Thinking of taking a PhD Course in that involves Materials Engineering

Hello Theophilus.

I have a different view of your situation- to me the big question is how deep is the Materials Engineering course.

The Aerospace industry Is constantly pushing the envelope of materials science (crack prevention due to fasteners, welding of dissimilar metals and alloys, effects of high temperature plasma on materials).

How you create a digital twin taking into account these specialized processes is not my area of expertise

Peter Brooks

Palm Bay FL..

Hello Mr. Peter,

Thank you for your kind response. I have checked a few documents and courses online. I came across some Stanford University lecture notes. I have been studying through that. I am not sure it is that difficult, looks like you need to understand a lot of atomic, molecular structure chemistry, and physics to understand how they apply to make needed materials for various applications in manufacturing, and construction, while also taking note of how they behave under conditions as you stated in your response. Digital Twin will take all possible conditions in real-life scenarios and simulate all possible outcomes. Data is analyzed and then applied where necessary. That was how I implemented it in my work on Smart factory design. I assume this will be like that too. I may be wrong.

I am still open to discuss this or other topics.

Thank you,

Theophilus.

Hello Theophilus:

Each day I read the official US government newsletter which covers FAA directives on (for example) defects found on Boeing planes  and required corrective actions. A recent example was Boeing using cockpit glass that was not bird resistance. 

Also I watch live youtube videos from Space X that shows the latest fixes to their big rocket made with stainless steel, under development in Texas.

Regarding creation of Digital Twins, what happens when products are many in multiple factories located in different counties with different materials and sub-assemblies. This situation happened when I worked in the IC industry setting up bill of material for all options.

One has to ask what is the lowest level (example down to the fastener level) defined in the Digital Twin? The lower the level the more maintenance work has to be done?

Peter Brooks

Palm Bay Florida 

Hello Theophilus:

Another materials issue came up yesterday - it relates to the interface between metal such as stainless steel and "GLUE".

Tesla issued a recall for it's Cybertrucks as the glue used to attach an exterior trim piece (called the Cant rail) was susceptible to environment embrittlement.

Details are contained within the following URL:-

static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2025/RCLRPT-25V170-9407.PDF

Part 573 Safety Recall Report 25V-170 

Peter Brooks

Palm Bay Florida   

Dear Sir,

Thank you for your deep questions. I genuinely appreciate your interest and the insights you have given me. You would not know the amount of knowledge I have gained already from your responses. 

To answer your question about Digital Twins in materials related to Aerospace, I would like to liken this situation to another arm of manufacturing: The Food and Beverage that I have experience with: The question is related to Boilers and stem processes. Water as we know or let me say "as I know" is not the same even in a small geographical area. This is due to the local geology around these areas. How are we able to use these boilers that have in these 2 simple scenarios? These are corrected using either water softeners or filters or descaling products before the water is allowed to enter the feedwater tank where the required pH of the water is measured before this is fed to the boiler to prevent an early breakdown or frequent maintenance. 

I have not done this on any process yet, from my understanding of the application of DTs, we can create scenarios that directly mirror the local situation and then simulate possible outcomes depending on the available DTs software and what its makers have factored into its programming. I then feel these situations will be factored into the manufacturing situation of individual sites to see how best to maximize the available resources. In situations where some resources are lacking, there will or might be alternatives, and where there are none, I believe the organization might have to import them.

I hope I was able to adequately address your question. If not, please help me so I can understand further.

Regarding water processing, again I am not an expert.

At home I have a shallow well (200 ft), filter and pump system that is purely used for watering the lawn, however it smells of sulfur. 

Most commercial water operations use a osmosis based system which you did not mention.

The company I used to worked for, had a Indian plant that we had to shut down because they were using contaminated water.

Peter Brooks

Palm Bay Florida 

I understand you, sir. I am not an expert either I had to understand this from my previous job.

The system you have at home is mostly used in Nigeria where I come from. Most of the areas I have lived in had drinkable water except in the Lekki area of Lagos.

RO (Reverse Osmosis) is an advanced filtration system. I summarized this by mentioning filters. I am sorry I didn't highlight it directly. RO is used at industrial levels in Nigeria as well. Even though some of the manufacturers get water supply from the government or from their own borehole system.

I understand you, sir. I am not an expert either I had to understand this from my previous job.

The system you have at home is mostly used in Nigeria where I come from. Most of the areas I have lived in had drinkable water except in the Lekki area of Lagos.

RO (Reverse Osmosis) is an advanced filtration system. I summarized this by mentioning filters. I am sorry I didn't highlight it directly. RO is used at industrial levels in Nigeria as well. Even though some of the manufacturers get water supply from the government or from their own borehole system.