Teaching
NFMC 514 Advanced Phase Transformation and heat treatment
NFMC 517 Advanced Physical Metallurgy
FMO 541 – Characterization of Materials
NFMC 520 Materials Processing (PG Lab)
FMC 352 Heat treatment & Mechanical Metallurgy (UG Lab)
Designation: Assistant Professor
Department: Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering
Email: kasturi[at]iitism[dot]ac[dot]in
Contact Number: 9439348624
Personal Page: Under Construction
About Me: Dr. Kasturi Sala is presently pursuing as Assistant Professor in Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering Department, IIT (ISM) Dhanbad since September 2024. She obtained her Bachelor's degree from Indira Gandhi Institute of Technology, Sarang, Odisha, a Master's degree from National Institute of Technology Durgapur, West Bengal, in Metallurgical and Materials Engineering with an expertise for developing Al-Cu alloys for high strength application with suitable heat treatment. She obtained her doctoral degree in Metallurgical and Materials and Engineering from IIT Kharagpur, working on Structure property correlation of as cast and annealed Nb-Si-Mo alloys with selected alloy additions. After her PhD, she first worked as a post-doctoral researcher in Laboratory of Texture and related studies, Materials Engineering, IISc Bangalore conducting research on processing and mechanical behaviour of High-Temperature Alloys (Mo-Si-Ti alloys) for a period of 10 months. From September 2022 - February 2024, she also obtained post doctoral research experience at the Department of Advanced Materials and Engineering at Sunchon National University, South Korea. Her research was basically focused on developing of metal based membranes by mechanical processing and welding techniques. At IIT (ISM) Dhanbad, her research will focus on developing alloys for structural materials and also for metal membrane by mechanical processing followed by joining and testing hydrogen permeability. The focus is basically on developing alloys for energy based materials - for harnessing hydrogen energy.
Research Interest: Developing High Temperature Structural Materials, Alloy Development: Developing Metal Membranes, Oxidation Of Metals And Alloys, Additive Manufacturing
NFMC 514 Advanced Phase Transformation and heat treatment
NFMC 517 Advanced Physical Metallurgy
FMO 541 – Characterization of Materials
NFMC 520 Materials Processing (PG Lab)
FMC 352 Heat treatment & Mechanical Metallurgy (UG Lab)
1. Assistant Professor at FMME Department, IIT (ISM) Dhanbad, Jharkhand from 4 September 2024 - Present.
2. Ramanujan Faculty Fellow at Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Ropar, Punjab from 21 February 2024 – 3 September 2024.
3. Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at Department of Advanced components and Materials Engineering, Sunchon National University, South Korea, Mentor: Prof. Shi-Hoon Choi, from August 2022 – February 2024.
4. Post-Doctoral Fellow at Department of Materials Engineering, Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bangalore, Mentor: Prof. Satyam Suwas, from October 2021 – July 2022.
1.Ramanujan Faculty Fellowship at Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Ropar, Punjab, sponsored by SERB (ANRF), Government of India for a period of 5 years from 2024-29. Project cost: 120 lakhs Approx.
2. University Gold Medal was awarded for standing first in order-of-merit at the Master of Metallurgical Engineering Examination, National institute of Technology, Durgapur (2015).
3. Best Poster presentation at RSDS symposium, IIT Kharagpur (2017).
Book Chapters
1. Lailesh Kumar, Pankaj Shrivastava, Arka Ghosh, Kasturi Sala and Syed Nasimul Alam, “Fundamentals of Metal-Matrix Composites” in: The Fundamentals of Metal-Matrix Composites, NOVA Publishers, 2022, ISBN: 978-1-68507-952-9, DOI: https://doi.org/10.52305/NQOM8549.
2. Aman Gupta, Prince Setia, Kasturi Sala, Pankaj Rawat, Yugal Kishor Sharma, Shi-Hoon Choi, "Effect of Prolong Heat-Treatment on Microstructure Evolution in the Non-Equiatomic NbCrTiMoVHf Refractory Complex Concentrated Alloys" in: Multi-Scale Mechanics of High-Entropy Alloys, Springer Nature, 2026, pp 259-77, DOI: https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-981-95-8076-7_11.
