Greg Odegard
Richard and Elizabeth Henes Professor of Computational Mechanics, Michigan Tech
Director, NASA STRI for Ultra‐Strong Composites by Computational Design

ABSTRACT
Thomas Edison once stated that "I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." The trial‐and‐error approach to
materials development has been the standard for many years, particularly with aerospace‐grade composite structural materials. Material formulations are incrementally adjusted, specimens fabricated, and tests performed; and the process is repeated until the material structural requirements are met. The time, material costs, and man‐power costs associated with this Edisonian approach can be prohibitive roadblocks to new material development.

Fortunately, computational methods have been developed to greatly facilitate the material development process. Using multiscale simulations, materials can be designed at multiple length scales (atomic, microscopic, bulk) and the resulting properties can be efficiently and accurately predicted. Thus, material designs can be optimized via computational modeling before the expense prototyping and testing phases begin. This presentation will outline recent efforts to develop multiscale modeling techniques and the efforts of the NASA Space Technologies Research Institute (STRI) for Ultra‐Strong Composites by Computational Design (US‐COMP) to design the next generation of composite materials for crewed deep‐space exploration.

Co-Hosted By:

Professor Brian L. Wardle, MIT-Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics

Professor A. John Hart, MIT–Department of Mechanical Engineering

Professor Katia Bertoldi, Harvard – School of Engineering