Temperature-Dependent Mechanical Response of an UFG Aluminum Alloy at High Rates

High temperature (298 K–573 K) and high strain rate (4000 s⁻¹) compression experiments were performed on a cryomilled ultra-fine grained (UFG) Al-5083 using a modified Kolsky bar with a heating system designed to reduce “cold contact” time. The resulting stress strain curves show a reduction in strength of approximately 300 MPa at the highest temperature tested. This softening has been related to a thermally activated deformation mechanism. In addition, an experimental procedure was developed to investigate the microstructure evolution during the preheating, prior to mechanical loading, so as to identify the intrinsic mechanical response of the material at high temperatures. The results of this procedure are in good agreement with a TEM study on material that has been heated but not loaded.     

Determination of the shear strength and modulus of water at low flow velocities

Damped inertial water flow in a cylindrical vessel is investigated. A return effect or "recoil" as the shear strain rate falks to a value of the order of 10⁻³s⁻¹ is observed. Over the range of low strain rates the water behaves like a medium with very low shear strength and a shear modulus of the order of 10⁻⁶ Pa. Ekaterinburg. Translated from Izvestiya Rossiiskoi Akademii Nauk, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 1, pp. 3–7, January–February, 1997.     

Impulsive Tension of Hexane and Glycerol under Shock‐Wave Loading

The strength of hexane and glycerol was measured under impulsive tension produced by interaction of a triangular compression pulse with a free surface. The tests were performed for strain rates of 10⁴–10⁵ sec^–1. It is established that the strength of hexane is equal to 14 MPa and does not depend on the strain rate, whereas the strength of glycerol increases from 57 to 142 MPa with an order of magnitude increase in the strain rate. The possibility of using the model of homogeneous nucleation to interpret the data obtained is discussed.     

High-strain-rate compressive behavior of a rigid polyurethane foam with various densities

The dynamic compressive stress-strain behavior of a rigid polyurethane foam with four values of density (78, 154, 299, and 445 kg/m³) has been determined in the strain-rate range of 1000–5000 s⁻¹. A pulse shaping technique was used with a split Hopkinson pressure bar to ensure homogeneous deformation in the foam specimens under dynamic compression. Dynamic stress equilibrium in the specimen was monitored during each experiment using piezoelectric force transducers mounted close to the specimen end-faces. Quasi-static experiments were also performed to demonstrate rate effects. Experimental results show that both the quasistatic and the dynamic stress-strain curves of the foam exhibit linear elasticity at small strains until a peak is reached. After the peak, the stress-strain curves have a plateau region followed by a densification region. The peak stress is strain-rate sensitive and depends on the square of the foam density.     

The rheological characterisation of bread dough using capillary rheometry

An Australian hard wheat flour–water dough has been characterised using parallel plate and capillary rheometers over an extensive range of apparent shear rates (10^− 3–10³ s^− 1) relevant to process conditions. Torsional measurements showed that the shear viscosity of the dough increased with strain to a maximum value and then decreased, suggesting a breakdown of the dough structure. Both torsional and capillary experiments revealed the shear-thinning behaviour of the dough. The wall slip phenomenon in capillary rheometry was investigated and found to be diameter dependent and occurred at a critical shear stress of approximately 5–10 kPa. A two-regime power law behaviour was observed, with the power law index approximately 0.3 in the low shear rate range increasing to 0.67 in the high shear rate range. Pressure fluctuation was observed in the capillary data and increased with shear rate, in particular, at shear rates approaching 10⁴ s^− 1. The results demonstrate that capillary rheometry is a viable means of rheologically testing dough at high shear rates provided pressure fluctuation is carefully monitored and capillary rheometry corrections, including wall slip, are accounted for.     

