Plant Fund: MRI: Track 1 Acquisition of Servo-Hydraulic Actuator System for Controlled Testing of Structural Components for Transdisciplinary Research

MRI: Track 1 Acquisition of servo-hydraulic actuator system for controlled testing of structural components under static and dynamic loading for transdisciplinary research Abstract The proposed NSF Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) project will acquire a servo-hydraulic actuator system for controlled testing of structural components under both static and dynamic loading for transdisciplinary research. The controlled and modular nature of the proposed system will provide unique and much needed structural testing capabilities not available within the state of Kentucky, an EPSCoR jurisdiction. The equipment capabilities will support the research expansion and education needs of the Department of Civil Engineering, Department of Mining Engineering, Institute for Sustainable Manufacturing, and the Kentucky Transportation Center, all within the College of Engineering. All research proposed through the acquisition are focused on innovations and applications related to the NSF Net-Zero Climate Goals to create a Circular Economy. The benefits of the system in validating ongoing and future research into climate resilience of existing as well as new infrastructure will be immeasurable. The equipment also provides experimental research opportunities into areas such as simulated seismic and impact/blast loading, while also expanding the use of additive manufacturing to large scale components. Students will receive the opportunity to perform and observe failures in full scale structural members. The testing capabilities will provide unique opportunities to engineering undergraduates working on their capstone projects, whose test requirements cannot be currently met. The capabilities of the equipment would also provide testing opportunities for industry partners both within and outside Kentucky, while allowing for research collaborations throughout the world.