SAE Aerospace conference: Redundancy by design through manufacturing innovation to bypass resource scarcity

I thank the society of automotive engineers for organising the second annual Aerospace Materials & Manufacturing Summit, to discuss the material challenges that the aerospace and defense industry is currently facing and some of the new opportunities that have arisen due to innovation in materials manufacturing and processing.

As someone who deeply cares about material science it was a great opportunity for me to listen to the experts in the aerospace industry and learn about their thought process prior to materials selection. I also think that this is a great initiative by SAE that will foster a deeper engagement with material engineers.

Aircraft impose severe constraints on materials as they have to be tough,strong and lightweight. Unsurprisingly Aluminum alloys and fiber composites dominate due to their unique combination of properties that align well with the requirements of aerospace. Titanium,Tungsten and Nickel alloys are used in engines and turbines due to their ability to maintain their strength at high temperatures.

These high performance materials do come at a cost of complicated processing. Therefore, I was very keen to listen to the discussion on electrochemical grinding and micro blasting for precision material removal required for part shaping and for creating micrometer level tolerances and shot peening for improvement in crack resistance and enhancement of fatigue life.

Sealing is another big challenge and I learnt a lot from the presentation by omniseal group on how exactly they develop solutions to enable sealing and minimise friction and wear of components.

The section on laser technologies for welding and cutting emphasized just how advanced aerospace materials manufacturing has become.

However the event also highlighted some of the details that are overlooked by technology enthusiasts. For example how supply chains are affected by geopolitics. The titanium,tungsten and nickel alloys used in aerospace components for example are dominated by China, Indonesia and Russia which has caused some concern among nations in the west especially as trade is increasingly being weaponised to gain political leverage.

I learnt that the US defense budget could be raised to $1.5T but where would that capital be allocated? Experts have different opinions on this matter but the strongest move here is to create redundancy and build alternative tooling and techniques that bypass material dependency. One can't magically make minerals like Ni or Ti appear. There may be certain unexplored deposits and it's true that new mining sites are being constructed in Canada and AU but even those would be limited in output and face demand from other sectors (EV for example).

It is possible to build aircrafts with abundant components. De havilland proved this with wood based aircrafts both for defense and commercial uses. Material advancement today especially with the development of ceramic matrix composites and sandwich structures make it possible for us to manufacture materials that are tougher than wood ,yet suffer none of the disadvantages associated with it like moisture induced rotting or dimensional instability.

These materials made out of common Sio2 or carbon based fibers offer a massive advantage with the tradeoff that the aircrafts would never be able to match the absolute raw power of modern machines. Yes we won't be able to build a 200 seater 80 Mega Watt plane. But we can absolutely build hundreds of 200 Kilowatt 6 seater planes. It has been done before. It can be done again.

Do you care about international relations? Would you like to be a part of a non profit that seeks to foster international collaboration? Partner with us & use your skills in Science/Engineering/Research/Team Building/Consulting/Administration/Law/PR/Comms/Business to shape the future. Let's do this.

ABOUT bhū

bhū is a self funded non profit organisation dedicated to advancement of science and promotion of international relations.

We aim to promote international harmony through creation of specific councils and bodies for regulating and overseeing international issues and accelerate developments in nanotechnology, material science ,electrostatics, fluids, plasma science,thermodynamics and advanced manufacturing.

Let us work together

https://akshatjiwannotes.blogspot.com/p/bhu.html

Akshat Jiwan Sharma

Materials science/International relations/Partnerships

Mobile/whatsapp:+919654119771

email:getellobed@gmail.com

Comments

Why does collapsing a bubble with a sound wave produce light?

