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Structural Materials Group

Welcome

STRUCTURAL MATERIALS GROUP (853.07): Provides standard reference materials, calibration and measurement services, and data for predicting structural materials reliability with emphasis on fracture, fatigue, defect detection and life prediction. Develops and standardizes mechanical test methods, and makes non-standard large-scale measurements that match real-world constraint conditions, in environments that represent extreme as well as typical operating conditions. Also develops measurement methods and calibration standards for detection and characterization of materials features that degrade the structural reliability of materials and their joints, including defects, flaws, cracks, corrosion, etc. The group assesses the role of materials in structural reliability as well as life prediction, and conducts failure analyses post-mortem to assist Government agencies, industry, and universities and to increase predictability of structural reliability.

Programs/Projects

Proficiency Test Results—Proficiency Test (PT) results are available at no cost to customers who have tested SRMs 2092, 2096, and 2098.  A PT result serves as a means to verify the performance of a Charpy impact …

Hydrogen Pipeline Safety—Our goal is to establish the codes and standards necessary to ensure safe distribution of hydrogen fuels. The future hydrogen economy will depend on efficient transport of fuel across the U.S., …

Pipeline Safety—Our goal is to provide standard test methods and critical data to the pipeline industry to improve safety and reliability. Of particular interest is the testing of high-strength pipeline steels, …

Charpy Verification Program—The Charpy impact test uses a swinging pendulum to assess the resistance of a material to fracture, and characterize the ductile-to-brittle transition in steel. The energy absorbed by the material …

Microsystems for Harsh Environment Testing—Our goal is to develop and demonstrate a MEMS-based methodology for evaluating time-dependent mechanical properties of materials that undergo exposure to extreme and harsh environments (e.g., …

Bridge Safety—Our goal is to guide improvement in construction codes for both rehabilitated and new structures. Destructive and nondestructive data will allow bridge owners to allocate repair funds to the most …

Selected Publications