Welcome to the AMIR Lab

Who We Are?

Our primary research objective revolves around exploring the intricate process-structure-property-performance relationships in metallic alloys and composite materials during advanced manufacturing. To achieve this, we employ a combination of ex-situ and in-situ characterization techniques, which provide valuable insights into the behavior of these materials.

Our mission is to address the key processing challenges in advanced manufacturing technologies, with a strong focus on achieving significant cost reduction and enhanced energy efficiency.

In pursuit of our research interests, we concentrate on the design and development of innovative alloys and compounds that are compatible with fusion-based or non-beam-based additive manufacturing processes. Our research is centered on both fundamental and applied aspects, particularly in the domains of laser-beam powder bed fusion and binder jet 3D printing processes. Additionally, we explore various post-processing treatments, with a specific emphasis on surface engineering and heat treatment, to gain a comprehensive understanding of materials' microstructural evolution and mechanical response.

Ultimately, our overarching goal is to enable efficient machine learning on a wide range of materials, processes, and imaging modalities. By doing so, we aspire to contribute significantly to the advancement of additive manufacturing technologies and materials science, facilitating the development of more efficient and innovative manufacturing processes across various industries.

We are looking for enthusiastic undergraduate and graduate students as well as postdoctoral researchers and visiting scholars to join our group.

New research on binder jet printing process through in-process sintering monitoring

Sintering in-situ monitoring

New research on binder jet printing process through in-process monitoring

News

2023

PhD Graduation: Mohammadreza Asherloo successfully defended his PhD research on Laser Powder Bed Fusion of non-spherical powder in November 2023. He started a new position as an Engineer in Nucor Steel Arkansas in 2024.

Publication: Materials Today Communications - Structure-Property Relationships of Differently Heat-Treated Binder Jet Printed Co-Cr-Mo Biomaterial [link]

Publication: Materials Today Communications - Pulsed gas metal arc additive manufacturing of low-carbon steel: Microstructure observations and mechanical properties [link]

Field trip: It was another remarkable experience taking about 40 undergraduate students from my MMAE 485 (Manufacturing Processes) class to visit #DMGMORI Company, a highly regarded manufacturing company in the Chicagoland area. During the visit, they had the opportunity to network with key professionals in the industry and share information that could open doors to potential internship opportunities. They also learned about multiple machines such as LaserTech 30 (LPBF), DMU50 (CNC), LaserTech 3000 (DED Hybrid), and LaserTech 125 (DED Hybrid).

Publication: Corrosion Science - Microstructure and corrosion behavior of differently heat-treated Ti-6Al-4V alloy processed by laser powder bed fusion of hydride-dehydride powder [link]

Publication: Acta Materialia - Densification kinetics and microstructural evolution of binder jet printed and sintered porous Ni-Mn-Ga magnetic shape-memory alloys [link]

Summer Camp: The MMAE department and IIT Pre-College Access jointly held a Materials Engineering Camp for High School Students from July 31st to August 3rd. Fifteen (15) students participated in this camp and learned how to fabricate Li-ion batteries and their testing, make components using additive manufacturing, synthesize and evaluate semiconductors, predict materials properties via computational materials science and engineering, and characterize materials with the aid of X-ray diffractometry, scanning electron microscopy, etc. [Photo]

Publication: Progress in Materials Science - Additive manufacturing of nickel-based superalloys: A state-of-the-art review on process-structure-defect-property relationship [link]

Publication: Additive Manufacturing - Fatigue performance of binder jetted 316L [link]

Publications: Process-structure-property relationships in L-PBF non-spherical powder. Please see our recent collaborative research article (with CMU, UCLA, University of Oklahoma, Argonne National Lab, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Kymera International) [link1] [link2]

Publication: Interested in single crustal growth using AM? Please see our recent collaborative research article (with CMU, Virginia Tech, Argonne National Lab) on L-PBF CMSX-4 Nickle alloy [link]

Publications: Two collaborative research articles were published in the field of diffusion couples of Ni-Ti [link1] [link2]

2022

Publications: Two collaborative research articles were published in the field of electrocatalysts fabrication [link1] [link2]

Summer 2022: Setting up in-situ imaging system on tube furnace to visualize densification behavior of binder jetted materials [link].

Publication: Our first collaborative research publication with an industry partner and Argonne National Lab: Laser-beam powder bed fusion of cost-effective non-spherical hydride-dehydride Ti-6Al-4V alloy”, Additive Manufacturing, 56 (2022) 102875 [Link]

Publication: Characterizing Changes in Grain Growth, Mechanical Properties, and Transformation Properties in Differently Sintered and Annealed Binder-Jet 3D Printed 14M Ni–Mn–Ga Magnetic Shape Memory Alloys, MDPI Metals. 12 (2022) 724 [Link]

Publication: Defects and anomalies in powder bed fusion metal additive manufacturing, Current Opinion in Solid State and Materials Science. 26 (2022) 100974 [Link]

Publication: Synthesis, characterization, and photocatalytic activity of CuAl2O4-Ag nanocomposite for water treatment, Ceramics International, (2022) [Link]

Publication: Microstructure and corrosion evaluation of as-built and heat-treated 316L stainless steel manufactured by laser powder bed fusion, Journal of Materials Research and Technology, 18 (2022) 4104-4113 [Link]

Publication: Tribological behavior of ZK60 magnesium matrix composite reinforced by hybrid MWCNTs/B4C prepared by stir casting method, Tribology International, 165 (2022) 107299 [Link]

Equipment: We recently added new equipment to our characterization facilities: Keyence VHX 7100. This high-end optical microscope assists us in imaging, image analysis, surface topology and roughness measurements, fractography, and many more capabilities to advance imaging in 3D printed metals and compounds.