Strain Mapping of Al–Mg Alloy with Multi-scale Grain Structure using Digital Image Correlation Method

Al–Mg alloy powder was mechanically milled in liquid N₂ (cryomilling) to produce thermally stable powder with nanocrystalline (NC) microstructure for the manufacture of high-strength alloys. A multi-scale microstructure was achieved by blending unmilled coarse-grained (CG) powder with cryomilled powder and subsequently consolidating. The final bulk alloy was comprised of ultra-fine grained (UFG) regions and discrete CG bands. Dynamic observations of tensile deformation of the alloy were recorded using a micro-straining module attached to a light microscope, and the displacements were measured by digital image correlation (DIC). Strain inhomogeneity between UFG regions and ductile CG bands was observed in the micro-strain (strain order of 10⁻⁴–10⁻⁶) range, and the strain behavior was interpreted in terms of dislocation plasticity. Special emphasis was given to the distinct displacements between adjoining regions during deformation.     

Impulsive Tension of Ethanol under Shock Loading

This paper reports results from experimental studies of the strength of ethanol under impulsive tension due to interaction of a triangular compression pulse with the free surface. The experiments were performed in the range of strain rates 4 ⋅ 10⁴-4 ⋅ 10⁵ sec⁻¹. It is established that the failure of ethanol is a two-stage process. In the first stage at a negative pressure of about 14 MPa, pore formation begins, which proceeds at a rather low rate and is manifested as an inflection on the free-surface velocity profile. In the second stage, the porosity growth rate increases, resulting in formation of a spalling pulse. The possibility of using the model of homogeneous nucleation to interpret experimental data is discussed.__________Translated from Prikladnaya Mekhanika i Tekhnicheskaya Fizika, Vol. 46, No. 4, pp. 29–38, July–August, 2005.     

Experimental analysis of dynamic mechanical properties for artificially frozen clay by the split Hopkinson pressure bar

A device for impact compression experiments is the split Hopkinson pressure bar with a refrigerating attemperator. Data for incident and reflected waves are obtained by the measuring technique with strain gauges, and data for transmitted waves are obtained by the measuring technique with semiconductor gauges. Static compression tests of frozen clay are conducted at an identical temperature and different strain rates of 0.001 and 0.01 sec ⁻¹ . Dynamic stress-strain curves are obtained at strain rates of 360–1470 sec ⁻¹ . The low and high temperatures correspond to high and low strain rates, respectively. It is shown that both the temperature and strain rate affect the frozen soil deformation process. Different dynamic stress-strain curves obtained at the same temperature but different strain rates are found to converge. The test results indicate that frozen soil has both temperature-brittleness and impact-brittleness.     

A Phenomenological Constitutive Model for Describing Thermo-Viscoplastic Behavior of Al-Zn-Mg-Cu Alloy Under Hot Working Condition

In order to predict the high-temperature deformation behavior of Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloy, the hot compression tests were conducted in the strain rate range of (0.001–0.1)s⁻¹ and the forming temperature range of (573–723) K. Based on the experimental results, Johnson-Cook model was found inadequate to describe the high-temperature deformation behavior of Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloy. Therefore, a new phenomenological constitutive model is proposed, considering the coupled effects of strain, strain rate and forming temperature on the material flow behavior of Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloy. In the proposed model, the material constants are presented as functions of strain rate. The proposed constitutive model correlates well with the experimental results confirming that the proposed model can give an accurate and precise estimate of flow stress for the Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloy investigated in this study.     

Flexural fatigue behavior of threaded connections for large diameter pipes

Full-scale flexural fatigue tests were conducted to investigate the fatigue behavior of a patented threaded connection for large diameter (0.61 m (24 in) outside diameter, 25.4 mm (1 in) wall thickness) offshore pipes. Fifteen fatigue tests were performed by subjecting the threaded connection to constant amplitude stress ranges (between 69 MPa (10 ksi) and 151.8 MPa (22 ksi) on gross cross section) with zero mean stress. The corresponding measured fatigue lives varied from 45000 to 4852200 cycles. Fatigue failures were in the form of cracks through the thickness of the wall and located at the root of the first full contact thread. The failure surfaces were ‘typical’ with identifiable zones of crack initiation, propagation and fracture. Linear regression analysis of the experimental results, namely the applied stress range (S _r ) and the measured number of cycles to failure (N) data, in the log-log domain gave anR ² value of 0.88 and the least-squares best fit equation asS _r (MPa)=1573.2N ^−0.212. The 90% probable fatigue strength prediction equation was estimated asS _r =1393.8N ^−0.212. This equation is recommended for design purposes.     

