TECHNICAL: Environmental damage in structural metals such as aluminum, titanium, and steel alloys, is a complex process, and presents a major problem in many engineering industries. A fundamental aspect of damage/failure mechanisms is that they usually initiate at the micro/nano-structural level and it is important to study the relationship between micro/nano-structures and mechanical properties. Currently, there is no precise understanding of the degradation of chemical elements at multiple scales and the relationship with mechanical properties and material integrity. Developing models and algorithms is essential for exploring degradation caused by a variety of chemical elements, and their interplay at multiple levels. The overall goal of the proposed project is to identify the degradation of various chemical elements during the corrosion process. Controlled experiments, analytical microscopy techniques, and computational intelligence models will be developed to analyze and interpret the evolution of damage and the integrity of the material. The intellectual merit of the proposed research stems from integrating the "Multiscale Computational Intelligence Models" approach with experimental validation and simulations. It offers a unique and novel way to design in a seamless fashion multi-functional materials for specific environmental conditions. Synthesizing new materials guided by chemical elements degradation has the potential to develop a new generation of multifunctional materials. NON-TECHNICAL: The broad impact of this proposed research will provide valuable basic developments in new materials technology tools and also make key contributions to the growing area of development of multi-functional metals for a variety of technologies in aerospace, civil, and heavy machinery fields. Potential applications of such materials include smart metals, and self-regulating metals. The research also provides an environment for developing state-of-the-art metal degradation methodology for further dissemination and applications. The benefits to society may include the development of chemically tailored metals for a variety of every day engineering applications. Overall, the proposed research will greatly advance existing computational techniques by capturing and linking micro- and nano-scale material/structural information in a multidisciplinary fashion and leading to the development of intelligent metals for a variety of engineering applications. The students including from underrepresented groups involved in the project will be encouraged to present their results in meetings, open houses, and lab tours to promote and to attract their fellow students into this exciting technology. The models/algorithms developed through this project will be directly used in materials, modeling, and simulation courses. Outreach activities with high school students are also planned during the course of the project.
