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6 FEEDBACK Over the past few years, much ef- fort has been devoted to studying the melting curve of elements at high pres- sure. This information is relevant to applications such as nuclear fission reactors that involve very high tem- peratures or pressures and to better Several members commented on our esteemed colleague Ed Kubel’s passing, as reported in the September issue: https://static.asminternational. org/amp/202006/62/. I worked with Ed closely, espe- cially when I was chair of the HTS R&D Committee. He was a talented individ- ual who contributed immensely to the ASM community through his writings and guidance on various heat treat publications. Aquil Ahmad, FASM RESEARCH TRACKS We welcome all comments and suggestions. Send letters to joanne.miller@asminternational.org. understand the interior of planets. Un- derstanding what happens to iron—and to other transition metals such as niobi- um—in the Earth’s interior is fundamen- tal for any geophysical model. However, fusion remains a difficult phase transi- tion to characterize even with the most advanced methods. On the experimen- tal side, reaching and measuring pres- sures of several million atmospheres and temperatures of several thousand degrees is complicated. Likewise, iden- tifying when a dense material will melt is also a challenge. The study of niobium under high pressure and temperature exemplifies the efforts and problems in determin- ing the melting curves of metals. An in- ternational team from Spain, the U.S., France, and the U.K., led by the Institute of Material Science at the University of Valencia, achieved important advanc- es in the characterization of niobium CHARACTERIZING METAL FUSION up to pressures of 130 GPa and tem- peratures of 5500 K. Researchers deter- mined how the melting temperature of this metal depends on the applied pres- sure. Studies were conducted by com- pressing a microscopic niobium sample between two diamonds and simultane- ously heating it using high-power infra- red lasers. To understand the behavior of ni- obium under pressure and tempera- ture, a new method was used based on time-resolved characterization by means of high intensity x-ray diffrac- tion, generated by the European Syn- chrotron Radiation Facility in France. These results were combined with oth- ers from shock wave experiments creat- ed by the impact of a projectile on the sample, and with computational simu- lations using density functional theory performed on supercomputers at Los Alamos National Laboratory. ruvid.org. I knew Ed both personally and pro- fessionally. He edited my “Professor In- duction” column for many years and I was always impressed with his amaz- ing professional skills, great personali- ty, and remarkable sense of humor. He will definitely be missed. Valery Rudnev, FASM Ed was instrumental in helping me and my subcommittee put out the first “Thermal Spray Buyers Guide” as part of ASM’s magazine. He was a real pro and we’ll all miss him. Robert (Bob) A. Miller I was saddened to read Ed’s obit- uary in the September issue. He was a friend and a good guy. Vin LeGendre former AM&P publisher Microscopic niobium sample between two diamonds. Courtesy of Asociacion RUVID. A D V A N C E D M A T E R I A L S & P R O C E S S E S | N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 0 Edward J. Kubel, Jr. 1942 - 2020