The 35th Annual RGSAM will be held on November 3, 2025

Hotel Albuquerque at Old Town, 800 Rio Grande Blvd NW, Albuquerque, NM 87104

Symposium Registration – CLICK HERE!

Abstract Submission – click Here!

The Rio Grande Symposium on Advanced Materials (RGSAM) is a general technical meeting of materials researchers in the Rio Grande geographic region. It is an outgrowth of the Joint Technical Meetings of the New Mexico Section of the American Ceramic Society and the New Mexico Section of the Materials Research Society initiated in 1989. These meetings, sub-titled “Ceramics and Advanced Materials: Symposia and Poster Session,” proved to be quite popular among materials researchers in the Rio Grande geographic region. Attendance typically ranged between 75 and 150 people presenting 30 to 50 presentations, which were frequently used as a local warm-up for national meetings. An important aspect of this symposium is that it has been, and continues to be a venue for presentations by students from regional universities. In 1997, the Albuquerque Chapter of ASM International joined with the NM Section of the American Ceramics Society to host the meeting which began its new name, “The Rio Grande Regional Symposium on Advanced Materials.” Reflecting the multidisciplinary nature of materials research presented at RGSAM, other societies soon joined to host the symposium. The New Mexico Chapter of the American Vacuum Society organized the RGSAM in 2013, followed by the Central New Mexico Local Section of the American Chemical Society in 2015. In 2018, the Albuquerque Chapter of ASM organized. This meeting hopes to reach out to a broad base of support among local materials societies and will be a focal point for the exchange of technical information in the Rio Grande geographic region well into the 21st century.

Kreidl Lecture

At the core of this meeting is the Kreidl Memorial Lecture, honoring the career achievements of Norbert Kreidl, a remarkable and indefatigable glass scientist who spent his final years as a consultant based in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The Kreidl Lecture has featured several prominent ceramists and glass scientists.

Kreidl Lecturer: Thomas N. Ackerson, PE, MBA

Materials Challenges for Reusable Hardware and Sustainable Processes for Heavy Space Launch Systems in the 21^st Century

Abstract: The Apollo and Space Shuttle programs are two examples where technical barriers were broken and significant materials and processing advances were made in a relatively short period of time.  Today we undergo another boost in materials science with the private sector becoming a key player in launch vehicles, space transport, space stations, and lunar landers.  In order to drive the cost of space travel down significantly, the launch systems must be both reusable and efficient.  They must also be as lightweight as practical, and withstand the mechanical rigors of multiple launches, the thermal stresses of re-entry, and corrosion issues related to oceanic recovery.  This talk will focus on these challenges, and some of the steps being taken to overcome them.  In keeping with the spirit of the Kreidl Lecture series, there will also be a discussion of advanced fiberglass materials, such as those fabricated from S-glass (magnesium aluminosilicate) fibers.  Woven fiberglass fabrics play a key role in modern-day space programs, as they can be combined with resins and other materials to fabricate heat shields and other lightweight thermal barriers.

Speaker Biography:

Thomas (Tom) Ackerson is a materials testing executive with over 30 years of experience in metallurgical and non-metallic testing and characterization, failure analysis, forensic investigation, litigation support/expert witness, optical and electron microscopy, and corrosion testing/prevention.  His education includes a B.S. in Materials Science and Engineering from North Carolina State University, an MBA from Averett University, and various continuing education short courses.  Tom is a licensed professional engineer with registration in AL, GA, NC and SC. Currently employed as a Technical Fellow with Blue Origin (Merritt Island Rocket Park), Tom’s duties include failure analysis, material characterization, and materials/coatings characterization primarily for the New Glenn rocket, Blue Origin’s heavy-lift orbital launch vehicle that stands nearly 98 meters tall. Tom recently completed a 3-year term as a board member of the Failure Analysis Society (FAS) within ASM International, and each year he plans/chairs sessions for the Failure Analysis symposium at IMAT. He is a member of ASM International’s IDEA Committee (Inclusion, Diversity, Equality, and Awareness).  Other activities include being a participating member of ASTM International, serving on the G01 Committee for corrosion testing, and volunteering with NCEES for the Metallurgy/Materials Professional Engineer Exam.

Prior Kreidl Lecturers:

1992 William D. Kingery, University of Arizona

1993

Delbert E. Day, University of Missouri – Rolla

1994

Arthur H. Heuer, Case Western Reserve University

1995

Don L. Kendall, University of New Mexico

1996

David A. Payne, University of Illinois – Urbana-Champaign

1997

Joseph H. Simmons, University of Florida

1998

Robert E. Newnham, Penn State University

1999

Anthony F. Giamei, United Technologies Research Center

2000

Gary Messing, Penn State University

2001

Anthony G. Evans, Princeton University

2002

Zhigang Suo, Princeton University

2003

Nathan S. Lewis, California Institute of Technology

2004

Subra Suresh, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

2005

Robert O. Ritchie, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

2006

David R. Clarke, University of California at Santa Barbara

2007

Steve Brueck, University of New Mexico

2008

John Parise, SUNY Stony Brook

2009

Kurt Sickafus, Los Alamos National Laboratory

2010

Richard LeSar, Iowa State University

2011

Uzi Landman, Georgia Institute of Technology

2012

Carlo Pantano, Penn State University

2013

Harry Atwater, California Institute of Technology

2014

Diana Farkas, Virginia Tech

2015

Michael J. Cima, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

2016

Ray Baughman, University of Texas at Dallas

2017

Carol Handwerker, Purdue University

2018

Paul S. Weiss, University of California, Los Angeles

2019

Mark C. Hersam, Northwestern University

2020, 2021 Cancelled due to Covid-19 2022 Rajendra K. Bordia, Clemson University

2023

Ramana G. Reddy, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa

2024

Daniel B Miracle, Air Force Research Laboratory