James T. Burns

James T. Burns is an Associate Professor of Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Virginia's School of Engineering and Applied Science, holding the Copenhaver Fellowship. His research focuses on environmental degradation mechanisms in high-performance alloys, particularly steel, aluminum, titanium, and nickel-based materials produced via traditional and additive manufacturing. He explores intersections of metallurgy, mechanics, and electrochemistry to address challenges in infrastructure, aerospace, automotive, energy, and biomedical fields. Burns earned his B.S. from the US Air Force Academy (2002), M.S. (2006), and Ph.D. (2010) in Materials Science from UVA.

His research interests include Fracture Mechanics, Physical Metallurgy, Hydrogen Embrittlement, and Additive Manufacturing. Recent work examines stress corrosion cracking in additively manufactured alloys and the role of hydrogen in material failure. He leads the Burns Research Group, emphasizing mechanistic understanding of degradation to inform engineering solutions.

Burns has received awards including the HH Uhlig Award (2021), NASA Engineering Safety Center's Engineering Excellence Award (2019), and the AFOSR-Young Investigator Research Grant (2016). He serves on editorial boards for International Journal of Fatigue and Engineering Fracture Mechanics.

His research integrates computational models with experimental data, such as fatigue crack propagation analysis and corrosion-electrochemical interactions. Ongoing projects include developing lifetime prediction models for nuclear waste storage canisters and corrosion-resistant coatings for Al-Mg alloys. Burns collaborates with industry and government agencies on applied materials challenges.