Prof. Dr. Dierk Raabe

High-entropy alloys are solid solutions of multiple principal elements that are capable of reaching composition and property regimes inaccessible for dilute materials. Discovering those with valuable properties, however, too often relies on serendipity, because thermodynamic alloy design rules alone often fail in high-dimensional composition spaces. We propose an active learning strategy to accelerate the design of high-entropy Invar alloys in a practically infinite compositional space based on very sparse data. Our approach works as a closed-loop, integrating machine learning with density-functional theory, thermodynamic calculations, and experiments. After processing and characterizing 17 new alloys out of millions of possible compositions, we identified two high-entropy Invar alloys with extremely low thermal expansion coefficients around 2 × 10 ⁻⁶ per degree kelvin at 300 kelvin. We believe this to be a suitable pathway for the fast and automated discovery of high-entropy alloys with optimal thermal, magnetic, and electrical properties.

6 November 2019 in Nature

Journal Article

Strategies for improving the sustainability of structural metals

Dierk Raabe

C. Cem Tasan

Elsa A. Olivetti

Metallic materials have enabled technological progress over thousands of years. The accelerated demand for structural (that is, load-bearing) alloys in key sectors such as energy, construction, safety and transportation is resulting in predicted production growth rates of up to 200 per cent until 2050. Yet most of these materials require a lot of energy when extracted and manufactured and these processes emit large amounts of greenhouse gases and pollution. Here we review methods of improving the direct sustainability of structural metals, in areas including reduced-carbon-dioxide primary production, recycling, scrap-compatible alloy design, contaminant tolerance of alloys and improved alloy longevity. We discuss the effectiveness and technological readiness of individual measures and also show how novel structural materials enable improved energy efficiency through their reduced mass, higher thermal stability and better mechanical properties than currently available alloys.

About Me

Dierk Raabe studied music, metallurgy and metal physics (summa cum laude) at RWTH Aachen (Germany). After his doctorate 1992 (summa cum laude) and habilitation 1997 at RWTH Aachen he received a Heisenberg fellowship and worked at Carnegie Mellon University and at the High Magnetic Field Lab in Tallahassee. He joined Max Planck Society as a director in Düsseldorf at the Max Planck Institute for Iron Research (now: Max Planck Institute for Sustainable Materials) in 1999. His main research interest is Sustainable Metallurgy, i.e. to make industrial production, use and recycling of materials more sustainable, focusing on basic research with high leverage for CO2 emission mitigation and lower energy consumption. His specific interests are in sustainable metals (specifically ‘green’ steel, Nickel, Aluminium, Titanium etc.), recycling-oriented material design, metal physics, interfaces, phase transformation, Atom Probe Tomography, materials theory, hydrogen, sustainable manufacturing, and Artificial Intelligence Methods in Materials Science. He received the Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Award (Highest German Science Awards) and two ERC Advanced Grants (Highest European Research Grant). He is professor at RWTH Aachen (Germany) and at KU Leuven (Belgium). He is a Doctor Honoris Causa at the Norwegian Technical University Trondheim. He is a member and Senator of the German National Science Academy Leopoldina and of the US National Academy of Engineering.

Prof. Dr. Dierk Raabe

Prof. Dr. Dierk Raabe

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