DARPA is soliciting innovative research proposals in the area of material testing and design optimization. The METALS program will develop foundational technologies enabling material as an explicit, continuous variable in structural design. Such foundational technologies include new material test methods to rapidly generate relevant properties and optimization frameworks that leverage materials informatics to represent complex material behavior.
METALS is a four-year, three-phase program that will use a phased acquisition approach.
Proposals must be structured as a 24-month Phase I base with an option for a 12-month Phase II effort. Proposers must also provide a draft Statement of Work (SOW) and Rough Order of Magnitude (ROM) cost estimate for a 12-month Phase III.
Proposals must be structured as a 24-month Phase I base with an option for a 12-month Phase II effort. Proposers must also provide a draft Statement of Work (SOW) and Rough Order of Magnitude (ROM) cost estimate for a 12-month Phase III.
The METALS program aims to disrupt two significant barriers at the intersection of materials
science and engineering design: (1) design-relevant material property measurements rely on century-old testing techniques that are inefficient and costly; and (2) material is treated as a discrete input in design instead of a variable to be optimized.
science and engineering design: (1) design-relevant material property measurements rely on century-old testing techniques that are inefficient and costly; and (2) material is treated as a discrete input in design instead of a variable to be optimized.
– Abstracts due 14 April 2023; full proposals due 9 June 2023; HR001123S0029
