TMS Prepares for Record-Breaking Annual Meeting

With more than 3,150 abstract submissions, the TMS 2009 Annual Meeting is shaping up to be the largest in the history of The Minerals, Metals & Materials Society (TMS). TMS 2009, the 138th installment in this yearly conference series, is scheduled for February 15-19 in San Francisco, California. The number of abstracts submitted for this conference exceeds the previous record by 15%.

The conference theme, “Linking Science and Technology for Global Solutions,” describes the mix of fundamental research and industrial application of materials technologies presented at this conference. More than 50 symposia are planned in a number of topical areas, so that TMS 2009 offers something for everyone working in the field of materials science and engineering.

A key focus of this year's conference will be materials and society, a series of symposia that explore the intersection between technology and improvements in quality of life. Topics include replacing hazardous lead in soldering for the electronics industry, reducing energy use and environmental impact for metal-producing industries, and examining recycling and sustainability for the electronic and solar industries.

In addition, the conference will have strong programming in aluminum and magnesium technologies; extraction, processing, structure, and properties; and emerging technology areas such as nanomaterials and biomaterials.

For more on the conference, visit the TMS Annual Meeting web site at http://www.tms.org/Meetings/Annual-09/AnnMtg09Home.html.

TMS is the professional organization encompassing the entire range of materials science and engineering, from minerals processing and primary metals production to basic research and the advanced applications of materials. Included among its 9,500 professional and student members are metallurgical and materials engineers, scientists, researchers, educators, and administrators from six continents.