The SM&P D&I program emphasizes anticipating and developing the fundamental understanding needed to establish the technical feasibility that enables the design and production of higher strength structural metals for platforms and systems with increased performance, reduced weight and reduced cost. Most recently, this program was responsible for the identification, development, and processing qualifi cation of HSLA-65, a high-strength steel alloy that signifi cantly reduced the structural weight of the aircraft carriers currently under construction
Currently, the SM&P D&I program investments are focused on promising basic and applied research in the areas of advanced naval steel design and production, affordable titanium alloy design and production, and robust, affordable processing and joining technology. The intent of these investments is to enable:
- Understanding and quantitatively describing the mechanisms that define the evolution of a material’s structure as a function of composition and processing
- Understanding the complex and dynamic interactions that modify materials structure and behavior as a function of operational demands and loading events
- Developing the characterization and modeling tools at appropriate length and time scales, enabling the advancement of materials science, including design and predictive capabilities
- Developing technologically feasible transition paths for advanced structural materials and processing, and knowledge bases for the confi dent design and life prediction of components and systems
The warfighter payoff of the SM&P D&I program will be the affordable availability of qualifi ed high strength structural metals and the necessary processing techniques to support the production and fabrication of advanced structural metals for improved platform survivability, reduced platform weight and improved platform effi ciency at reduced life cycle costs.