NCAME adds world-class structural integrity scholar to research roster
Published: May 15, 2024 8:00 AM
By Jeremy Henderson
An expert from the old world is bringing new insight to the National Center for Additive Manufacturing Excellence (NCAME).
Stefano Beretta, a world-class scholar in structural integrity, recently joined NCAME to assist on several projects focused on developing defect-sensitive predictive fatigue models for additively manufactured (AM) materials. With double affiliation with Auburn University and Italy’s Politecnico di Milano, Dipartimento di Meccanica, he will reside in Auburn for a significant portion of the year to work closely with NCAME researchers.
"I am thrilled by the opportunity," Beretta said. "It's an honor for me to have received the appointment from Auburn, and the dual affiliation will provide a privileged position for research and technology transfer on both sides of the Atlantic, focusing on my favorite topics."
Those favorite topics include fatigue and damage tolerance assessment, probabilistic methods for defect analysis and fatigue life calculations, digital image correlation for fatigue damage analysis, and developing fatigue lifing software.
Beretta has taught advanced machine design and structural reliability of aerospace components at the Politecnico di Milano since the late 1990s.
A longstanding member of the European Structural Integrity Society (ESIS), Beretta served on the society's executive committee from 2002-14, including as vice president from 2010-14. He has chaired the ESIS Technical Committee 24 since 2010.
In recent years, Beretta's group has focused on structural integrity assessment of additively manufactured aerospace components, developing new software benchmarked by the European Space Agency for aluminum and titanium components. He holds four patents in this field.
Beretta has chaired major conferences, including the 3rd International Symposium on Fatigue Design and Material in 2017 and the 2018 ASTM Symposium on Structural Integrity of Additive Manufacturing Parts. In 2019, he received the ASTM Award of Excellence in Additive Manufacturing Research.
"Dr. Beretta brings a wealth of knowledge that will elevate our NCAME's capabilities," said NCAME director Nima Shamsaei, the Philpott-WestPoint Stevens Distinguished Professor of mechanical engineering. "Our ability to recruit respected international authority in the field of additive manufacturing is, I think, a great testament to the reputation NCAME has established."
Stefano Beretta
