大阪大学 工学研究科　海洋材料生産工学 Lab.

Our laboratory conducts research aimed at improving the durability (extending the service life) of ships, offshore structures, and various machines and equipment exposed to extreme environments—such as the harsh wind and sea conditions of the open ocean, the extremely high pressures of the deep sea, and ice-covered waters near the melting point—while also establishing the optimal design, materials, manufacturing/inspection, and maintenance/life-extension technologies needed to achieve this. Amid the growing environmental severity caused by climate change and heightened security concerns in recent years, this research has become an essential foundation for addressing critical global challenges in the environment, energy, resources, logistics, and safety, and its importance continues to grow.

Achieving these goals at a high level requires not only precise experiments that replicate extreme environments, but also the development of numerical simulation technologies capable of accurately predicting how materials and structures deform under real-world conditions and ultimately reach failure. By advancing research through the twin pillars of experiments and numerical analysis, and by fusing simulation technology with data science and physical AI, we are taking on the challenge of creating “the innovative technologies that future manufacturing and society will demand.”

In particular, our research on the durability of materials and structures under real-world conditions covers the entire time history and process—from the onset and progression of damage such as fatigue (crack initiation and propagation), corrosion, and wear caused by continuously acting, ever-fluctuating multiaxial stresses and nonlinear deformation behavior, through to final fracture. Because these physical phenomena depend strongly on environmental conditions and involve the combined action of multiple factors, they constitute extremely complex, strongly nonlinear multiphysics problems. Our research also spans a wide range of related topics, including improving the accuracy of future predictions through digital twins, optimizing manufacturing processes such as shipbuilding, cutting, forming, and joining, automating quality inspection in response to labor shortages and challenges in passing down skills, and developing materials and structures capable of withstanding the severe conditions encountered in opening up Arctic sea routes and undeveloped resources.

The advanced experimental techniques and cutting-edge numerical simulation methods developed in our laboratory are highly versatile, with applications extending beyond the marine and offshore field to a wide range of structures and manufacturing industries. In addition to collaborating with universities in Japan and abroad, we actively pursue joint research with a diverse array of companies in heavy industry, steel, automotive, construction machinery, precision machinery, and other sectors. Working together with partners across a range of disciplines, we strive to conduct research that benefits society.

In our laboratory, students receive careful guidance from senior members and faculty in precise experimental techniques, theory, and computational methods. We place great value on collaboration and cooperation among members, and one of our defining features is the close relationship between students and faculty. Because many of our members come from overseas, our weekly lab-wide seminar also serves as an opportunity to develop skills in organizing and leading meetings as well as communicating in English. Students also receive continuous support—from planning their research to presenting at conferences and writing papers.

Through research that meets pressing societal needs and can be applied across a broad range of fields, we aim to contribute not only to Japan’s industry and academia but to the world’s. We also hope to be a strong driving force behind the next generation of innovation and technological development. Let’s take on challenges, learn, and grow together as we forge a new era.