US senior research materials engineer wins international award

  • Published
  • By Donna Lindner
  • Air Force Research Laboratory

WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio The Jaap Schijve Award is an international award presented by The Netherlands Aerospace Centre NLR and Delft University of Technology to promote the disciplines of fatigue and damage tolerance for aerospace applications.

 

Dr. Adam Pilchak of the Air Force Research Laboratory at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base is this year’s recipient of the Jaap Schijve award.

 

The award is based on technical contributions to the advancement of the field of aeronautical fatigue. The award is selected from young researchers all over the world who are early in their career - preferably within 10 years of entering the field and/or below the age of 35.

 

Selection criteria for the award includes scientific quality of work, quality of publications in peer reviewed journals, relevance to fatigue and damage tolerance and impact on aerospace engineering.

 

The award is named after Professor Jaap Schijve who is an internationally renowned expert in fatigue of structures and materials and has authored several books on the subject.

 

Pilchak has emerged as the United States Air Force’s leading expert in microstructural fatigue and damage tolerance of titanium alloys, which are used worldwide in military and commercial aerospace systems. He is internationally recognized as a foremost expert in understanding the role of microstructure and crystal orientation on the fatigue and dwell fatigue behavior of titanium alloys.

 

“Unbelievable,” said Pilchak upon receiving notification that he was the award recipient. “I am truly honored to be the U.S. nominee for this award, but being recognized by an international panel of experts was greatly rewarding and really validated the decade I’ve spent studying fatigue of titanium.”

 

Pilchak rose to the top of the seven candidates based on the quality of his publications in peer reviewed journals, which included four “Best Paper” awards from three different journals.

 

“Knowing Adam since before he completed his doctorate in materials science and engineering, I knew he was the right colleague to nominate,” said Dr. Andrew Rosenberger of the Materials and Manufacturing Directorate at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. “Adam is a stellar scientist and researcher. This award is added to the plethora of awards that Adam has already received in his short career.”

 

Pilchak is the second United States winner to receive this biennial award since its inception in 2009.

 

Pilchak will receive the award at the 30th Symposium of the International Committee on Aeronautical Fatigue and Structural Integrity conference in Krakow, Poland, in June 2019. He will receive a medal and a cash prize of EUR 5,000.