A revolutionary scientific technology in high demand with Rolls-Royce and the space science department at Rutherford Appleton Laboratory is to be celebrated at an international conference later this month.
The HIPIMS 2014 conference, being held in Sheffield between Monday June 30 and Thursday July 3, will also see the official launch of the National HIPIMS Technology Centre, supported by a number of huge companies including Rolls-Royce, IHI Ionbond, Biomet, Sandvik, Fraunhofer, Trumpf Hüttinger and others.
The new centre marks a key part in the journey of HIPMS – High Power Impulse Magnetron Sputtering – which has been spearheaded by Sheffield Hallam University Professor Arutiun Ehiasarian.
The scientific plasma technology, backed up by multi-million pound equipment in Sheffield Hallam’s new £6m laboratories, pulses out several megawatts of power to create a highly ionised gas-metal plasma.
The plasma is used to produce a special coating to enhance performance of hip joints, turbine blades, piston rings and even space satellites.
More recently, HIPIMS was approached by US Army engineers to help efforts to implement an improved coating for Howitzer breech spindles with several potential benefits — easing the logistical burden on soldiers, reducing hazardous waste and saving millions of dollars.
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