Innovative new methods are required to accelerate the development time of new aerospace material systems so that material development time is commensurate with the development time of new aircraft. Computational design predicts the effect of changes in the structure and design of materials on the life of full scale components operating in in-service environments. Computational design of material systems would allow selection of material designs that have a high probability of fulfilling their design function and thus would streamline and focus material development efforts that occur on industrial scales. This virtual design approach requires the integration of models from the molecular to the engineering scale. The models integrated in the design environment include: molecular scale models defining surface interactions and transport properties, microkinetic and mesoscale models for failure or damage initiation and propagation, microclimate models defining conditions in and on the exterior of an aircraft, and damage accumulation models that keep track of the advance of damage throughout the structural component of interest until a failure is statistically likely to occur. The present computational design system can estimate the life of a range of polymeric coating systems containing different corrosion inhibitors. The computational design system is constantly evolving, and is currently being used to screen, downselect, and identify novel polymeric coating systems, metallic and alloy materials, and surface finishes for use in future aerospace platforms.

Computational design of next generation aerospace material systems

249th National Meeting (2015)

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.