Research Overview

The Durability Damage Tolerance and Reliability Branch (DDTRB), as part of the Structures and Materials technology area, conducts a broad-based research and technology program that quantifies behavior, durability, and damage tolerance of structural materials; develops efficient, physics-based analytical and computational methods; develops new innovative test methods; develops radiation analysis and design tools for assessing the radiation environment; and validates performance of advanced materials and structures for aerospace applications in support of NASA, other government agencies, and the aerospace industry. The Aeronautics and Space Exploration missions are the primary NASA missions supported by DDTRB.

The civil servants and contractor personnel in DDTRB contribute to four main technology areas:

• Damage Mechanics of Composite Materials
• Damage Mechanics of Metallic Materials
• Radiation Analysis and Shielding Design
• Structural Analysis and Health Assessment

Moreover, because of the subject matter expertise of DDTRB, the research staff has been called on to support numerous Failure and Incident Investigations that are of importance to the Center, the Agency and the Nation.