MSE Seminar Series

Friday, February 11, 2022 @11am
*Remote - 27-744 Seminar-Zoom Link (27774SP22)

Professor Olivia A. Graeve,
University of California, San Diego

presents:
Materials for Space Environments:
What will it take to colonize other planets?

ABSTRACT:
The idea of living on Mars or the Moon has been a staple of science fiction since the 19th century.  The justification is that we need to go there if we want to create a backup location for humanity, in the event that life on Earth becomes untenable due to issues like climate change. We could also go there to search for additional resources such as water or precious metals. However, if this sci-fi dream were to ever become reality, what would it be like to actually live there?  Conditions make living on Mars extremely challenging. In particular, materials needed for such extreme environments need to be discovered and designed. In this talk, we will present an overview and current research on carbide and boride materials for potential uses at extreme environments, including ultra-high and ultra-low temperatures, impact, and radiation. High-entropy carbides and hexaborides will be described in detail, especially in connection to their processing. A special focus on spark plasma sintering will be detailed, as the technique is optimum for quick processing of these types of materials.

BIOGRAPHY:
Prof. Olivia A. Graeve (http://graeve.ucsd.edu/) joined the University of California San Diego in 2012 and is currently Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and Director of the CaliBaja Center for Resilient Materials and Systems (http://resilientmaterials.ucsd.edu/). She holds a Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering (2001) from the University of California, Davis, and a Bachelor of Science degree in Structural Engineering (1995) from the University of California San Diego. Her area of research focuses on the design and processing of new materials for extreme environments, including extremes of temperature, pressure, and radiation. Prof. Graeve has been involved in many activities related to the recruitment and retention of women and Hispanic students in science and engineering and has received several prestigious awards including the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring in 2020. She has been inducted into the Tijuana Walk of Fame (2014), the Mexican Academy of Engineering (2016), the Mexican Academy of Sciences (2019), and has been named Fellow of the American Ceramic Society (2017) and of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (2021).