Energy Efficient Morphogenic Manufacturing in Space and on Earth

Event Date/Time

Friday, January 31, 2025 - 15:00

Location

Bowen Hall
222

Series/Event Type

MAE Departmental Seminars

Bio-inspired manufacturing research aims at providing economic benefits and energy savings with minimal environmental impacts. In this talk, I will present our efforts using frontal polymerization (FP) for space and terrestrial morphogenic manufacturing. FP uses a stiff and tough thermosetting polymer capable of energy-efficient “self-propagation and self-curing”.

In space, I will describe our progress towards “Mission Illinois”: the first on-orbit carbon fiber composite manufacturing space experiment planned for launch in 2026. This mission will enable the manufacturing of extremely large, mass-efficient, and precise structures on-orbit.

Next, I will describe growth printing, an additive manufacturing (AM) process harnessing this spatially propagating FP reaction to produce 3D polymer parts 1000 times faster and twice as energy efficient than the faster stereolithography. In contrast with existing 3D printing, this morphogenic process is inspired by biological “growth and form” due to the self-directed propagation of the polymerization reaction. I will describe experiments and modeling to enable the potential use of this disruptive technology.

Speaker Bio

Sameh Tawfick is a Professor of Mechanical Science and Engineering and a Ralph A. Andersen Scholar at the University of Illinois. He studies advanced materials, mechanics, and manufacturing processes. Sam obtained his PhD from the University of Michigan, was a Postdoctoral Associate at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and a Beaufort Visiting Fellow in St. John’s College at the University of Cambridge in 2023. He is the recipient of young investigator awards from the US Air Force, ASME, SME, and The Dean’s Award for Excellence in Research at Illinois. His teaching awards at the University of Illinois include The Everitt Award for Teaching Excellence, The Two-year Alumni Teaching Award, and The Engineering Council Stanley H. Pierce Award for Empathetic Student-faculty Cooperation.