1. Kasturi Sala, Saurabh Pawar, Tae hyeon, Ki-Seong Park and Shi-Hoon Choi*, Effect of laser welding parameters on microstructural evolution, surface roughness and hardness of lap joint welded 340BH-steel and pure vanadium, Journal of Optics and Laser Technology, 2024, 175, 110808, Doi.org/10.1016/j.optlastec.2024.110808. (IF: 5)
2. Kasturi Sala* and Rahul Mitra, Effect of Zr addition on the oxidation behaviour of Nb-Si-Mo alloys in the range of 900 °C-1200 °C, Intermetallics, (2023), 108143. Doi: 10.1016/j.intermet.2023.108143. (IF: 4.8)
3. Kasturi Sala* and Rahul Mitra, Effect of Zr or Ga addition and annealing on microstructural evolution, deformation and fracture behavior of Nb-19Si-5Mo-20Ti based hypereutectic alloy, Metallurgical and Materials Transactions A, 53 (3), 2022, 1717-1737. DOI: 10.1007/s11661-022-06626-0. (IF: 2.8)
4. Sunil Kumar Kashyap*, Kasturi Sala and Rahul Mitra, Oxidation resistance and evolution of multi-layered oxide scale during isothermal and cyclic exposure of ZrB2-SiC-LaB6 composites at 1300°C-1500°C, Metallurgical and Materials Transactions A, 53(1), 2022, 147-171. DOI:10.1007/s11661-021-06501-4. (IF: 2.8)
5. Kasturi Sala*, Sunil Kumar Kashyap and Rahul Mitra, Effect of Ti addition on the kinetics and mechanism of non-isothermal and isothermal oxidation of Nb-Si-Mo alloys at 900°C-1200°C, Intermetallic, (2021), 138, 107338. DOI:10.1016/j.intermet.2021.107338. (IF: 4.8)
6. Kasturi Sala* and Rahul Mitra, Microstructural evolution and mechanical properties of as-cast and annealed Nb-Si-Mo based hypoeutectic alloys with quaternary additions of Ti or Fe, Materials Science & Engineering A, 802 (2021), 140663. DOI: 10.1016/j.msea.2020.140663. (IF: 7)
7. Kasturi Sala* and Rahul Mitra, Effect of Ti addition and microstructural evolution on toughening and strengthening behavior of as cast or annealed Nb-Si-Mo based hypoeutectic and hypereutectic alloys, Metallurgical and Materials Transactions A, 52(8), (2021), 3436-3459. DOI: 10.1007/s11661-021-06316-3. (IF: 2.8)
8. Kasturi Sala*, Swapnil Morankar and Rahul Mitra, Effect of Ti or Fe addition and annealing on microstructural evolution and mechanical properties of hypereutectic Nb-Si-Mo alloys, Metallurgical and Materials Transactions A, 52(4), (2021), 1185-1211. Doi: 10.1007/s11661-021-06155-2. (IF: 2.8)
9. Arpita Banerjee, Vedavyas Tungala, Kasturi Sala, Koushik Biswas, Joydeep Maity*, A comparative study on the dry sliding wear behavior of mild steel and 6061Al-15wt.% SiCp composite, Journal of Materials Engineering and Performance, 24(6), (2015), 2303-2311. DOI: 10.1007/s11665-015-1508-z. (IF: 2.3)
10. Kasturi Sala, Manab Mallik*, Influence of semisolid heat treatment on aging behavior of Al-Cu alloy, IOP Conference Series Materials Science and Engineering, 75(1), (2015). DOI: 10.1088/1757-899X/75/1/012019/meta. (IF: 0.6)
11. Kasturi Sala, Aman Gupta and Shi-Hoon Choi*, Unraveling microstructural heterogeneity in intermediate and severely deformed V-2Ni alloy: Correlating shear, kink, micro and macrobands, Materials Characterization, 2026, 116414, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matchar.2026.116414. (IF: 5.5)
1. Kasturi Sala and Rahul Mitra, Effect of Ti addition on microstructure and oxidation behaviour of Nb-Si-Mo alloys at 1300˚C, High Temperature Corrosion of Structural Materials Symposium, TMS, 147th Annual Meeting and Exhibition, Phoenix, Arizona, USA, (2018).
2. Kasturi Sala and Rahul Mitra, The microstructural characterization of hypereutectic Nb/Nb5Si3 alloys, First Indian Materials Conclave (IndMaC) & 30th Annual General Meeting of MRSI, IISc Bangalore, India, (2019).
3. Kasturi Sala and Rahul Mitra, Isothermal oxidation behaviour of Niobium based, in-situ composites at 1300˚C, IIM NMD-ATM, BITS Pilani (KK Birla Goa Campus), India, (2017).
4. Kasturi Sala and Manab Mallik, Influence of semisolid heat treatment on aging behavior of Al-Cu alloy, NCPCM, NIT Rourkela, (2014).
Ongoing Projects
1. Project Title: Development of a Novel and Sustainable Vanadium-Based Metal Membrane for Hydrogen Energy Applications through Alloy Design and Processing Optimization.
(FRS & SLE Scheme - Ongoing).
Budget (50 Lakhs Approx.).
Funding Agency: IIT (ISM) Dhanbad
Role: Principal Investigator
2. Project Title: Development of Vanadium-Based Metal Membranes with Enhanced Permeation and Diffusion Dynamics for Next-Generation Sustainable Energy and Process Optimization.
Funding Agency: (ANRF - PM ECRG - Ongoing).
Budget (56.4 Lakhs Approx.).
Role: Principal Investigator
3. Project Title: Development of an Advanced Twin Roll Casting (TRC) System for Minimizing Segregation in Aluminum and Magnesium Alloys: Advancing Sustainable Recycling in the Circular Economy
Role: Principal Investigator
Budget: 49.3 Lakhs
Funding Agency: TEXMiN (Ongoing)
Completed Projects
1. Ramanujan Fellowship Nomination Project
Title: Development of a Novel and Sustainable Vanadium-Based Metal Membrane for Hydrogen Energy Applications through Alloy Design and Processing Optimization.
Funding organisation: ANRF (SERB) : (File No. RJF/2023/000061)
Amount: 120 Lakhs Rupees
Role: Principal Investigator
Collaborating organisations: IIT Ropar
Lifetime (Indian Institute of Metals) IIM Member - Bokaro Chapter
Academic Responsibilities:
BTech Project Students
(1) Diya Mondal
(2) Supriya Chawan
Mtech Co-Sperviser
(1) Varun Bhola (IIT Ropar) - Mechanical Engineering (Completed)
(2) Punit Kumar Ongoing)
PhD Supervision
(1) Manish Kumar (Full Time - Ongoing)
(2) Naveen Kisalay (Part time - Ongoing)
(3) Souvik Bose (Full Time - Ongoing)
Post doctoral Fellow
(1) Dr. Sweta Kumari (PhD - IIT Kharagpur) - Funded by Texmin (Ongoing)
Current Position: Assistant Professor (MME department, NIT Warangal)