DESIGN FOR PERFORMANCE - A PREDICTIVE FRAMEWORK FOR LIFE-CYCLE MANAGEMENT

Many critical power plant components are operating near or beyond their design lives. Attempts to predict the remaining life of such components, especially those in use at high temperatures, have had limited success. A new predictive framework, design for performance, can overcome some of the technical and conceptual obstacles to successful life management. The new strategy sets limits on critical properties to define the end of life. This approach allows materials engineers to become key contributors to the design exercise.