Advanced integrated materials research at the George H.W. Bush Combat Development Complex drives innovation in material systems that can withstand the most demanding defense applications. With expertise across metals, ceramics, polymers, and composites, our teams integrate advanced manufacturing with high-temperature post-processing and multi-scale testing to accelerate the development of deployable solutions.
This approach ensures that next-generation materials transition rapidly from design to application, strengthening the survivability and performance of the future warfighter.
Objective
To advance next-generation materials and manufacturing processes through:
- Integrated computational-experimental materials design
- Advanced manufacturing and post-processing methods
- Multi-scale testing and characterization of performance
- Technology transition to mission-ready solutions
Capabilities
- Materials Design
Computational and experimental workflows for the development of high-performance metals, ceramics, composites, and material systems. - Advanced Manufacturing Expertise
- Laser powder bed fusion (LPBF)
- Press and sintering powder metallurgy (PSPM)
- Hydride-dehydride (HDH) processing
- Post-Processing & Heat Treatment
High-temperature sintering, curing, densification, and microstructural optimization for improved material properties. - Multi-Scale Materials Testing & Characterization
Mechanical (nano- to macro-scale), thermal (steady-state and shock), and environmental testing; materials characterization techniques such as:- Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM)
- Energy-dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDS)
- Optical Microscope (OM)
- Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA)
- X-ray Diffraction (XRD)
- Dynamic Mechanical Analysis (DMA)
- Pycnometer
- Archimedes Density
- Technology Transition
Scaling material solutions and manufacturing methods to accelerate technology readiness levels (TRL) and deliver deployable solutions to the DOD.
