Professor Moataz Attallah BSc, MSc, PhD, AHEA

• Associate Module in Learning and Teaching in Higher Education, The University of Birmingham, 2012.
• PhD (Metallurgy & Materials Science), University of Birmingham, 2007 (Degree conferred 2008).
• MSc (Materials & Manufacturing), The American University in Cairo, 2003.
• BSc Hons (Mechanical Engineering), The American University in Cairo (Egypt), 2001.

Moataz was born in Egypt, attending Orman Experimental Language School in Giza. He received his BSc (highest honours) and MSc in mechanical and materials/manufacturing engineering, 2001 and 2003 respectively, from the American University in Cairo, Egypt.

He went on to study for a PhD in Metallurgy and Materials Science from the University of Birmingham between 2003 and 2007. He then worked as a research fellow between January 2007 and June 2010 at the, University of Manchester’s School of Materials with Prof. Michael Preuss. He was a member of the Stress & Damage Characterisation Unit (led by Professor Phil Withers), which is the largest research group in Europe with a research portfolio focused on neutron and synchrotron x-ray diffraction. During that period, Moataz had a brief spell at Osaka University in Japan, where he worked on in-situ confocal microscopy in Prof. Komizo’s laboratory.

From June 2010, he returned to the University of Birmingham as a lecturer in advanced materials processing. He was appointed to a chair in advanced materials processing in August 2014. He leads the Advanced Materials and Processing Lab (AMPLab).

Moataz is also the academic theme leader for near net shape manufacturing theme for the Catapult’s Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC). MTC provides an environment in which world-class providers of research and development in key manufacturing technologies work alongside high-value manufacturing industries in transferring and exchanging knowledge focussed on delivering user-driven advanced manufacturing solutions.

EngD modules:

• Physical Metallurgy in Titanium and Nickel (with Dr. Hector Basoalto)
• Netshape Manufacturing

Undergraduate modules:

• Fundamentals of Materials-Shaping (1FoM-b)
• Contributions to 1DPs, 3AMP, and other modules.

PhD Students:

• Rachel Jennings: Hybrid processing of Ni-superalloys using hot isostatic pressing and laser powder bed (funded by IHI Corporation).
• Amanda Field: Development and additive manufacturing of fusion reactor components (funded by UKAEA/ICase award).
• Bonnie Attard: Microstructural control in laser powder bed fusion of Ni-superalloys (funded by DSTL/ICase award).
• Abdullah Al-Huzaim: Microstructural control in direct laser deposition of Ni-superalloys (funded by the Saudi Royal Commission for Al-Jubail).
• Alessandro Sergi: Powder hot isostatic pressing of Ni-superalloys (funded by TWI).
• Hollie Baker: Additive manufacturing of PGM-modified TiNi alloys (funded by Johnson Matthey).
• Zhu Nan: Friction joining for the transportation industry (funded by Guangdong Municipal Government).
• Richard Harlow (part-time): Shielding effects in direct laser deposition of Ti-alloys (funded by Rolls-Royce plc).
• Ranxi Duan: Development of low-modulus Ti-alloys using additive manufacturing (funded by Sustec).
• Peng Chen: Additive manufacturing of high entropy alloys (funded by Sustec).
• Weihuan Kong: Additive manufacturing of drug-delivering implants.

EngD Students

• Richard Ashwell: Novel friction joining technologies (funded by the MTC).
• Riccardo Tosi: Enhancing productivity in additive manufacturing (funded by the MTC).

Research visitors:

Dr. Di Wang, South China University of Technology (SCUT).
Mr. Chaolin Tan, Guangdong Academy of Sciences.

RESEARCH THEMES

• Laser Net Shape Fabrication (using blown powder and powder laser bed).
• Additive manufacturing of stents and drug-delivering implants.
• Additive manufacturing of soft magnets.
• Solid-Solid and Liquid-Solid Phase Transformations due to Friction-based Welding (linear friction, inertia, and friction stir) and laser fabrication (blown powder and laser bed) of Ti, Al, Ni, and ferrous alloys.
• Residual Stress, Micromechanics, and phase transformations Characterisation using Neutron and Synchrotron X-ray Diffraction.
• Phase Transformations in Ti-Alloys and Ni-superalloys.
• In-Situ Observation of the Phase Transformations in Metallic Materials using High Temperature Confocal Laser Scanning Microscopy.
• Comparative Quantitative Microstructural Characterisation using electron microscopy and x-ray diffraction for structure-property modelling.
• Severe Plastic Deformation in Al-Alloys: the consolidation behaviour of nanocrystalline powders, in combination with subsequent equal channel angular processing.
• Plastic Deformation and Recrystallisation in Al-alloys.
• Alloy development

RESEARCH ACTIVITY

The current projects are available under the student supervision section. Some of the topics include:

• Mitigation of Cracking due to Laser Bed Fabrication of Nickel-base superalloys.
• Microstructural Characteristics of Direct Laser Deposition (DLD) products in steels, Ni-superalloys, and Ti alloys.
• Friction Welding of Titanium and Nickel Superalloys: Microstructural and Residual Stress Development.
• Netshape Powder HIPping of Nickel Superalloys.
• Laser Powder Bed Fabrication of Metallic Materials.
• Combinatorial Synthesis of Titanium-based Alloys

Moataz is the Chief Scientific Officer of Amphora Metallicus, a commercial trading division operating under Birmingham Enterprise (UoB’s technology commercialisation company), focusing on advanced manufacturing. The company has undertaken projects with companies in the nuclear, aerospace, space, and materials processing sectors.

Outreach

Moataz was selected as the face of the British Science Festival 2014 at the University of Birmingham, featuring on the festival brochures and street adverts. Moataz delivered talks in science festivals and schools on his research and on being a materials scientist.