Invited by the Institute of Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences (IMR, CAS), Prof. Anil K. Sachdev, the recipient of the 2024 "Lee Hsun Lecture Award," visited IMR from May 10 to 13.
On the morning of May 12, Prof. Anil K. Sachdev gave an academic lecture to the researchers and graduate students of the Institute of Metal Research titled "Iron: The Element that Made Our Society." Before the lecture began, Prof. YANG Rui, the award nominator, presented Prof. Anil K. Sachdev with the "Lee Hsun Lecture Award" plaque on behalf of the Institute. The lecture and award ceremony were hosted by Prof. XU Dongsheng from the Titanium Alloy Research Department.
Iron is ubiquitous, and humans have a long history of using iron tools. This ancient but important material remains a pillar of society to this day. In this lecture, Prof. Anil K. Sachdev reviewed the development of steel and demonstrated how this 'magical' material is precious due to its massive scale. The lecture first presented examples of early cast iron and wrought iron applications, then introduced some of the latest research projects—how high-resolution microscopy can be used to understand the micro- and nano-scale structure of materials, thereby designing better alloys and processes. Finally, it also focused on exploring future research opportunities.
The report was cutting-edge and in-depth, sparking strong interest and lively discussion among the attending researchers and graduate students. Everyone engaged in thorough and profound exchanges with Prof. Anil K. Sachdev on key issues related to steel materials. During this visit, Prof. Anil K. Sachdev conducted academic exchanges with the researchers of the Titanium Alloy Research Department, discussing scientific issues such as titanium alloy composition design and high-throughput experimental verification for new processes like additive manufacturing and transformative new applications.
Dr. Anil K. Sachdev is a member of the U.S. National Academy of Engineering and a fellow of the Metallurgical Society. He received his Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1977, and after working for 46 years at General Motors (GM) Global R&D, he retired as Principal Technical Fellow and Laboratory Group Manager. His research areas include microstructure design, metal matrix composites, and high-strength steels for structural applications. His recent work includes customizing alloys for lithium metal, alloy development for additive manufacturing and processing high-energy batteries. Sachdev also established global research centers in Shanghai, including the China Science Laboratory, and maintains long-term collaborations with universities and research institutions around the world. His main contributions involve achieving lightweight products by combining multi-scale in-situ experiments with computational methods and developing high-performance materials and processes suitable for specific component designs through understanding physical phenomena across scales. He has delivered more than 60 invited presentations at various international conferences, including the recent Adolf Martens Lecture at AIST and a keynote address on additive manufacturing at ASTM. He holds 125 patents and has published over 100 journal papers related to light metals research. He has also received Best Paper Awards and Product Recognition Awards from AFS, TMS, NADCA, and IMA.
