ME Assistant Professors Michael Czabaj and Ashley Spear have each been selected for the 2016 Air Force Summer Faculty Fellowship Program (SFFP). This program, sponsored by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR), offers fellowships to university faculty to conduct research at Air Force research facilities in the summer. The objectives of the program are:
- To stimulate professional relationships among U.S. Air Force Research Lab Summer Faculty Fellowship Program participants and the scientists and engineers at Air Force research facilities.
- To enhance the research interests and capabilities of faculty (both new and experienced researchers) in the U.S. academic community.
- To elevate the awareness in the U.S. academic community of Air Force research needs and foster continued research at U.S. Air Force Research Lab Summer Faculty Fellowship Program fellows’ institutions.
- To provide the U.S. Air Force Research Lab Summer Faculty Fellowship Program participant opportunities to perform high-quality and meaningful research at Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Directorates, Air Force Test Center, the United States Air Force Academy, or the Air Force Institute of Technology.
- To provide nationally accredited mentoring of academic researchers at technical directorates of the AFRL, Air Force Test Center, the United States Air Force Academy, and the Air Force Institute of Technology.
As part of this program, Czabaj and Spear will spend 10 weeks during the summer at Wright Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, OH. Czabaj’s research during the program will focus on developing numerical and experimental tools for X-ray tomography-based quantification of ceramic matrix composite (CMC) microstructures. Spear’s work will focus on developing a machine-learning framework for predicting microstructurally-small fatigue-crack propagation. Each fellowship includes a stipend for both the faculty member and a graduate student, who will also spend 10 weeks at Wright Patterson Air Force Base.