Machine Learning PhD New Grad

Novel coating technology withstands extreme combustion environments. Audio generated using AI voice technology. Apr 29, 2026 Katie kerrigan. A cross-disciplinary team at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland, has developed and applied a novel high-performance coating system engineered to endure extreme thermal and chemical stress. Designed for precision application on complex internal geometries, the coating demonstrated exceptional durability in recent high-temperature testing, highlighting its potential to significantly extend the operational life of components routinely exposed to intense combustion and acidic environments. The Laboratory has been adapting and testing a specialized thermal processing system, known as the Pulse Combustion Engine, for several years. The Pulse Combustion Engine relies on technology developed by ThermoChem Recovery International (TRI) that was originally designed to convert waste into clean synthesis gas, a mixture of gases used to produce energy or fuel. APL researchers collaborated with TRI engineers to modify the system for use in harsh combustion environments that require enhanced protection for the engine's internal components. After extensive APL-led materials studies, the Pulse Combustion Engine underwent rigorous survivability testing and demonstrated exceptional resilience for 13 hours under extreme conditions. Central to the test's success was a specially formulated nickel-chromium-aluminum-yttrium (NiCrAlY) coating, applied using a compact internal diameter plasma spray torch, to protect the system's intricate interior surfaces. "This project exemplifies how APL's unique breadth of expertise drives successful innovation," said Leslie Hamilton, program manager for Science of Extreme and Multifunctional Materials. "The coating withstood conditions harsher than the inside of a volcano - sustaining 1,150°C and exposure to highly acidic gas at concentrations 600 times above what's considered immediately dangerous to life and health. Achieving that kind of resilience required a creative approach rooted in our extensive experience of working with materials for extreme environments." The research effort began with a study to identify metals and coatings best suited for prolonged exposure to high heat and corrosive environments. Using advanced computational methods, including thermodynamic modeling, the team rapidly evaluated a wide range of candidate materials and narrowed the field to two promising formulas. However, the ideal bulk metal identified through simulation was not available in the complex geometries required to make the internal structure of the Pulse Combustion Engine. To overcome this limitation, the team pivoted to engineered coatings, ultimately developing a custom NiCrAlY alloy solution that could be sprayed on the engine's internal surfaces. The research showed that aluminum, particularly when combined with other strategic metals, was essential to achieving the coating's resilience under thermal and chemical stress. Even after identifying a viable coating formulation, the team faced a second major challenge: depositing the coating onto the interior surfaces of extremely narrow pipes - components that would be directly exposed to the system's intense combustion process. "One of the biggest challenges we faced in depositing this novel coating was getting it to adhere to a small inner diameter pipe," said Ken Kane, a materials scientist at APL. "We had to develop a custom approach using a specialized plasma torch, which we'd never used before." For this task, the team built on insights gained from an internally funded research project that explored heat-resistant coating applications for hypersonic vehicle components. Team members systematically experimented with and refined the torch's parameters, eventually identifying that the key to successful coating lay in selecting the appropriate powder morphology - an insight that enabled effective buildup of the coating despite the compact torch's lower power output. "This successful field test required a multidisciplinary approach and the ability to rapidly prototype, test, and refine under one roof," said Cassidy Carroll, an APL analytical chemist and project manager. "APL's unique mix of expertise, facilities, and strong partnerships with industry made it possible to move from concept through design iterations to full-system tests - and eventually to deliver a resilient technology designed to meet real-world challenges and support a safer, cleaner future." Related work. Areas of impact. Mission area. The Applied Physics Laboratory, a not-for-profit division of The Johns Hopkins University, meets critical national challenges through the innovative application of science and technology. For more information, visit www.jhuapl.edu. Media contact.

