The University of Alberta bladesmithing team is a student project team dedicated to metallurgical/material science research and learning through the medium of blade making. Every two years we compete in the TMS blade smithing competition held in the United States where we vie against teams from across the world for commendations ranging from outstanding beauty to creative material use and ingenuity. As part of the competition we utilize a number of material science characterization techniques such as hardness and strength testing, compositional analysis, and electron and optical microscopy. These characterization techniques offer fantastic hands-on learning opportunities that enable team members to engage in the fundamentals of material science in various unique ways. It is our goal to create a new and interesting blade every year (even if there isn’t a competition), to challenge ourselves and explore the limits of what we can achieve all while expanding our base of knowledge and skill set. We strive to continuously improve the characterization work and quality of blades submitted to the competition.
Engineering Carnival:
September 11, 2025 (9:00AM - 4:00PM)
