Special Notice ENERGY, DEPARTMENT OF TECHNOLOGY LICENSING OPPORTUNITY Process for In-Situ Electric Field Assisted Sintering Quality Control
The Department of Energy is offering a technology licensing opportunity for a process that enables precision and efficiency in manufacturing and delivers unprecedented quality control for Electric Field Assisted Sintering (EFAS) processes. EFAS is a rapid heating process used for consolidating powder materials, but it can lead to local density variations within the sintered materials. This technology offers a non-destructive method for measuring localized porosity changes in EFAS materials, providing a valuable tool for enhancing quality control and overall efficiency. Researchers at Idaho National Laboratory have developed an approach that employs photothermal radiometry to measure the local thermal diffusivity of EFAS sintered materials, which directly correlates to localized percent porosities. This technology simplifies the measurement approach, providing accurate, non-destructive local density readings. The licensing opportunity is open to companies interested in commercializing this technology and contributing to improving EFAS quality control and accelerating product development. For more information, please contact Andrew Rankin at td@inl.gov.