Featured Innovators

Dr. Rebecca A. MacKay

Dr. Rebecca A. MacKay Materials Reasearch Engineer at Glenn Research Center

A NASA-GEAE-P&W team developed the advanced single crystal superalloy, EPM-102, which has been cast into a fully machined CF6-80E high pressure turbine (HPT) blade (above, left) and an as-cast PW 4098 HPT blade (above, right). This superalloy is a candidate alloy for turbine airfoils in the Joint Strike Fighter.

Materials and mentoring make MacKay most valuable
Rebecca MacKay chosen for prestigious national 2004 Women in Aerospace Award

Dr. Rebecca A. MacKay, a materials research engineer in the Materials Division of NASA Glenn Research Center’s Research and Technology Directorate, is an internationally recognized expert in advanced high-temperature materials for aircraft and rocket propulsion systems. She has made substantial contributions to the fundamental understanding of how a material's strength is related to its nano/microstructure, and how the microstructure may be controlled by the material's composition, manufacturing processes, and ultimately by service conditions. Most notably, she has developed the world’s most advanced propulsion system superalloy through a continuing series of inventions and accomplishments, as will be described further. This superalloy will result in significant improvements in use temperature capability of superalloys, thus translating into more efficient propulsion systems, which will consume less fuel and will result in substantial reductions in harmful emissions.

“Rebecca is without question one of brightest stars in our Division,” stated Dr. Hugh Gray, Chief, Materials Division. “Not only is her work relevant to various NASA missions, but her outstanding demeanor and professional reputation makes her an extremely sought-after partner by industry and academia.”

It is such accomplishments that have made Women in Aerospace (WIA), a Washington, DC-based nonprofit organization dedicated to expanding women's opportunities for leadership and increased visibility within the aerospace community, take notice of Dr. MacKay by honoring her with this year’s Outstanding Achievement Award. Only six awards (1 winner in each of 6 different categories) are presented annually, and recipients include pioneering women such as astronauts and high-ranking government officials. Dr. MacKay received her award Tuesday, September 21, 2004 in Washington, DC.

"WIA recognizes that 'achievement' in aerospace can come in many forms, and our awards categories attempt to capture the gamut of those contributions. This year's winners and slate of nominees have once again substantiated the fact that women are making tremendous strides in aerospace," said Amy Kaminski, WIA 2004 awards program co-chair.

Dr. MacKay's background is nothing short of stellar. Her precocious M.S. degree, a widely cited research contribution, defined how the creep strength of a single crystal superalloy depended on the precise orientation of its crystallographic directions with respect to the applied stress axis. This work has led to industry standards for the acceptance of turbine blade castings and appears in reference books on superalloys.

In her Ph.D. research, Dr. MacKay performed definitive research on the attainment of optimum strength in superalloy single crystals. Specifically, her work revealed the need for controlling the morphology of the strengthening phases through composition modifications and the manufacturing heat treatment. Results of her research have influenced the development of new alloys by at least three U.S. gas turbine engine manufacturers. Dr. MacKay was also a key member of a team that was first in the world to measure an influential physical property, lattice mismatch, in single crystal superalloys at elevated temperatures. In 1988, she was cited by industry as providing one of the two most important NASA Lewis Research Center contributions to turbine engine materials for work on optimizing creep strength. For writing outstanding papers on this research, which had significant impact on materials science and technology, Dr. MacKay received the Materials Division Order of the Enterprise (1985) and the Lewis Research Center Distinguished Publication Award (1990).

More recently, Dr. MacKay was the key member of a team that developed the world's most advanced single crystal superalloy for turbine blade applications. She has also been leading the team in the development of a successful surface treatment of this superalloy. The surface treatment substantially reduces the risk of introducing this new alloy into operational service by eliminating a deleterious phase which develops after a standard oxidation protective coating is applied. The surface treatment process has been transferred to the General Electric Aircraft Engine Company through a Space Act Agreement. This research has enabled the alloy to be selected for use as the high pressure turbine blade of the Joint Strike Fighter engine. As a result of these efforts, Dr. MacKay received NASA’s Turning Goals into Reality (TGIR) Team Award (2003) for being the leader of the year's top team for significant contributions towards NASA's Office of Aerospace Technology objectives of reducing carbon dioxide emissions from the commercial aircraft fleet. The National Research Council recently recognized her research as “world class.” MacKay stated, “I am proud of my accomplishments, and I am grateful for the productive collaborations that I’ve had with my colleagues.”

Because of her outstanding abilities to formulate and conduct research and communicate the results, Dr. MacKay was named Science Advisor to the Chief of the Materials Division (1990). In this role, she previewed and critiqued all technical presentations prepared by researchers in the Materials Division.

Dr. MacKay has made numerous conference presentations at major technical meetings, including two at the International Symposium on Superalloys, a quadrennial symposium of the world's leading superalloy researchers. She has organized and chaired several international symposia. She was the Publication Chair and Co-Editor of the Proceedings of the Seventh International Symposium on Superalloys (1988 - 1992), and was responsible for the technical program of this quadrennial symposium held in 1992. In 1986, Dr. MacKay gave an invited lecture at the MiCon Conference of the American Society for Testing of Materials and was invited to give the Keynote Lecture at the Materials Research Society Fall Symposium in 1992. In 2001, she received a "Best of Aeromat" Award for her outstanding technical achievement and presentation quality. Dr. MacKay has a book chapter to her credit and has served as editor for The Journal of Advanced Materials (1991 to 1997), and the International Materials Reviews (1988 - 1994). She has received numerous requests for consultation from industry and academia both nationally and internationally, and works as a consultant or joint researcher with many colleagues from NASA Glenn, NASA Langley, Marshall Space Flight Center, Johnson Space Center, academia, and industry. She is currently an active member of NASA’s Engineering Safety Center, which is involved in several high priority safety issues for the Space Shuttle system.

In 2002, she received the NASA Medal for Exceptional Engineering Achievement to accompany her 1993 NASA Medal for Exceptional Scientific Achievement. Dr. MacKay is the only employee in the history of NASA Glenn (Lewis) Research Center to have ever received Exceptional Achievement Medals for both Engineering and Science. In 1996 Dr. MacKay was NASA Lewis Research Center's nominee for the National Aviation Club "Women of the Year" Award.

Dr. MacKay has mentored several male and female co-ops and summer students of diverse backgrounds during her career at NASA Glenn. As a team leader, Dr. MacKay has also had the formal opportunity to mentor and serve as technical advisor to a number of less senior scientists and engineers of diverse backgrounds. Dr. MacKay served on the Board of Trustees for the Lewis Little Folks Day Care and Kindergarten for four years. She also served as Treasurer and was responsible for managing a $ 500,000 yearly budget for a staff of twenty teachers and an enrollment of 115 boys and girls. During her four-year tenure, Dr. MacKay served as a mentor to the female staff at the daycare where she helped them to develop further their interpersonal and organizational skills. She also served as a guide and a resource to the other female members of the Board of Trustees.

Dr. MacKay is a passionate advocate for getting children interested in science and mathematics early in their education. She has been a guest science teacher at Lake Ridge Academy, North Ridgeville, Ohio, where she has taught basic science concepts to 150 girls and boys and has designed hands-on experiments for elementary school age children. She has frequently been invited to participate as a judge in NASA's National Student Involvement Program and to participate as a role model for "Career Night" at a local high school. She is currently spearheading an effort to encourage grade K-12 teachers in her community to participate in extra-curricular mathematics and science activities that are sponsored by local chapters of National professional mathematics and engineering societies.