CSM

Metal materials and transformation technologies

CSM deals with almost any technologies related to metal materials and their transformation technologies.

Human skills, labs and full-scale equipment ensure effective R&D from basic research to industry application. Our abilities and facilities include:

• Physical metallurgy (steel, special and light alloys)
• Surface engineering and coating technologies
• Near net shape technologies (semi products and final components)
• Structural integrity (mechanical, chemical, etc.)
• Joining technologies
• Material forming
• High temperature materials
• Automation and control
• Central lab system for supporting R&D activities

Development and energy applications for steels and special alloys

CSM’s research is centred on development and application of steels and special alloys (Ni and Co-base, and light and super-alloys) as well as ceramics and cermets, special surface-engineered products, metal matrices, hybrid composites and inter-metallic materials.

Materials for plants’ high-temperature aggressive environments

CSM has developed vast knowledge and experience regarding materials for high-temperature aggressive environments to match all technological demands.

CSM’s strength is combining material science with manufacturing processing. Starting from steel technology, its know-how has expanded to include very special steels and superalloys – even single crystal and direct-solidified – ceramics and ceramic composites, titanium alloys, and special niche materials.

Metallurgy and advanced microstructural, metallographic and mechanical investigation

The CSM know-how builds on an outstanding capability spanning physical metallurgy, alloy metallurgical design, advanced microstructural, metallographic and mechanical investigation techniques, through-process metallurgy and structural integrity.

Development of ferritic, martensitic and austenitic steels and super alloys

The adoption of a new integrated approach has allowed CSM to speed up the development process of very top-edge ferritic, martensitic, austenitic steels and super alloys (e.g. Ni-base) for pipes, tubes, sheets, forged and fused components which must work at 750°C and over.

Metallurgical and greenfield alloy design

We can provide metallurgical alloy design from in-house models, as well as greenfield alloy design and development from laboratory heat.

Heat treatment design models and diagrams

We offer heat treatment design through in-house thermo-metallurgical models and continuous cooling transformation (CCT), time-temperature-transformation (TTT) and time-temperature-precipitation (TTP) diagrams.

Small and medium-scale mechanical and technological testing

Our mechanical and technological testing at small and medium-scale covers mono and multi-axial tensile; toughness and impact toughness; hardness (up to 1,150°C); low-cycle fatigue (LCF) and high-cycle fatigue (HCF); thermo mechanical fatigue (TMF) up to 1,150°C; fracture mechanics; engineering collapse assessment; etc.

We also provide microstructural analysis, surface analysis and scale investigation.

Creep testing, data assessment and strain models

CSM provides creep testing from 400°C-1,200°C, and creep data assessment using European Creep Collaborative Committee (ECCC) and other international procedures.

We also offer creep strain modelling by coupled metallurgical-micromechanical in-house models, using conventional and non-conventional dedicated experimental techniques (CSMCREEP®).

Other capabilities include:

• Residual life assessment
• Residual stress measurement and numerical assessment by FEM-metallurgical models
• Stress-corrosion and oxidation (including steam and high-temperature oxidation in aggressive environments, high-pressure high-temperature corrosion, and stress corrosion)
• Joining technologies for metals
• Tribological characterisation of materials and components
• Thermo-mechanical simulation and design for forging and rolling
• Development, characterisation and qualification of refractory and ceramics materials
• Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and combustion modelling
• Structural integrity and risk analysis