Laminar-turbulent transition in the boundary layer on cones in a hypersonic flow at high Reynolds numbers per meter

The laminar-turbulent transition is experimentally studied in boundary-layer flows on cones with a rectangular axisymmetric step in the base part of the cone and without the step. The experiments are performed in an A-1 two-step piston-driven gas-dynamic facility with adiabatic compression of the working gas with Mach numbers at the nozzle exit M _∞ = 12–14 and pressures in the settling chamber P₀ = 60–600 MPa. These values of parameters allow obtaining Reynolds numbers per meter near the cone surface equal to Re _1e = (53–200) · 10⁶ m ⁻¹. The transition occurs at Reynolds numbers Re _tr = (2.3–5.7) · 10⁶. __________ Translated from Prikladnaya Mekhanika i Tekhnicheskaya Fizika, Vol. 48, No. 3, pp. 76–83, May–June, 2007.     

Experimental study of vortex structures in a hypersonic shock layer on a flat plate

The characteristics of travelling perturbations of density in a hypersonic shock layer on a flat plate for the Mach number M_∞=21 and unit Reynolds numberRe ₁=6·10⁵ m⁻¹ were experimentally studied by the method of electron-beam fluorescence. The perturbations were generated by interaction of the shock layer behind an oblique gas-dynamic whistle and the leading edge of the plate. The cases of unsteady and quasi-steady interaction were considered. In both cases, vortex disturbances of finite amplitude were generated. The measurements were performed at the fundamental frequency F=0.6·10⁻⁴ and at the harmonic; the streamwise phase velocities, the growth rates of the disturbances, and the angles of wave propagation were obtained. The measurement results are compared with some experimental data for subsonic flows, some particular results of the linear stability theory for compressible flows, and the results obtained on the basis of a simple model of the nonlinear stage of disturbance evolution in a hypersonic boundary layer. Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics, Siberian Division, Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk 630090. Translated from Prikladnaya Mekhanika i Tekhnicheskaya Fizika, Vol. 40, No. 6, pp. 41–47, November–December, 1999.     

A shear-compression specimen for large strain testing

A new specimen geometry, the shear-compression specimen (SCS), has been developed for large strain testing of materials. The specimen consists of a cylinder in which two diametrically opposed slots are machined at 45° with respect to the longitudinal axis, thus forming the test gage section. The specimen was analyzed numerically for two representative material models, and various gage geometries. This study shows that the stress (strain) state in the gage, is three-dimensional rather than simple shear as would be commonly assumed. Yet, the dominant deformation mode in the gage section is shear, and the stresses and strains are rather uniform. Simple relations were developed and assessed to relate the equivalent true stress and equivalent true plastic strain to the applied loads and displacements. The specimen was further validated through experiments carried out on OFHC copper, by comparing results obtained with the SCS to those obtained with compression cylinders. The SCS allows to investigate a large range of strain rates, from the quasi-static regime, through intermediate strain rates (1–100 s⁻¹), up to very high strain rates (2×10⁴s⁻¹ in the present case).     

