These processesareinvolvedinthedevelopmentofnewlightweightpowertrainorenginecomponentsas wellasrollinggearandsuspensioncomponents.

Innextvehiclegenerations,astrongtendencyforweightsavingreliesonassigningmultifunctionsto components and/or on selecting optimal multilateral components (combining steel, aluminium, nanoparticles and other metallic or non metallic materials) to achieve higher or innovative performances that can not be reached by a single material. To this end, joining the materials and assuring protection against corrosion will be the key requirements for future developments of coatings and intelligent surface treatments. In these developments, an important factor is the tendency toward environmentally friendly processes, which avoid unwanted impacts by process by products.Recentresearchprovidesmanyapplicationsofthesetechniquestopowertrainandengine componentsaswellasincarbodystructures.

The workshop will be hosted by the Ple dIngnierie des Matriaux de Wallonie, which has been foundedajointventureofdifferentresearchcentresofWalloniaSIRRIS,CRMgroup,CEWAC,IBSand UniversityofLiegetodevelopcoordinatedresearchinclassicandinnovativematerials.Theresearch center is gathering more than 250 researchers around different large research projects funded by public funding (Walloon Region and Europe) and private funding. It is a technology display for large researchprojectasthixoforming,nanopowders,andfrictionstirwelding. TheThixoResearchUnitofUniversityofLiegeisamultidisciplinaryresearchteamdevotedtodevelop thenewtechnologiesusingthixotropypropertiesofmaterials.Researchesencompassthixoforming, forging and moulding of magnesium, aluminium and steel. The research unit is active in several researchprogramsfundedbyPlanMarchaloftheWalloniaRegionandbyEUCOSTactions.

TheCRMGroupisthejointresearchcentrefortheEuropeanironandsteelmajorgroupsandthenon ferrous metals industry of Benelux, part of its activity being also devoted to SMEs and SMIs. It has beenentrustedwiththemissionofdeveloping:newproducts,newprocessestofabricatethem,and new surface qualities and functionalities. Numerous research projects, financed by the European CommissionhaveledtomanyopportunitiesofcooperationwithspecialisedEuropeanpartners.From 2002onwards,theEuropeanresearchiscarriedonwiththefinancialsupportoftheResearchFundfor Coal and Steel (RFCS). The CRM is actively involved in a largescale project aiming to reduce CO2 emissions in the steel industry. This project has been submitted with a request for funding in the EuropeanCommission'sSixthFrameworkResearchProgramme. WorkshopAgenda: 14h0014h15: IntroductionandWelcome 14h1514h30: ChallengeformetallicmaterialsbyJ.C.Herman,directorofCRMGroup; 14h3015h00: NearnetshapeprocessingbyDrA.Rassili(ThixoResearchUnitofULg); 15h0015h30: IntelligentsurfacetreatmentbyJ.Halleux(SIRRIS); 15h3015h40: Coffeebreak; 15h4517h00: RoundtablesNearnetshapeprocessingandIntelligentsurfacetreatment; 17h0017h10: Financialinstrumentstosupporttoyourproject; 17h1017h20: Reportingoftheroundtables; 17h2017h25: Conclusions. 17h3018h00: DrinkandLabtour. ThisworkshoporganizedundertheauspicesoftheAutomotiveClusterEuregioMeuseRhinisaunique opportunitytomeetmajorindustrialandR&DplayersinthefieldcomingfromBelgium,Germanyand TheNetherlands.Theparticipationisfreeofchargebutthenumberofplacesislimited. Furtherinformationandregistration,youareinvitedtovisitthepagewww.ingveh.ulg.ac.be/workshop ortoemailtoLaurentVanMiegroet(L.VanMiegroet@ulg.ac.be). LookingforwardtomeetingyouinLiege ProfDrIrPierreDUYSINX, HeadofLTASAutomotiveEngineering