Professor Bo Chen

Bo obtained a BSc degree from Beihang University between 2003 and 2007, specialising in Materials Engineering. He then carried out his PhD in Department of Engineering at University of Bristol, between 2007 and 2011, followed by taking two Post-doctoral Research Associate posts in 2011 in Bristol’s High Temperature Centre and then in 2013 in Materials Performance Centre at University of Manchester. In 2015, Bo moved to a Lectureship at Coventry University, being promoted to Senior Lecturer in 2017. He was awarded a 5-year EPSRC Early-career Fellowship in Nuclear Fission in 2018. Bo became a Professor of Engineering Materials at University of Leicester in March 2019.

At University of Leicester, he serves as the Chair of the EPSRC Key Funder Working Group (2022-Current), Head of Mechanics of Materials Group (2020-Current). He acted as the Engineering School’s Director of Research (2020-2022).

Bo has worked for 15 years in the field of high-temperature structural materials performance and has specialised in advanced manufacturing, microstructural characterisation as well as creep and fatigue related lifetime prediction. His areas of research interests include:

• Creep, fatigue as well as oxidation
• Residual stresses at different length-scales
• High-temperature structural integrity assessment
• Electron beam melting and other powder-bed-fusion additive manufacturing processes (experiment and process model)
• Physical metallurgy of high-temperature structural materials
• Titanium alloys and gamma-TiAl alloys
• Nickel base superalloys
• Austenitic stainless steels
• Large scale experimental facilities (neutron and synchrotron X-ray based)
• Microstructural characterisation using advanced electron microscopy

Selected journal publications are listed in reverse chronological order:

1. Sarkar R, Chen B, Fitzpatrick M, Fabijanic D, Hilditch T, “Additive manufacturing-based repair of IN718 superalloy and high-cycle fatigue assessment of the joint” (2022), Additive Manufacturing, vol. 60, pp. 103276: 1-17 (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addma.2022.103276)
2. Zhao Z, Zhou R, Wang Z, Cai J, Chen B, “High temperature fatigue behavior of a near-alpha titanium alloy” (2022), International Journal of Fatigue, vol. 161, pp. 106883: 1-16 (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijfatigue.2022.106918)
3. Syed A, Parfitt D, Wimpenny D, Muzangaza E, Chen B, “Cyclic plasticity and damage mechanisms of Ti-6Al-4V processed by electron beam melting” (2022), International Journal of Fatigue, vol. 160, pp. 106883: 1-12 (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijfatigue.2022.106883)
4. Gao B, Peng H, Liang Y, Lin J, Chen B, “Electron beam melted TiC/high Nb-TiAl nanocomposite: Microstructure and mechanical property” (2021), Materials Science and Engineering A, vol. 811, pp. 141059: 1-12 (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.msea.2021.141059)
5. Zhao P, Chen B, Zheng Z, Guan B, Zhang X, Tu S, “Microstructure and texture evolution in a post-dynamic recrystallised titanium during annealing, monotonic and cyclic loading” (2021), Metallurgical and Materials Transactions A, vol. 52. pp. 394-412 (https://doi.org/10.1007/s11661-020-06071-x)
6. Hu J, Xuan F, Liu C, Chen B, “Modelling of cavity nucleation under creep-fatigue interaction” (2021), Mechanics of Materials, vol. 156, pp. 103799: 1-16 (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mechmat.2021.103799)
7. Li Y, Parfitt D, Flewitt PEJ, Hou X, Quinta de Fonseca J, Chen B, “Microstructural considerations of enhanced tensile strength and mechanical constraint in a copper/stainless steel brazed joint” (2020), Materials Science and Engineering A, vol. 796, pp. 139992: 1-13(https://doi.org/10.1016/j.msea.2020.139992)
8. Zhao P, Chen B, Kelleher J, Yuan G, Guan B, Zhang X, Tu S, “High-cycle-fatigue induced continuous grain growth in ultrafine-grained titanium” (2019), Acta Materialia, vol. 174, pp. 29-42 (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actamat.2019.05.038)
9. Kan W, Chen B, Peng H, Liang Y, Lin J, “Formation of columnar lamellar colony grain structure in a high Nb-TiAl alloy by electron beam melting” (2019), Journal of Alloys and Compounds, vol. 809, 151673: 1-14 (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jallcom.2019.151673)
10. Kan W, Chen B, Jin C, Peng H, Lin J, “Microstructure and mechanical properties of a high Nb-TiAl alloy fabricated by electron beam melting” (2018) Materials & Design, vol. 160, pp. 611-623 (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matdes.2018.09.044)
11. Peng H, Shi Y, Gong S, Guo H, Chen B, “Microstructure, mechanical properties and cracking behaviour in a gamma’-precipitation strengthened nickel-base superalloy fabricated by electron beam melting” (2018) Materials & Design, vol. 159, pp. 155-169 (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matdes.2018.08.054)
12. Chen B, Hu J, Wang Y, Zhang S, Van Petegem S, Cocks ACF, Smith DJ, and Flewitt PEJ “Role of the misfit stress between grains on the Bauschinger effect for a polycrystalline material” (2015) Acta Materialia, vol. 85, pp. 229-242 (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actamat.2014.11.021)
13. Chen B, Flewitt PEJ, Cocks ACF, Smith DJ “A review of the changes of internal state related to high temperature creep of polycrystalline metals and alloys” (2015) International Materials Reviews, vol. 60, pp. 1-29 (https://doi.org/10.1179/1743280414Y.0000000041)
14. Chen B, Skouras A., Wang Y, Kelleher JF, Zhang S, Smith DJ, Flewitt PEJ, Pavier MJ “In situ neutron diffraction measurement of residual stress relaxation in a welded steel pipe during heat treatment” (2014) Materials Science and Engineering A, vol. 590, pp. 374-383 (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.msea.2013.10.060)
15. Chen B, Flewitt PEJ, Smith DJ, Jones CP “An improved method to identify grain boundary creep cavitation in 316H austenitic stainless steel” (2011) Ultramicroscopy, vol. 111, pp. 309-313 (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ultramic.2011.01.013)
16. Chen B, Flewitt, PEJ, Smith DJ “Microstructural sensitivity of 316H austenitic stainless steel: residual stress relaxation and grain boundary fracture” (2010) Materials Science and Engineering A, vol. 527, pp. 7387-7399 (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.msea.2010.08.010)

