Award Data

Navy has identified refractory high entropy alloy (RHEA) and metal additive manufacturing as two potential areas of interest. This includes designing new RHEA and optimizing metal additive manufacturing with specific material property requirements. Developing materials and processes via applying traditional experimentation and process optimization techniques is painfully slow due to the large numb ...

The requirements for thermal management on tactical aircraft systems have reached a level at which integrated system design must be considered early in the aircraft design process. An integrated propulsion, power and thermal modeling and simulation design approach is necessary for reduced size, weight and power requirements. At the same time, there is an urgent need for capabilities that enable an ...

hazardous chemicals such as JP8, chromium, and byproducts of led-free frangible ammunition and to hazardous environments. Of the many dangers Airmen face, the hypoxia-like unexplained physiological events pilots face are some of the most dangerous and elusive. Current wearable sensors cannot decouple complex, interdependent in vivo response. We propose to develop (design, fabricate, test, and demo ...

The proposed effort aims to deliver a novel process model for carbon-carbon manufacturing to determine thermo-mechanical properties of these materials and their components, thereby enabling a faster cycle for material development for hypersonic platforms. The proposed solution consists of (1) requirement and functionality analyses, (2) a six-level model representing the key steps of the manufactur ...

A platform for rapid production of novel sensors is in great demand to protect and aid the Warfighter in today’s ever changing defense landscape. Biosensors are one possible sensing solution as they harness nature’s immense diversity and adaptability to detect desired targets. By coupling synthetic biology with nature’s capabilities, any small molecule can be detected. This project focuses o ...

Manufacturing of structural composites traditionally employs autoclaves to achieve high quality parts, including high fiber-volume-fractions and low porosity. A laminate comprised of stacked prepreg plies are cured under a vacuum in addition to ~7 bar of pressure to prevent formation of voids, particulalry in interlaminar (inter-sheet/ply) regions. However, manufacturing composites within an autoc ...

Composites are often used in aerospace applications due to their superior specific strength and stiffness properties, as well as their resistance to fatigue and corrosion. In particular for rotorcraft, composites offer additional benefits for their versatility in tailoring material properties for such components as rotor blades. However, rotors introduce additional challenges by including multiple ...

The computing demands of future data-intensive applications far exceed the capabilities of today’s electronics and cannot be met by isolated improvements in transistor technologies or integrated circuit (IC) architectures alone. Carbon Nanotube Field-Effect Transistors (CNFET) technology has emerged as leading candidate for energy-efficient and high-performance digital systems. Unfortunatel ...

The objective of the Phase I proposal is to investigate the application of controlled cavitation cleaning technology in conjunction with gecko-inspired mechanical adhesion and soft elastomeric applicators for use in non-intrusive EOD operations. This investigation requires the proof-of-concept testing and validation of a controlled cavitation cleaning mechanism, and a soft robotic gecko-inspired m ...

Quantum computer technology is so critical and strategic that the Air Force Research Laboratory is itself working on a quantum bit focused on the trapped ytterbium (Yb+) ion. The current technology based on entangling electrons, photons, or ions are challenging to put together in multiple qubits. To make a qubit stable, it is essential to protect it from outside interferences that can disrupt the ...