Colibrium Additive secures NAVAIR deal to advance metal AM certification. The U.S. Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) has awarded Colibrium Additive, a subsidiary of GE Aerospace, a $31 million contract as part of its Additive Manufacturing Capability initiative. The program targets a persistent challenge in military aviation: accelerating the testing, qualification, and certification of metal additively manufactured components to keep fleet aircraft mission-ready. Building the Materials Foundation: Six MPCs in Scope At the heart of the agreement is the development of six metal alloy Material Process Combinations (MPCs), structured datasets capturing the physical and mechanical properties of specific alloys under defined manufacturing conditions. Colibrium Additive will optimize process parameters, consolidate material and process specifications, and establish design allowables for all properties tested. The work expands two existing alloy packages, AlSi7Mg and IN718, while introducing 17-4PH and 7050-RAM2 into a portfolio that already includes 316L, CoCr, and Ti64. A dedicated thin-wall fatigue characterization effort is also included, specifically aimed at validating the performance and fatigue life of thin-wall geometries, which are common in aerospace structures and historically difficult to certify for flight-critical applications. Hardware, Software, and Services Delivered Together To meet NAVAIR's development timelines, Colibrium Additive will supply three M Line metal 3D printing systems and one M2 Series 5 printer. These machines will directly support MPC development activities on-site. Beyond hardware, the contract includes a comprehensive AddWorks services package: licensed material characterization data and curves, manufacturing process instructions, and select specifications tailored to the production of NAVAIR components. A multi-disciplinary training program rounds out the contract, covering teams across manufacturing, quality, design, and materials disciplines, as well as machine operators. The goal is to build lasting internal expertise within the Navy, not just deliver equipment, so that qualified additive manufacturing processes can be sustained and scaled over time. "Colibrium Additive is proud to extend its support of NAVAIR with proven metal additive technology and deep application expertise," said Lars Bruns, executive technology leader at Colibrium Additive. "By combining certified hardware with licensed process data and hands-on training, we are helping accelerate the Navy's ability to produce repeatable, airworthy components at scale and reduce supply chain risk for critical aviation parts." The U.S. Military's Push to Certify Metal 3D Printing at Scale The U.S. defense sector has been grappling with a structural challenge: additive manufacturing technology has outpaced the regulatory and qualification frameworks needed to deploy it on operational aircraft and vessels. For aviation commands like NAVAIR, the bottleneck is less about printing capability and more about the absence of certified material datasets, repeatable processes, and trained workforces, the exact gaps Colibrium Additive's contract is designed to close. Similar efforts are taking shape across the naval landscape. Velo3D signed a four-year Cooperative Research and Development Agreement with NAVAI in June 2025, involving two federal labs, NAWCAD and Fleet Readiness Center East, to qualify advanced metal AM materials and processes for flight-critical components in military aircraft systems. On the shipbuilding side, Johns Hopkins APL worked alongside NAVSEA to develop new qualification methods now embedded in the Navy's manufacturing guidelines and certification standards, reducing machine certification requirements by over 60% while maintaining reliability, driven by the recognition that AM parts must perform predictably across multiple vendors and environments to be viable at scale. The Colibrium Additive award signals that NAVAIR is moving beyond pilots and into institutionalized capability, one where certified alloy data, qualified printers, and trained personnel converge to make on-demand production of airworthy parts an operational reality, not a future promise. 3D Printing Industry is inviting speakers for its 2026 Additive Manufacturing Applications (AMA) series, covering Energy, Healthcare, Automotive and Mobility, Aerospace, Space and Defense, and Software. Each online event focuses on real production deployments, qualification, and supply chain integration. Practitioners interested in contributing can complete the call for speakers form here. Explore the full Future of 3D Printing and Executive Survey series from 3D Printing Industry, featuring perspectives from CEOs, engineers, and industry leaders on the industrialization of additive manufacturing, 3D printing industry trends 2026, qualification, supply chains, and additive manufacturing industry analysis. Featured image shows M Line metal 3D printing systems. Photo via Colibrium Additive.

Johns Hopkins APL named a Fast Company Most Innovative Company for 2026. Audio generated using AI voice technology. Mar 25, 2026 The Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland, has been named one of Fast Company's Most Innovative Companies of 2026, ranking 13 in the Security category for developing cybersecurity tools to protect industrial control systems that power essential services such as electricity, water, and transportation. "This recognition highlights the urgency and importance of securing the infrastructure support systems and networks that our nation depends upon every day," said APL Director Dave Van Wie. "In close collaboration with government and industry, APL's researchers focused on delivering practical, scalable cybersecurity solutions. These are real-world tools that help operators detect and respond to threats in real time, strengthening the resilience of both civilian and defense infrastructure." Fast Company's annual list recognizes organizations worldwide that are driving meaningful innovation across more than 50 industries, highlighting those that are setting new standards and shaping the future through creative problem-solving and real-world impact. The Security category focuses on cutting-edge technologies that are keeping people and companies safe from digital warfare, underscoring the growing importance of cybersecurity and resilient infrastructure amid an increasingly complex global threat environment. APL was selected for its development of Behavioral Alerting Sets for Control Systems (BAS/CS), an analytic framework for detecting cyber threats to industrial control systems. BAS/CS standardizes and correlates alerts generated by multiple tools, dramatically reducing false alarms and analyst workload. It operates within the APL-developed More Situational Awareness for Industrial Control Systems (MOSAICS) framework, which integrates data across diverse security tools as well as legacy and developing technologies to support tailored cyber defenses for complex control systems. Together, these capabilities enhance situational awareness and enable faster, more coordinated responses to increasingly sophisticated cyber threats. They are currently employed worldwide to support the defense of ashore U.S. Navy control systems. "Industrial control system cybersecurity often relies on isolated point solutions that don't communicate well across complex environments," said Ray Yuan, APL's Cyber Operations Mission Area executive. "MOSAICS changes that by providing an integrated framework that brings diverse control systems, tools, and data streams into a unified defensive architecture, and BAS/CS builds within that framework to ensure activity is interpreted consistently across those environments, enabling a more cohesive and scalable approach to defense." This is APL's sixth appearance on a Fast Company Most Innovative Companies list. The Lab made the list in 2016 for leading DARPA's Revolutionizing Prosthetics program, as well as in 2018, 2020, and 2022, for the Parker Solar Probe, Dragonfly, and Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) space missions, respectively. The Lab appeared twice on the 2024 list for its biothreat characterization and AI-accelerated modeling tools. Related work. Areas of impact. Mission Area. The Applied Physics Laboratory, a not-for-profit division of The Johns Hopkins University, meets critical national challenges through the innovative application of science and technology. For more information, visit www.jhuapl.edu. Media contact.