Effect of Interface Contamination on the Adhesion of 304 Stainless Steel; The Columbia STS-107 Disaster: Organizational Culture, the Social Construction of Technology, and the Silencing of Engineering Dissent 7 views

The reliability of modern engineering systems depends not only on the physical integrity of materials but also on the robust networks of human and non-human actors that govern their production and deployment. My technical capstone and STS research projects are connected through the theme of manufacturing reliability and the consequences of systemic failure. While my technical project investigates the physical mechanisms of material degradation at the interface level, my STS research examines how an oppressive organizational culture and structural secrecy can blind management to such physical dangers and silence vital engineering dissent, as seen in the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster. In my technical project, I investigated the effect of surface contamination on the adhesion of protective coatings to SAE 304 stainless steel, a critical vulnerability in aerospace hardware. To address the deficiencies of traditional surface preparation methods, I evaluated the efficacy of Pulsed Laser Surface Cleaning and Texturing (LSC&T). This single-step process utilizes high-repetition fiber lasers to simultaneously vaporize organic debris and oxides while imparting a precise, micro-scale surface texture. To validate this approach, I utilized profilometry, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), and Energy-Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDS) to confirm contamination removal, followed by rigorous ASTM C633 quantitative adhesion testing. By comparing the bond strength of laser-treated samples against grit-blasted alternatives, the project provided actionable data demonstrating how engineering microscopic topographies can prevent macroscopic coating failures and improve overall mission reliability. In my STS research, I examined the Space Shuttle Columbia STS-107 disaster to understand how organizational culture and communication failures can lead to disastrous outcomes. Using the Social Construction of Technology (SCOT) framework, I argued that the tragedy was fundamentally driven by the premature rhetorical closure of competing technological frames. While the Debris Assessment Team viewed the anomalous foam strike as a critical safety threat requiring immediate empirical investigation, the Mission Management Team utilized historical precedent and an entrenched "culture of optimism" to redefine the event as an acceptable operational risk. By forcing this rhetorical closure, management silenced dissenting engineering voices and denied requests for vital satellite imagery, demonstrating how social pressures and hierarchical secrecy can obscure physical dangers and make the exercise of individual professional responsibility impossible. Reflecting on the value of working on these projects has shifted my perspective on professional responsibility. The technical project demonstrated how microscopic physical deviations require precise interventions, such as laser surface texturing, to prevent macroscopic failures, highlighting the exceptional sensitivity of protective aerospace coatings to microscopic interface contamination on 304 stainless steel. However, the STS study shows how organizational hierarchies—more especially, a "culture of optimism" and premature rhetorical closure—can determine how those physical parameters are understood or ignored. The knowledge gained from both projects will be extremely useful when I go into my next position as a Process Technician in the cell manufacturing industry. I now understand that closely monitoring physical process parameters is an essential professional responsibility activity that is required to stabilize a much bigger sociotechnical network and guarantee the safety of the finished manufactured product, rather than just a daily technical task.

BS (Bachelor of Science)

Laser Cleaning; Grit blasting; Interface contamination; Adhesion; Space Shuttle Columbia disaster

School of Engineering and Applied Science Bachelor of Science in Material Science and Engineering Technical Advisor: James Fitz-Gerald STS Advisor: Benjamin Laugelli Technical Team Members: Maggie Ferguson, Nirvana Tesafayohannes, John Aashish, and Julian Keophanboua

English

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2026-05-07