Surface Enhancement for Improved Fatigue Life of Superalloys at Engine Temperatures

Lambda Research, Inc.

Cincinnati, Ohio

Low Plasticity Burnishing (LPB) apparatus that produces a repeatable stable deep layer of compressive surface residual stress

• Developed and demonstrated LPB as an affordable means of producing deep stable compression in metallic components
• Produced compressive layer essentially stable at engine operating temperatures by LPB
• LPB increases finite fatigue life by an order of magnitude, can double the endurance limit, and retard existing cracks

• Lambda Research created Surface Enhancement Technologies, LLC to license, market, and provide LPB
• Surface Enhancement Technologies employs 9 full time staff members
• NASA SBIR laid the ground work for a SBIR with NAVAIR

• Tested and proven by NASA, the Military, and DOE for aircraft and ground based turbines and aging aircraft. Because the compression doesn't relax at high temperatures, LPB is extremely useful; hence, this should save money for the military by extending aircraft life
• Demonstrated LPB on advanced disk superalloys, assisted by NASA Ultrasafe Propulsion Project
• Bio-medical spinoff application resulted in licensed production of hip implant components to mitigate fretting and improve High Cycle Fatigue performance

Return to NASA SBIR Success Listings

Curator: SBIR Support                7/25/05