He is interested in supervising research students in the following areas:

• Creep and creep-fatigue interaction (modelling and experimental)
• Crystal plasticity finite element modelling
• Advanced characterisation techniques (e.g. neutron and synchrotron X-ray) for residual stress measurements
• Multi-scale strain/damage characterisation combined with in-situ loading
• Powder-bed-fusion additive manufacturing

Completed PhD students

1. Riddhi Sarkar, ‘Repair of Nickel-base Superalloy Components using Direct Energy Deposition’, 2023 PhD award
2. Deepak Sharma, ‘Precipitation Behaviour of Wrought and Additively Manufactured Ti-5553 β-Ti Alloy’, 2021 PhD award
3. Pengcheng Zhao, ‘A Study on the Mechanisms of Temperature and Stress Induced Recrystallization and Grain Growth of Ultrafine Grained CP-Ti, 2020 PhD award
4. Gowtham Soundarapandiyan, ‘Effects of Ti6Al4V Powder Recycling in Electron and Laser Beam Powder Bed Fusion Additive Manufacturing’, 2021 PhD award
5. Jingdong Hu, ‘Creep Cavitation Theory and its Applications in Strength Design for High-temperature Structures’, 2020 PhD award
6. Yao Li, ‘Mechanism of Enhanced Mechanical Strength of Type 304 Stainless Steel Brazed Joints: Microscopic and Macroscopic Considerations’, 2020 PhD award
7. Ranggi Sahmura Ramadhan, ‘Development and Application of Bragg Edge Neutron Transmission Imaging on the IMAT Beamline’, 2019 PhD award
8. Wenbin Kan, ‘Processing Technology and Microstructure Control of High Nb-TiAl alloy Fabricated by Electron Beam Melting’, 2019 PhD award

PhD external examiners

1. Phase Stability, Transformations, and Mechanical Properties of FCC-Based Medium/High-Entropy Alloys, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, 2023
2. Development of an Additive Manufacturing Processing Route for High Entropy Alloys Using Powder Bed Fusion, University of Birmingham, 2022
3. Development of Advanced Material Modelling for Metal Additive Manufacturing, Brunel University London, 2022
4. Environmental Effects on the Integrity of Type 316H Stainless Steel of an AGR Coolant, The University of Manchester, 2022
5. Study of Thermal Barrier Coating: Processing, Residual Stress and CMAS Corrosion Resistance, City University of Hong Kong, 2021
6. Laser Powder Bed Fusion Produced Ti-6Al-4V: Microstructural Transformations and Changes in Deformation Behaviour through Thermal Treatments, Stellenbosch University, 2021

He obtained the Fellow of Higher Education Academy in July 2017. He has taught on a wide range of subjects including:

• Manufacturing and materials
• Advanced materials and manufacture
• Engineering Materials for Oil and Gas
• Metrology and Lightweight Advanced Materials

Selected conference, symposium and workshop organising

• The Chair of the conference organising committee, 17th International Conference on Engineering Structural Integrity Assessment and 2023 International Symposium on Structural Integrity (ESIA17–ISSI2023), Manchester, 2023
• Symposium Chair and Organiser of Fatigue and Fracture of AM Materials for the International Congress on Fracture ICF15, Atlanta, USA, 2023
• Symposia Chair for the European Conference on Structural Integrity of Additively Manufactured Materials (ESIAM19) and International Scientific Committee Member of ESIAM19 and ESIAM21, 2019 and 2021

Research grants

• Correlative Analysis of Crystals in 3D, EPSRC Strategic Equipment EP/W035944/1, £2.7M, 2022-2025, PI
• Improved stress-state prediction method for defect-containing welded structures in demanding environments, The Royal Society, IEC\NSFC\211223 - International Exchanges 2021 Cost Share, £24k, 2022-2024, PI
• Enabling sixty years creep-fatigue life of the next generation nuclear reactors (SYNERgy), EPSRC Early Career Fellowship EP/R043973/1, £1.3M, 2019-2024, PI
• 2021 International Metallurgical Processes Workshop for Young Scholars, Newton Fund Researcher Links Workshop Grant ID: 2020-RLWK12-10091, £48k, 2020-2021, PI
• Cyclic deformation and damage mechanisms in additive manufactured Ti-6Al-4V with graded microstructures, EPSRC First Grant EP/P025978/1, £125k, 2017-2019, PI
• Multi-scale modelling for fusion and fission materials (M4F), Horizon 2020 Euratom fission 2016-2017, €70k, 2017-2021, Co-I