Materials ageing and structural reliability
by D. Gary Harlow, Robert P. Wei
International Journal of Materials and Product Technology (IJMPT), Vol. 16, No. 4/5, 2001

Abstract: Material ageing adversely affects the reliability of engineered structures. It impacts the costs of operation, maintenance, and warranty as well as long-term safety of complex structures, e.g. aircraft and automobiles. The typical empirically based design methodologies, which are often developed from accelerated life testing, are inadequate. These are appropriate for interpolation, but not for extrapolation. Effective extrapolation, beyond the range of conditions employed in obtaining supporting data and assessments of risk, must be based upon mechanistic models that capture the function, dependence on all the key external and internal variables. This undertaking requires multidisciplinary research, pertinent to industrial concerns, that addresses the chemical and micromechanical processes that control damage evolution in materials and quantifies the stochastic aspects of these processes. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the use and applicability of the mechanistically based probability methodology and to provide a framework for other applications. The approach is illustrated by the time dependent evolution and distribution of damage in aluminium alloys used in aircraft construction. The accuracy of estimates for the computed distribution of damage is demonstrated by comparisons with tear-down inspection data from a transport aircraft that had been in commercial service for about 24 years.

Online publication date: Tue, 01-Jul-2003

The full text of this article is only available to individual subscribers or to users at subscribing institutions.

 
Existing subscribers:
Go to Inderscience Online Journals to access the Full Text of this article.

Pay per view:
If you are not a subscriber and you just want to read the full contents of this article, buy online access here.

Complimentary Subscribers, Editors or Members of the Editorial Board of the International Journal of Materials and Product Technology (IJMPT):
Login with your Inderscience username and password:

Username:        Password:          Forgotten your password?

Want to subscribe?
A subscription gives you complete access to all articles in the current issue, as well as to all articles in the previous three years (where applicable). See our Orders page to subscribe.

If you still need assistance, please email subs@inderscience.com