The phrase "a means to replace" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used when discussing methods or ways to substitute one thing for another.
Example: "The new software serves as a means to replace the outdated system that we have been using."
Alternatives: "a method to substitute" or "a way to exchange".
Objectives: Cartilage transplantation as a means to replace damaged articular surfaces is of interest.
During the past decades, a number of different approaches have been applied toward tissue engineering the kidney as a means to replace renal function.
It is even doing research into hydrogen energy, which some see as a way, first, to turn fossil fuels into clean energy and ultimately as a means to replace petroleum.
Campbel et al. [10], using a stated preference survey, examined the factors that influence the choice of conventional and electric bikes (public shared schemes) by adult consumers as a means to replace car use in Beijing, China.
These mourning wars were also a means to replace the dead within a native community.
Schneider particularly saw his character as a means to replace the "goof" father-figures that had become prevalent on television.
We understand that by "mobile," Apple doesn't really mean portable – it's not a giant iPad, that is – but rather, is a display meant to replace the TV sets used today in order to offer a more consistent experience across stores.
Granted, comparing Ebert's Speech Generating Device (SGD) to Hawking's reveals that we now have the ability to make a computer's Robby-esque voice sound something like the person whose voice an SGD is meant to replace - a good first step in using these devices for sufferers from degenerative diseases like ALS or, in Ebert's case, a loss due to cancer.
Mr. Ensign had an affair with Mr. Hampton's wife, Cynthia Hampton, and the work as a lobbyist was meant to replace Mr. Hampton's Senate salary, according to a plan the senator and Mr. Hampton devised.
I mean really, simplicity is key with a device that's meant to replace a paperback.
The aircraft, which takes off like a helicopter and cruises like an airplane, is meant to replace the Marine Corps' aging fleet of transport helicopters, the Boeing CH-46E Sea Knight and United Technologies Sikorsky Aircraft Divisionon's CH-53D Sea Stallion.
