Keynote: How Simulation Can Be Used to Improve SPS Material Densification

Spark plasma sintering (SPS) is an energy-efficient technique that involves Joule heating and uniaxial pressure to densify materials such as ceramics, metals, and composites. The key to this technique is the ability to determine and control process variables to produce materials with the desired microstructure.

In this keynote talk from COMSOL Day: Material Processing, Thibaut Viné of Norimat presents the thermoelectric–mechanical model his team built using COMSOL Multiphysics^® to predict and optimize SPS in a wide variety of materials. He demonstrates the model's accuracy by sharing the results of the team's validation against experimental data. Then, he explains how his team used the Application Builder to bring the model's insights to Norimat's customers in the form of easily configurable, user-friendly simulation apps — including a digital twin that can be used to predict temperature and electric current during sintering. Viné concludes the presentation with an example of how the apps can be used to reduce the thermal gradient in a sample during SPS.

Thibaut Viné holds a PhD in energy and process engineering from the Paris-Saclay University. He is currently a modeling and simulation engineer at Norimat, working on the development of digital solutions to understand, predict, and optimize SPS.