EUROPEAN WHITE BOOK

MAX-PLANCK-INSTITUT FÜR METALLFORSCHUNG STUTTGARTcollaboration, the “Handbook of Ecomaterials” is in preparationwith the cooperation of many researchers fromEurope, Japan, Canada, U.S., China and others.In 1999, VAMAS (The Versailles Project on Advanced Materialsand Standards) approved an initiative on environmentalstandardization activities for materials technologyentitled “Definition of a Role for VAMAS Participation inEnvironmental Standardization Activities for MaterialsTechnologies”. International collaboration in Ecomaterialsresearch is expected to be promoted more and more inorder to find ways of solving materials problems and establisha sustainable society.6.10.6. ConclusionsIn this paper, the state of the art, expected breakthroughsand a roadmap for Ecomaterials research were described.More fundamental research and new ideas are needed inorder for these materials to receive widespread use in thenear future.232ConclusionsFirstly it should be recognized that having knowledgeof potentially advantageous intrinsic properties of acompound/alloy is one thing, but that converting thisknowledge into a viable, i.e. practically useful processingroute is another thing, which often proves to be extremelydifficult, if possible at all. This leads to the following firstmain conclusion:• Whereas significant attention can be paid to the design/prediction of new materials, the major effort should bedevoted to the development of successful processing routes.Considering, as an example, metal-alloy production, it isclear that the treatment starting with the casting of theraw material and continuing with a combination of heattreatment and deformation, is all-decisive for realizing theproperties sought for. This treatment defines and optimizesthe internal structure, the so-called microstructure,in terms of atomic arrangement and morphology of theconstituents. In other words:• Control of the microstructure is the key to successfulmaterials processing.In this sense, reviewing the state of knowledge in allmaterial classes of some significance, it is concluded that• More basic, fundamental knowledge on processes controllingthe microstructure (grain morphology and size, phaseconstitution, texture, stress) is imperative. Lack of suchknowledge is the limiting factor on progress in virtuallyevery area of modern materials engineering.This holds for the production of thin films and the area ofsurface engineering in general, as well for the productionof all kinds of composites and bulk materials, both inorganicand organic. To summarize the current impression:it is felt, in contrast with what one may naively presume,that:• The gap between fundamental knowledge and technologicalapplication has increased in recent years. Hence,basic science on model systems for practical materialsshould be promoted.Control of the mechanisms prevailing on the atomic andmolecular scale is necessary, but also on a larger lengthscale the course of a transformation/reaction should bedescribed quantitatively. For example, quantum mechanicalcalculations on the molecular scale can be useful, buton a mesoscopic length scale (i.e. at lengths of the orderof the size of a crystal grain) for example continuummechanical calculations (on the basis of finite elementapproaches) have to be performed.