Title:

High Temperature Fatigue: Past Successes and Current Challenges

Speaker:

Dr. Stephen D. Antolovich

Affiliation:

Washington State University

When:

Thursday, June 3, 2010 at 11:00:00 AM   Add to Calendar

Where:

MRDC Building, Room 4211

Host:

Rick Neu
rick.neu@me.gatech.edu

Abstract

In a world increasingly concerned with environmental factors and efficient use of resources, increasing operating temperatures of high temperature machinery can play an important role in meeting these goals. In addition, the cost of failure of such devices is rapidly becoming prohibitive. For example, in an airline crash airframe and engine manufacturers are, on average, held liable for $1,500,000 per fatality excluding the loss of property. The social and economic costs of failure of critical nuclear components are virtually incalculable. Thus there is considerable pressure to make machinery that can operate much more safely at high temperatures. This means that the old ways of designing against high temperature fatigue failure (e.g. factor of safety, S/N curves, creep life) are no longer acceptable; more reliable, accurate, and efficient means are needed to manage life, durability and risk.

In this presentation, high temperature fatigue is considered in terms of past successes and current challenges. Particular emphasis is placed on understanding damage mechanisms and their interactions both in terms of scientific interest and technological importance. Materials used in nuclear reactors (e.g. selected steels) and in hot sections of jet engines (e.g. superalloys) are used as vehicles to illustrate damage evolution and interaction. Phenomenological life prediction models are presented and compared with physics-based damage evolution/interaction models which are based on observed physical processes such as creep/fatigue/environment interactions.

Biography

Dr. Antolovich is currently Professor of Mechanical and Materials Engineering at Washington State University and Professor Emeritus of MSE at Georgia Tech. PI or co-PI on three research projects at Georgia Tech funded by PWA and co-advisor to one Ph.D. and two MS students in ME. Founding Director of the School of Materials Engineering at Georgia Tech (Jan. 1986). Director, School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, Washington State University, November, 1992-August, 1999. Lindholm Chair of Materials Science, WSU (1999-2002). Appointments at Ecole des Mines, Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers, Université de Technologie de Compiegne, and Université de Paris in France for teaching, research and student advisement (1976-present).

Major research interests are in the areas of fracture mechanics, deformation, and fatigue especially at high temperatures. Made over 100 presentations to learned societies, universities, national laboratories and industrial organizations in the U.S., Europe, Canada, Korea, and Japan and published widely in international journals and conferences. Carried out funded research and consultation for numerous national and international government agencies and companies. Recipient of international research awards and Fellow Member of ASME and ASM.

Received teaching awards at the University of Cincinnati and WSU and was named Outstanding Faculty Member by the Georgia Tech Graduate Student Senate (1984).