Established in 1966.
Main areas of research:
- ultimate state and strength criteria of materials and structures;
- computational and experimental methods for studying stress-strain state;
- fracture mechanics and life of structures;
- oscillations of non-conservative mechanical systems.
Researchers of the Institute have made a major contribution to theoretical and experimental studies towards determining strength criteria and improving the load-carrying capacity of materials and structural elements in advanced fields of engineering.
Principal scientific achievements:
- development of techniques and state-of-the-art experimental tools for studying patterns in the deformation and fracture processes occurring in a broad range of structural materials under complex stress state at low (4 K) and high (4000 K) temperatures; the peculiarities of these factors� effect on mechanical properties have been revealed and generalized in a relevant reference book; scientifically validated recommendations on the optimal use of materials in structures have been provided, which have won broad scientific recognition;
- validation of the model for stable-to-unstable transition in the propagation of fatigue cracks and finding the dependence that determines the correlation between the fracture toughness characteristics under static and cyclic loads. The results of these studies have been published in leading international journals and are the most comprehensive in current international literature;
- a two-parameter model for the ultimate state of material in the neighborhood of crack tip. The model has become the basis for launching a new research trend in the studies of fracture processes in structural materials; that result has been broadly covered in international academic literature and extended to quasi-brittle and ductile fractures.
The following achievements have been commercialized on a large scale:
- computational and experimental methods to assess the ultimate state of materials and structural elements of aerospace facilities with various coatings under extreme operating conditions, alongside with recommendations towards optimizing coating deposition technology in terms of strength and durability criteria;
- a methodology and computer expert system for routine monitoring of the technical state and ensuring the integrity of various-purpose main pipelines, with a view to extending their life and optimizing the frequency and volume of diagnostic and repair works;
- methods and algorithms for numeric modelling of the kinetics of technological and operational stresses in critical elements of NPP components; a departmental normative document 'Methodology to assess strength and life of reactor pressure vessels in the process of exploitation' has been developed for the first time in Ukraine.
