Acquistion of Advanced Test Equipment for Infrastructure Materials Reliability, Risk Assessment and Performance Enhancement

本提案用于采购先进的物理和化学测试设备，以确定现有和新兴基础设施材料的结构性能。 所要求的设备将有助于获得关于新材料的性能数据，并有助于从机械上理解导致故障的物理和化学过程之间的关系。 国家基础设施面临的物理挑战来自几种力量：（一）老化造成的恶化，（二）恶意或恐怖主义行为造成的安全威胁，以及（三）对提高能力和安全的需求。 例子包括桥梁和道路结构，天然气、石油、化学品和水的管道输送，飞机和航空航天结构，汽车结构以及核材料和废物的管理。 在所有这些例子中，共同的是需要提高机械理解，现场监测，预测和预防环境条件下的结构故障。 这些系统必须缓解的常见慢性应力包括负荷、热循环和化学环境反应，其中许多可能同时发生，目前尚不清楚其协同效应。 急性应激包括突然撞击和高温。 基于国家基础设施的挑战，我们研究的重点材料是用于公路和建筑施工的波特兰水泥混凝土系统，也用作核废料处理的基础。 这还包括用于建筑和运输结构以及结构修复的复合材料和增强聚合物层压板。所要求的设备将有助于对材料性能进行非破坏性评估，并进行当地无机和有机成分测试，以评估材料中化学变化导致的腐蚀和其他失效机制（例如，在热应力、化学侵蚀期间）。 所要求的具体设备包括：㈠现有电感耦合等离子体质谱仪的激光烧蚀装置，以便利材料中的元素和同位素分布，㈡热重分析仪质谱仪系统，以确定有机成分随环境压力的变化，和（iii）超声波非-破坏性分析仪，以评估在测试过程中内部裂缝的形成。该项目小组包括来自土木与环境工程，化学，化学工程、电气工程和物理。所要求的设备将支持和加强ca。目前每年赞助1000万美元的研究和培训，包括风险和可靠性工程和管理的NSF IGERT计划。 与桑迪亚和橡树岭国家实验室、能源部、哈里伯顿和田纳西州交通部提供免费的合作联系。 范德比尔特大学提供了130，000美元的配套资金，用于向NSF申请的141，000美元，项目总成本为271，000美元。

This proposal is for the acquisition of advanced physical and chemical testing equipment to characterize structural performance of current and emerging infrastructure materials. The equipment requested would facilitate both acquisition of performance data on new materials and development of a mechanistic understanding of the relationships between physical and chemical processes that lead to failure. Physical challenges to the nation's infrastructure are being presented by several forces: (i) deterioration due to aging, (ii) security threats by malicious or terrorist actions, and (iii) demands for increased capacity and safety. Examples include bridge and roadway structures, pipeline conveyance of gas, petroleum, chemicals and water, aircraft and aerospace structures, automotive structures and, management of nuclear materials and wastes. Common amongst all of these examples are the needs for improved mechanistic understanding, in-situ monitoring, prediction and prevention of structural failure under environmental conditions. Common chronic stresses to these systems that must be mitigated include loading, thermal cycling and chemical environmental reaction, many of which may occur simultaneously and have currently poorly characterized synergistic effects. Acute stresses include sudden impact and high temperatures. The set of materials that has been the focus of our research, based on national infrastructure challenges are Portland cement concrete systems used for highway and building construction and also used as the basis for treatment of nuclear wastes. This also includes composites and reinforced polymer laminates used in building and transportation structures and structural rehabilitation. The equipment requested will facilitate non-destructive evaluation of material performance, and local inorganic and organic compositional testing to assess corrosion and other failure mechanisms that result from chemical changes in materials (e.g., during thermal stresses, chemical attack). The specific equipment requested includes (i) laser ablation unit for an existing inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometer to facilitate elemental and isotopic profiling in materials, (ii) a thermogravimetric analyzer mass spectrometer system to determine organic composition as a function of environmental stresses, and (iii) an ultrasonic non-destructive analyzer to assess internal fracture formation during testing.The project team includes participation of faculty from the Departments of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Physics. The requested equipment will support and enhance ca. $10 million dollars per year of current sponsored research and training, including an NSF IGERT program in Risk and Reliability Engineering and Management. Complimentary collaborative linkages are provided with Sandia and Oak Ridge National Laboratories, DOE, Halliburton, and Tennessee Department of Transportation. $130,000 in matching funds are provided by Vanderbilt University for the $141,000 requested from NSF with a total project cost of $271,000.