My thoughts on a reddit discussion https://www.reddit.com/r/AskPhysics/comments/1lwxxc3/comment/n2jx8gp/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=mweb3x&utm_name=mweb3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button The collapsing of a bubble with sound wave leads to the emission of light in a phenomenon known as sonoluminescnce. The bubble collapse is rapid and the gas inside the core doesn't have time to exchange heat with the surroundings as it's compressed rapidly leading to what is known as adiabatic compression. This compression heats up the gas to very high temp. The exact temperatures are inferred from the spectrum of emission which is thought to be a blackbody. But some sophisticated models have also been developed that put the temp in the range 5000k-20000k some even higher. There's also debate on whether the bubble emission spectrum is truly a blackbody or is it line emission or bremsstrahlung? Personally I think its a mix of all three. The pressures create...

Workforce development isn't enough for innovation

Being one of the fastest growing regions in the world, Asia Pacific’s stature in the scientific community is growing as is the region's ambition to play a greater role in shaping research through science diplomacy. I have had the good fortune of connecting with delegates from Singapore and South Korea in conferences last year. Similarly I had the opportunity to engage virtually with researchers from Australia during Australian Academy of Science’s flagship event ‘ Science at the shine dome ’ in 2025. A few days ago I attended the International Science Council’s ( Asia Pacific chapter) quarterly meeting. Three things that stood out during my interactions were : focus on workforce development, democratization of science for greater public participation and emphasis on sustainability. All three issues are highly relevant but for Asia Pacific in particular workforce development takes special priority as STEM courses are often viewed as a path to a prosperous f...

The African Century

Over the past 5 years I have been advocating unification and industrialisation of Africa. During this time I have had the pleasure of interacting with several African business and political leaders from Tanzania,Kenya,Nigeria, South Africa,Uganda,Egypt,Sudan,Malawi,Liberia and more who share this vision. Africa is one of the largest contiguous land masses on the planet,with one of the world's youngest populations, an immense coastline ,deserts, mineral resources and arable land. Its location provides it with supreme geopolitical advantage that can potentially project it's influence over all of Asia and the EU. Yet historical factors combined with present economic conditions has not only prevented Africa from actualising its potential but has also made it entirely dependent upon developed nations to satisfy the demands of modern nation states. Predictably what we have seen in Africa is a continuation of extractive economics where African states supply raw ma...

Steel composites integrating diamonds and carbon nanotubes

Incorporating hard materials like diamond or carbon nanotubes (CNTs) into steel presents unique challenges, particularly when using traditional melt processing techniques. Diamond, for example, is extremely difficult to integrate into steel via melting due to its thermal instability. However, diamond is routinely embedded in steel surfaces for cutting applications. In the electronics industry, steel wires coated with diamond are used to slice silicon crystals into thin wafers. Two main techniques are commonly employed for embedding diamond in metals: 1. Electroplating: Diamond powder is suspended in a metal ion electrolyte, usually nickel. When an electric current is applied, nickel deposits on the metal wire, trapping the diamond particles in place. 2. Sintering: For more demanding cutting tools, diamond can be embedded on metal surfaces using sintering, which fuses the particles to the substrate at high temperatures without melting the metal. Similar challenges exist when attempting ...

The twisted fairy tales of blasphemous —stories of religious devotion, sadism and surrender

I had never played a souls-like game before,so when I saw that blasphemous was on sale earlier this summer I decided to buy and give it a try. I had heard a lot of good things about this game but it still managed to surprise me with the depth of its world. The entire game takes place in a small town of cvstodia but the amount of lore it manages to pack is simply amazing. Rooted in Spanish christian mythology weaving together themes of religious devotion,inquisition,fanaticism, penitence and authority , the main story in the game is very unsettling. Those who like fairy tales will find the narration familiar with each segment concluding with a moral lesson — but that lesson is entirely twisted and almost nightmarish. Exactly the opposite of a happy ending in a classic fairy tale. The 'miracle’, a god-like entity, grants people's wishes in the most ironic ,punishing manner possible and people bear these tortures without complaining, thinking of it as a blessing. Cv...

Energy asymmetry in AI: Who gets to host the future?