2021

Sep. 2021, Publication: Our first research paper at IIT in collaboration with CMU, Study of Printability and Porosity Formation in Laser Powder Bed Fusion Built Hydride-Dehydride (HDH) Ti-6Al-4V, Journal of Additive Manufacturing. [Link]

Sep. 2021, Student: Congrats to Mr. Ryan Krull. His proposal “Understanding Role of Powder Characteristics on Fatigue Behavior of Additive Manufactured Lightweight Ti-6Al-4V Structures.” for the Spring 2021 Armour R&D program has been accepted.

Sep. 2021, Student: Congrats to Miss. Junghyun Hwang. Her proposal “Understanding physics of laser-powder interaction in additive manufacturing using synchrotron x-ray imaging” for the Spring 2021 Armour R&D program has been accepted.

Sep. 2021, Student: Congrats to Mr. Maciej Dorula. His proposal “Understanding Densification Kinetics of Ultra-Fine Stainless Steel Binder Jet 3D Printed Alloy” for the Spring 2021 Armour R&D program has been accepted.

July 2021, on-site visit at Nel PreTech Corporation (Computed Tomography facilities) by a group of ten REU students.

May 2021, Student: Congrats to Mr. Maciej Dorula. His proposal “Understanding the role of powder characteristics on part density and surface roughness of binder jet 3D printed biomaterials” for the Summer 2021 RES-MATCH program (supported by Pritzker Institute of Biomedical Science and Engineering) has been accepted.

May 2021, Student: Congrats to Miss. Noosheen Iqbal. Her proposal "3D-printing of cost-effective titanium alloys: manufacturing, characterization, and biocompatibility assessments" for the Summer 2021 RES-MATCH program (supported by Pritzker Institute of Biomedical Science and Engineering) has been accepted.

March 2021, Funding: Dr. Mostafaei and Dr. Khounsary just received an NSF award for “REU Site: Characterization of Materials Using Synchrotron and X-ray Based Tools”. This site is supported by the Department of Defense in partnership with the NSF REU program. [Link] Application information is available here.

Jan. 2021, Student: Congrats to Miss. Junghyun Hwang. Her proposal “Energy Efficient and Cost-effect Metal Powder for Additive Manufacturing" for the Spring 2021 Armour R&D program has been accepted.

Jan. 2021, Student: Mr. Mohammad Jamalkhani Khameneh joined the AMIR Group as a Ph.D. student and Graduate Teaching Assistant. Welcome!

2020

Dec. 2020, Our lab will receive ExOne Innovent+ binder jet machine. Thanks to Illinois Tech-college of Engineering for their support and contribution in our research on advanced manufacturing of metallic and composite materials. So excited to work with ExOne team on state-of-the-art projects.

Nov. 2020, Publication: Dr. Mostafaei's collaborative paper, Mastering a 1.2 K hysteresis for martensitic para-ferromagnetic partial transformation in Ni-Mn(Cu)-Ga magnetocaloric material via binder jet 3D printing, has been accepted by Journal of Additive Manufacturing. [Link]

Nov. 2020, Our lab will receive Electrochemical test equipment, named GAMRY E1010 for our corrosion study. Thanks to Illinois Tech-college of Engineering for their support and contribution to our research on advanced manufacturing of metallic and composite materials. So excited to work with this equipment to study the corrosion behavior of AM parts.

Oct. 2020, Publication: Dr. Mostafaei's collaborated review paper, Friction stir welding/processing of metals and alloys: A comprehensive review on microstructural evolution, has been accepted by Progress in Materials Science.

Sep. 2020, Publication: Dr. Mostafaei's published two chapter books in ASM Handbook, Vol. 24 - Additive Manufacturing Processes.

Aug. 2020, Student: Mr. Sourabh D. Bagi joined the AMIR Group as a Graduate Student Researcher. Welcome!

Aug. 2020, Student: Ms. Melody Delpazir joined the AMIR Group as a Graduate Student Researcher. Welcome on board!

July 2020, Our lab received DMG LaserTec 30 SLM machine. Thanks to Illinois Tech-college of Engineering and Dr. Mori for their support and contribution to our research on advanced manufacturing of metallic materials.

June 2020, Publication: Dr. Mostafaei's review paper, Binder jet 3D printing – Process parameters, materials, properties, modeling and challenges, has been accepted by Progress in Materials Science.

May 2020, Students: Mr. Abhilash Watpade & Mr. Krishna Sai Vishnumolakala joined the AMIR Group as Graduate Student Researchers. Welcome!

March 2020, Student: Mr. Daniel Mowka joined the AMIR Group as a Graduate Student Researcher. Welcome!

Feb. 2020, Invited Speaker: We are honored to invite Prof. David Dunand, Ph.D., professor of materials science and engineering at Northwestern University, to discuss "Extrusion 3D-Printing: From Inks to Metal Microlattices."

Feb. 2020, Student: Mr. Hamza A. Fagiha joined the AMIR Group as a Graduate Research Assistant. Welcome!

Jan. 2020, Student: Mr. Mohammadreza Asherloo joined the AMIR Group as a Ph.D. student and Graduate Research Assistant. Welcome!

Jan. 2020, Dr. Amir Mostafaei joined the Department of Mechanical, Materials and Aerospace Engineering at the Illinois Institute of Technology as an assistant professor.

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