Attachment 1: RXC Open ARA Statement of Objectives

Attachment 1

24 Sep 2021

Experiments, Prototypes, Research, and Evaluation Supporting Systems

(EXPRESS)

RXC Structural Materials Division Open Advanced Research Announcement (ARA) with Competitive Calls
1.

Statement of Objective/Needs:

Air Force Research Laboratory, Materials & Manufacturing Directorate is soliciting white papers and potentially technical and cost proposals under this announcement that support the needs of its Structural Materials and Applications mission in the following areas:
The experimentation, evaluation, and assessment of materials and processes technology for Air Force and Space Force applications aimed at meeting validated systems requirements or to sustain and/or modernize installations or operations required for general research, development, test, and evaluation.
The demonstration of new and improved materials (including procedures, instructions/manuals, and familiarization training) in Air Force and Space Force system specific applications (including development of subsystems and components (experimental prototypes) and/or efforts to reduce risk to systems, and/or efforts to integrate subsystems and components into experimental system prototypes for field experiments and/or tests in a simulated environment or realistic operating environment) and/or development efforts to upgrade fielded or nearing production systems. The transition of materials and processes to Air Force and Space Force Systems to ensure the required capabilities are available to enable the best supplies are available for the national defense are of interest. Descriptors of Materials and Manufacturing Directorate technology interests are presented below on the basis of both Structural Materials Needs and Air Force and Space Force application area needs. The term “Demonstration” is used below as short hand to cover the full breath of experimentation, evaluation, and assessment, demonstration, risk reduction, and technology transition described above. a. Structural Materials Needs:

Ceramics and Ceramic Matrix Composites Materials and Processes: The objective of Ceramic Materials and Processes research is the demonstration of advanced high-temperature constituents for fiber-reinforced ceramic-matrix composites (CMCs) and an understanding of their behavior in relevant service environments. Demonstration of advanced constituents and composites to allow systems applications of next-generation fiber reinforced structural ceramic materials and processing and process models for a range of air and space applications