EPSCoR Research Fellows: NSF: A Unified Modeling Approach to Ductile Fracture in Metals with Crystal Defects

This Research Infrastructure Improvement (RII) EPSCoR Research Fellows project provides a fellowship to an Assistant Professor and training for a graduate student at the University of Vermont. This work is conducted in collaboration with Dr. Abigail Hunter and Dr. Nithin Mathew at Los Alamos National Laboratory. Through the fellowship, the PI will develop computational models to predict how microscopic defects influence the fracture of metals used in building infrastructure when exposed to extreme loading conditions caused by severe weather events. This project will integrate computational mechanics and materials science to better understand how these defects affect crack formation and failure in metals. It will address the challenge of accurately modeling structural failure by consistently accounting for defects and crack formation. The proposed research will improve the safety and resilience of infrastructure by providing engineers with predictive tools to support the design and selection of structural materials that can undergo large deformations before failure. These tools will help reduce the risk of collapse during hurricanes, tornadoes, and other natural hazards. The project will develop computational models of ductile fracture that account for crystal defects in metals commonly used in building infrastructure. The intellectual contribution of this work will be the introduction of a novel unified phase-field model of ductile fracture in which the physics of dislocation dynamics will be explicitly considered in conjunction with Griffith’s fracture criterion. To this end, the proposed methodology will integrate two complementary modeling frameworks, namely phase-field dislocation dynamics and phase-field fracture, to capture the interaction between crystal defect motion and crack evolution in metallic materials. The project will support the PI’s professional development in materials science while providing a graduate student with research training through extensive visits to the host site. The fellowship will strengthen the connection between the two collaborating institutions by establishing a long-term pipeline for student training and collaborative research. It will also contribute to curriculum development by integrating research findings into the PI’s graduate-level course. This project is supported by the EPSCoR Research Infrastructure Improvement Program: EPSCoR Research Fellows (ERF), which supports early- and mid-career investigators in eligible jurisdictions to develop collaborations at the nation’s private, government or academic research institutions. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.