America Makes, the U.S. national accelerator for additive manufacturing (AM), and the National Center for Defense Manufacturing and Machining (NCDMM) have announced a new open project call funded by the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Manufacturing Technology (OSD ManTech). The initiative, titled Corrosion of Additive – Tested At Component Scale (CATACS), will distribute $1.3 million in total funding to support two projects aimed at advancing corrosion testing frameworks for metal AM components.
Additive manufacturing remains a growing focus for the Department of War (DoW) because of its ability to rapidly produce complex, customized parts. However, qualification and certification of AM metal components continue to face obstacles due to the absence of standardized testing and processing methods. Material properties derived from AM often differ from those obtained through traditional manufacturing, creating unique corrosion behavior. CATACS will address these limitations by validating corrosion testing approaches at the component scale in two critical areas: high-temperature environments and thermal management systems.
By closing these gaps, the CATACS initiative aims to establish consistent testing standards and accelerate the integration of AM components into defense systems that demand long-term reliability and performance. The program will also provide data relevant to metal AM parts with comparable corrosion resistance requirements, contributing to broader industry certification efforts. “CATACS is about putting real AM hardware to the test in harsh conditions — because corrosion will find the weak points,” said Ben DiMarco, Technology Transition Director at America Makes. “We’re asking proposers to bring their best parts, set a plan to stress them in extreme environments, and let the sea attack. That is CATACS.”
NCDMM, which manages America Makes’ operations, is responsible for advancing U.S. manufacturing capabilities through collaboration between government, academia, and industry. Within this framework, America Makes prioritizes projects that deliver validated prototypes tested in relevant conditions, with demonstrable manufacturing readiness. CATACS will fund efforts within Technology Readiness Levels (TRL) 4–7 and Manufacturing Readiness Levels (MRL) 4–7. Eligible projects must demonstrate manufacturability through pilot builds, controlled processes, and a clear path toward repeatable production from the outset.
The CATACS request for proposals defines two topic areas. The first concerns corrosion performance of AM components operating at elevated temperatures, emphasizing representative environments beyond laboratory air. These include pressure-vessel conditions, fuel-air mixtures, variable surface exposures, and metallurgical interactions between adjacent materials. The second focuses on corrosion of metal AM thermal management components, examining interactions between microstructures and working fluids across complex internal channels under fluctuating thermal loads. The project call opened on October 7, 2025, followed by a kickoff webinar scheduled for October 16. Questions from proposers are due by October 23, membership eligibility must be confirmed by November 20, and final submissions are due by 5 p.m. ET on December 2. Two awardees are expected to be announced on January 6, 2026.
America Makes has encouraged interested proposers to review the full request for proposals and participation guidelines available on its official website. Registration for the kickoff webinar and additional program details can be accessed at americamakes.us.
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Featured image shows America Makes logo. Image via America Makes.