8 Jan 2026 I thank the New York Energy Forum for organising a discussion on how AI is Shaping the Global Future. Dr. Carolyn Kissane,Associate Dean of New York University’s Center for Global Affairs and Director of NYU’s SPS Energy, Climate Justice, and Sustainability Lab , Mr. Douglas Giuffre Executive Director and Head of Americas Power & Renewables at S&P Global Energy, Mr Michael Pearce ,Chief US Economist at Oxford Economics presented their thoughts on implications of AI on geopolitics, energy and economics respectively. The session was moderated by Mr. Atul Arya, Senior Vice President and Chief Energy Strategist at S&P Global. AI continues to create headlines and draw passionate responses from experts in technology, governance and public policy. As with any new technology there are concerns around job security,the cost of operation and even on its effect on climate change . Some of these concerns are simply anxiety while others...

Update on the ASM committee meeting on the State of the Art in Material Upcycling for Additive Manufacturing

May 15 2026 I thank ASM sustainable manufacturing committee for organising a highly informative talk by Dr Sweta Baruah on the topic of Materials Upcycling in Additive manufacturing. As it stands AM is far more material efficient than traditional manufacturing processes— producing less waste than subtractive manufacturing techniques (milling/turning/drilling/grinding). Yet feedstock cost in AM remains high due to energy intensive processes used in its manufacturing. Typical powderisation techniques using gas or water atomisation consume much energy as do wire extrusion processes. The desire to cut down the input energy serves as a powerful motivator to develop processes that can lower the cost and make AM more sustainable. Traditional melt processing technologies for making powder or wire help with the reusability of waste streams and reduce energy input because compared to fresh feedstock there is no need for crushing ,chemical treatment,reduction etc. Yet...

If you like RPGs you should play Knights of The Old Republic

This summer on star wars day I decided to give Knights of the old Republic (KOTOR) a try. I like star wars franchise but I'm not too deep into the lore ,so initially , I was a bit undecided about the game but took a chance since I had heard from so many people that it's one of the best RPGs ever made. After finishing the game I've got to say that it's reputation is definitely well deserved. The game leans heavily towards narration and your choices can have long lasting impact on how the story plays out. Combat is real time action but you don't control characters directly rather issue commands via a pause menu. It takes a while to get used to but works very well especially on mobile touch screens. I felt that some abilities are way overpowered. Especially the light side ones that buff your characters and grant them extra turns.Even a dark ability' like destroy droid can clear out some of the toughest opponents in a few turns. From what I understand this game is b...

The Promise of Physical AI

11 Mar 2026 Yesterday at the 60th Edition of Cobotalks organised by I-Hub Foundation for Cobotics Technology Innovation Hub of IIT Delhi, I had a chance to attend a talk on physical AI by Dr Santanu Chaudhary, Former Professor, Department of Electrical Engineering, IIT Delhi. This talk came just weeks after the India AI impact summit but I was excited nonetheless to learn more about some of the academic aspects of AI. Dr. Santanu emphasized that while chatbots have taken over the mindspace there is more to AI than just interactions with a server on the cloud. The chatbots represent a more general-purpose intelligence, they are quietly disrupting several industries in the ‘knowledge-work’ space but physical AI is narrow task specific intelligence that has applications in industrial automation and handling tasks that are either too dangerous for humans or too much of a chore. Autonomous vehicles are a great example of physical AI. They have demonstrated that it is...

Perspective from EU Research & Innovation (R&I) Days 2025

I thank the European Commission for organising European Research & Innovation (R&I) Days 2025 and giving me a chance to participate in the event discussing the future of European research. Europe has had a long and storied tradition of science with philosophers like Locke,Hobbes,Descartes,Spinoza laying the groundwork for a scientific revolution producing the finest scientists who pushed the boundaries of human knowledge ,ushered the industrial revolution and birthed the modern world. Yet today the EU finds itself at crossroads struggling to retain talent and capitalise on its inventions. Horizon Europe defines key enabling technologies that could propel the EU far ahead of its competitors. Past Records show that Europe has the capability to do it. Its achievements in electronics,semiconductors,wind energy and development of advanced composites like GLARE are a testament to its enterprising citizens. Europe has made strong contributions in open source software and while some of...

Akshat Jiwan Sharma

Search This Blog