Experimental Study of Seepage Properties of Broken Sandstone Under Different Porosities

In coal mining the water flow in broken rock is a very common phenomenon. Study of seepage properties of broken rock is one of the basic subjects required in order to understand the stability of rock surrounding roadways, preventing disasters such as water inrush and gas outbursts and developing underground resources. So far, quantitative studies on the nonlinear seepage properties of broken sandstone under different porosities are not extensive in the research literature. In this article, by means of an electro-hydraulic servo-controlled test system (MTS815.02) and a patent seepage device, the seepage properties under different conditions of porosity were tested on broken sandstone of five different grain sizes. Based on the loading method of controlling the axial compression displacement and steady permeating method, we obtained curves of the relation of pore pressure with time, as well as the relation curves between the pore pressure gradient for steady seepage and velocity. Furthermore, we calculated the permeability k and non-Darcy coefficient β corresponding to different porosities by fitting these curves with the binomial expression. This study indicates that: (1) the seepage properties of broken sandstone are closely related to grain size, load levels, and porosity structure; (2) the permeability k decreases, while the coefficient β increases with a decrease in porosity φ, but both the k − φ and the β − φ curves show some local fluctuations; (3) the permeability k of the broken sandstone has a magnitude of 10⁻¹⁴–10⁻¹² m², while the coefficient β ranges from 10¹⁰ to 10¹² m⁻¹. The results obtained provide some information for further study of the nonlinear seepage behavior of broken rock theoretically.     

Apparatus for Testing Concrete under Multiaxial Compression at Elevated Temperature (mac2T)

This paper describes a new test facility for determining material mechanical properties of structural concrete. The novel facility subjects 100 mm cubic concrete specimens to true multiaxial compression (σ₁ ≠ σ₂ ≠ σ₃) up to 400 MPa at temperatures of up to 300°C. Forces are delivered through three independent loading frames equipped with servo-controlled hydraulic actuators creating uniform displacement boundary conditions via rigid platens. Specimen deformation is calculated from displacements measured to an accuracy of 10⁻⁶ m using a system of six laser interferometers. The combination of stiff loading frames, rigid platens, an accurate and reliable strain measurement system and a fast control system enables investigation of the material response in the post-peak range. The in-house developed control software allows complex multi-stage experiments involving (i) load and temperature cycling, (ii) small stress probes and (iii) arbitrary (pre-defined) loading paths. The program also enables experiments in which the values of the control parameters and the execution of the test sequences depend on the response of the specimen during the test. The capabilities of the facility are illustrated in this paper by experiments determining the effects of different heat-load regimes on the strength and stiffness of the material and tests identifying the tangent stiffness matrix of the material and the associated changes in the acoustic tensor under multiaxial compression.     

Surface action of a heat pulse in a tangential flow

The three-dimensional unsteady problem of the action of a localized radiation pulse on an aluminum plate of finite thickness in a tangential airflow is solved on the basis of the Euler equations in the gas phase and the heat conduction equation in the solid. The process is accompanied by the intense evaporation of plate material and the subsequent (after the action of the radiation pulse ceases) intense condensation of aluminum vapor and condensate particles on the surface. The problem is solved on the assumption that the surface is not screened by its disintegration products and the processes associated with the self-radiation of the gas are disregarded. Heat pulses of intensityq=10⁶−10⁷ W/cm² and durationt _i ≈10⁻⁴ sec are investigated. Various regimes are calculated and the effect of the governing parameters on the impulse transmitted to the surface and ablation of the target material is established. A nontraditional approach, based on the idea of statistical modeling of the motion of an inviscid non-heat-conducting gas at the kinetic level, is used for solving the gas dynamic problem. The application of the approach in question to the solution of problems of this class is justified. Moscow. Translated from Izvestiya Rossiiskoi Akademii Nauk, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No.1, pp. 139–146, January–February, 1994.     

