QUESTEK INNOVATIONS LLC — Department of Defense STTR Phase II: N12A-T019

Description

Existing TBC systems in aeroturbine engines, such as yittria partially-stabilized zirconia (YSZ), are highly susceptible to degradation by infiltrating molten deposits formed when calcium-magnesium-aluminosilicate (CMAS) particulates such as dust, sand, or volcanic ash are ingested into the engine. Assessing CMAS resistance of known TBCs for a wide variety of particulates (e.g. susceptibility of system failure due to sand ingestion from a particular region) and finding new materials with CMAS-resistance experimentally is an intractable problem. There is a great opportunity for Integrated Computational Materials Engineering (ICME) tools to predict the failure of TBCs due to CMAS attack, and to utilize this ability to design novel CMAS-resistant TBCs for improved engine efficiency and material durability. Applying the same Accelerated Insertion of Materials (AIM) methods that QuesTek used for the design and flight qualification of aerospace steels, we propose to create computational tools for predictive modeling of CMAS attack on TBCs. In this program, QuesTek will commercialize the ICME design tool using methodologies from the national Materials Genome Initiative to predict susceptibility of TBC materials to CMAS degradation, and the tool developed in this program will be made commercially available to a wide range of materials designers in Navy areo-turbine engine development.