America Makes Reveals Winners of CATACS Project Call

America Makes and the National Center for Defense Manufacturing and Machining (NCDMM) announce the winners of a recent project call awarded through the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense, Manufacturing Technology Office (OSD ManTech), worth a total of $1.3M. The project call, Corrosion of Additive—Tested At Component Scale (CATACS), focuses on two main topic areas and will demonstrate and validate a framework for evaluating corrosion testing needs and generate data applicable to metal additive manufacturing with similar corrosion performance requirements.

Additive manufacturing (AM) is of great interest to the Department of War as it enables rapid, customizable production. However, AM qualification and certification for metal parts remain a barrier due to a lack of accepted testing and processing methods. Material properties produced from AM can differ from traditional manufacturing methods, leading to corrosion concerns. The CATACS program aims to establish and validate a framework for evaluating AM metal part corrosion testing needs, focusing on representative testing at the component scale in two areas: high-temperature environments and thermal management systems. 

By addressing these gaps, the CATACS program plans to accelerate the adoption of AM parts in high-performance defense systems by establishing a corrosion testing framework that streamlines certification, strengthening manufacturing readiness, and scaling the defense industrial base. 

 Below is the list of award winners and related topic areas:

Topic 1: Corrosion of AM Components at Elevated Temperatures 

• Team Lead: RTX Technology Research Center (RTRC) 

 Topic 2: Corrosion of AM Components for Thermal Management 

• Team Lead: Colorado School of Mines  

• Project Team: Conflux Technology Pty Ltd., Elementum 3D, Naval Surface Warfare Center Carderock Division (Corrosion and Coatings Engineering Branch), National Institute of Standards Technology (NIST), Oak Ridge National Laboratory, The Ohio State University, Ohio University, Quintus Technologies 

Project teams will report on their progress at the America Makes Technical Review and Exchange (TRX) and other industry events during the execution phase of the program. 

Sources: Press materials received from the company and additional information gleaned from the company’s website.