Miniaturized Compression Test at Very High Strain Rates by Direct Impact

A modified miniaturized version of the Direct Impact Compression Test (DICT) technique is described in this paper. The method permits determination of the rate-sensitive plastic properties of materials up to strain rate ∼10⁵ s⁻¹. Miniaturization of the experimental setup with specimen dimensions: diameter d _S = 2.0 mm and thickness l _S = 1.0 mm, Hopkinson bar diameter 5.2 mm, with application of a novel optical arrangement in measurement of specimen strain, makes possible compression tests at strain rates from ∼10³ s⁻¹ to ∼10⁵ s⁻¹. In order to estimate the rate sensitivity of a low-alloy construction steel, quasi-static, Split Hopkinson Pressure Bar (SHPB) and DICT tests have been performed at room temperature within the rate spectrum ranging from 5*10⁻⁴ s⁻¹ to 5*10⁴ s⁻¹. Adiabatic heating and friction effects are analyzed and the final true stress versus true strain curves at different strain rates are corrected to a constant temperature and zero friction. The results have been analyzed in the form of true stress versus the logarithm of strain rate and they show two regions of a constant rate sensitivity : relatively low up to the strain rate threshold ∼50 s⁻¹, and relatively high above the threshold, up to strain rate ∼4.5*10⁴ s⁻¹.     

Critical Stresses in Spalling and Dynamic Rupture of Metals

Results of dynamic rupture tests of a series of metals obtained using a composite Hopkinson bar and shock-wave loading of plane specimens are described. It is shown that the actual rupture strength at a strain rate of 5 · 10³ sec⁻¹ is very close to the spall strength at higher strain rates. Results of testing the same metals using a composite Hopkinson bar within a temperature range of 20–350°C are given. __________ Translated from Prikladnaya Mekhanika i Tekhnicheskaya Fizika, Vol. 46, No. 6, pp. 103–107, November–December, 2005.     

The investigation on dynamic fracture behavour of materials under compressive-shear combined stress waves

In this paper, an improved plate impact experimental technique is presented for studying dynamic fracture mechanism of materials, under the conditions that the impacting loading is provided by a single pulse and the loading time is in the sub-microsecond range. The impacting tests are carried out on the pressure-shear gas gun. The loading rate achieved is dK/dt∼10⁸ MPa m^1/2s⁻¹. With the elimination of influence of the specimen boundary, the plane strain state of a semi-infinite crack in an infinite elastic plate is used to simulate the deformation fields of crack tip. The single pulses are obtained by using the “momentum trap” technique. Therefore, the one-time actions of the single pulse are achieved by eradicating the stress waves reflected from the specimen boundary or diffracted from the crack surfaces. In the current study, some important phenomena have been observed. The special loading of the single pulse can bring about material damage around crack tip, and affect the material behavior, such as kinking and branching of the crack propagation. Failure mode transitions from mode I to mode II crack are observed under asymmetrical impact conditions. The mechanisms of the dynamic crack propagation are consistent with the damage failure model. The project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 19672066 and 18981180-4) and the Key Project of Chinese Academy of Sciences (No. KJ951-1-20)     

Measurements and model predictions of transient elongational rheology of polymeric nanocomposites

Transient elongational rheology of two commercial-grade polypropylene (PP) and the organoclay thermoplastic nanocomposites is investigated. A specifically designed fixture consisting of two drums (SER Universal Testing Platform) mounted on a TA Instruments ARES rotational rheometer was used to measure the transient uniaxial extensional viscosity of both polypropylene and nanoclay/PP melts. The Hencky strain rate was varied from 0.001 to 2 s^− 1, and the temperature was fixed at 180°C. The measurements show that the steady-state elongational viscosity was reached at the measured Hencky strains for the polymer and for the nanocomposites. The addition of nanoclay particles to the polymer melt was found to increase the elongation viscosity principally at low strain rates. For example, at a deformation rate of 0.3 s^− 1, the steady-state elongation viscosity for polypropylene was 1.4 × 10⁴ Pa s which was raised to 2.8 × 10⁴ and 4.5 × 10⁴ Pa s after addition of 0.5 and 1.5 vol.% nanoclay, respectively. A mesoscopic rheological model originally developed to predict the motion of ellipsoid particles in viscoelastic media was modified based on the recent developments by Eslami and Grmela (Rheol Acta 47:399–415, 2008) to take into account the polymer chain reptation. We show that the orientation states of the particles and the rheological behavior of the layered particles/thermoplastic hybrids can be quantitatively explained by the proposed model.