Multi-criteria Decision Analysis for Supporting the Selection of Engineering Materials in Product Design

Multi-criteria Decision Analysis for Supporting the Selection of Engineering Materials in Product Design, Second Edition, provides readers with tactics they can use to optimally select materials to satisfy complex design problems when they are faced with the vast range of materials available.

Current approaches to materials selection range from the use of intuition and experience, to more formalized computer-based methods, such as electronic databases with search engines to facilitate the materials selection process. Recently, multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) methods have been applied to materials selection, demonstrating significant capability for tackling complex design problems.

This book describes the rapidly growing field of MCDM and its application to materials selection. It aids readers in producing successful designs by improving the decision-making process. This new edition updates and expands previous key topics, including new chapters on materials selection in the context of design problem-solving and multiple objective decision-making, also presenting a significant amount of additional case studies that will aid in the learning process.

• Describes the advantages of Quality Function Deployment (QFD) in the materials selection process through different case studies
• Presents a methodology for multi-objective material design optimization that employs Design of Experiments coupled with Finite Element Analysis
• Supplements existing quantitative methods of materials selection by allowing simultaneous consideration of design attributes, component configurations, and types of material
• Provides a case study for simultaneous materials selection and geometrical optimization processes

Researchers in materials engineering disciplines and in operational research in the area of multi criteria decision analysis; also serves as a reference text for engineering practitioners (from aerospace to biomedicine) to help select the best material(s) for advanced design applications

• Preface to the 2nd edition
• From the Preface to the 1st edition
• About the authors
• 1. The importance of decision support in materials selection
  • Abstract
  • 1.1 Introduction to materials selection
  • 1.2 Background and justification for formalized materials selection
  • 1.3 Decision-making and concession in product design
  • 1.4 The position of materials selection in the engineering design process—from concept to detail stages
  • 1.5 Understanding the functional requirements and design criteria in selecting materials
  • 1.6 Combining functional and human-centered attributes in materials selection
  • 1.7 Cost considerations of materials selection/substitution
  • 1.8 The relationship between materials selection and processing
  • 1.9 The significance of design adaptation and materials substitution
  • 1.10 Use of new hybrid materials as opposed to currently available materials
  • 1.11 Materials selection and sustainable products
  • 1.12 Qualitative versus quantitative approaches to materials selection
  • 1.13 The role of computer-based materials selection and materials databases
  • 1.14 Summary and conclusions
  • Review questions
  • References
• 2. Materials selection in the context of design problem-solving
  • Abstract
  • 2.1 Creative thinking and inventive problem-solving (TRIZ)
  • 2.2 Comparison between creative and systematic design methods
  • 2.3 Identifying the needs and specifying the property requirements for materials
  • 2.4 Determining the characteristics of materials using QFD
  • 2.5 Utilization of a “Lean” design principles approach to materials selection process
  • 2.6 Summary and conclusions
  • Review questions
  • References
• 3. Screening of materials
  • Abstract
  • 3.1 Justification for an initial screening process
  • 3.2 Introduction to the use of material attributes
  • 3.3 Material performance indices and critical material aspects used by product designers
  • 3.4 Brief review of current formalized screening methods
  • 3.5 Materials’ property charts (the “Ashby” approach)
  • 3.6 Materials identification and use of computer-based tools
  • 3.7 Summary and conclusions
  • Review questions
  • References
• 4. Multi-criteria decision-making for materials selection
  • Abstract
  • 4.1 Introduction to multi-criterion decision-making
  • 4.2 MCDM as a subdiscipline of operations research
  • 4.3 Graphical-based ranking methods used in materials selection
  • 4.4 Justification for applying MCDM in materials selection
  • 4.5 Application of MODM and MADM in material design and selection
  • 4.6 Utilizing outputs from finite element analysis as inputs to MADM in materials selection
  • 4.7 Summary and conclusions
  • Review questions
  • References
• 5. Multi-attribute decision-making for ranking of candidate materials
  • Abstract
  • 5.1 Rationalization for using multi-attribute decision-making
  • 5.2 Introduction to the ranking of materials
  • 5.3 Structure of data in materials selection
  • 5.4 Normalization of criteria in MADM
  • 5.5 Weighting procedure of criteria
  • 5.6 Some recent MADM methods being used in materials selection
  • 5.7 Aggregation method for complex materials ranking problems
  • 5.8 Use of ranges of values for properties of materials as opposed to discrete values
  • 5.9 Computer implementation – application of spreadsheet and mathematical analysis techniques to facilitate the analysis of ranking problems
  • 5.10 Summary and conclusions
  • Review questions
  • References
• 6. Multiple objective decision-making for material and geometry design
  • Abstract
  • 6.1 Material design/tailoring verses materials selection
  • 6.2 Justification for applying experimental design in materials design
  • 6.3 RSM in multi-objective mathematical modeling of material design
  • 6.4 Simultaneous materials selection and design optimization
  • 6.5 Summary and conclusions
  • Review questions
  • References
• 7. Case studies of materials selection and design
  • Abstract
  • 7.1 Rationale for the case studies
  • 7.2 Materials selection and design for biomedical implants
  • 7.3 Material selection for hip prosthesis
  • 7.4 Materials selection for knee prosthesis
  • 7.5 FGM design for knee prosthesis
  • 7.6 Materials selection and design optimization—location pegs for knee prosthesis
  • 7.7 Materials and design selection of knee prosthesis—integration of QFD and MADM
  • 7.8 Materials selection for aircraft structure repair
  • 7.9 Materials selection strategy for multiple components in an engineering product
  • 7.10 Material and design selection of thin-walled cylindrical tubes in the presence of data uncertainty
  • 7.11 Group decision-making in materials selection
  • 7.12 Materials selection for hard surface coatings
  • 7.13 Summary and conclusions
  • Review questions
  • References
• 8. Future developments
  • Abstract
  • 8.1 Overview of the current situation
  • 8.2 The development of decision-making methods for actual design scenarios
  • 8.3 The application of MCDM methods to complex materials selection and design problems
  • 8.4 Final remarks on trends and challenges for the future
  • References
• Index