APPLYING NANOSTRUCTURED MATERIALS TO FUTURE GAS-TURBINE ENGINES

The need for improved materials to provide increased gas turbine engin e performance is as great today as at any time in the 50-year history of this field. The emerging technology of nanostructured materials hol ds the potential for satisfying the gas turbine industry's requirement s with a new generation of materials possessing a quantum improvement in properties. In the laboratory, significant increases in strength an d hardness combined with toughness and ductility have been demonstrate d. Additionally, desirable physical properties such as enhanced diffus ivity and reduced thermal conductivity have been found. In the followi ng article, an aggressive and focused technology development strategy is described that will allow an early assessment of this promising tec hnology for year 2000 gas turbine applications.