Quantitative assessment and prediction of contact area development during spherical tip indentation of glassy polymers

This paper describes the development of the contact area during indentation of polycarbonate. The contact area was measured in situ using an instrumented indentation microscope and compared with numerical simulations using an elasto-plastic constitutive model. The parameters in the model were obtained using macroscopic tests. Indentations were performed on samples with different thermal histories and at different speeds. For all cases, the numerical model correctly predicted the development of the contact area during indentation. For increasing strain rates, the contact area decreased at equal indentation depths. Annealing the samples resulted in a smaller contact area at equal indentation depth. Using only numerical simulation, it was also shown that pile-up around the indenter resulted from localization effects and was, thus, promoted by strain-softening properties of the indented material. Strain hardening, on the other hand, will tend to promote sink-in. Finally, we performed simulations of load relaxation during indentation. The results indicate that about 40% of the total observed relaxation may be assigned to plastic effects.     

Deformation field interaction in sequential circular indentation of a strain hardening material

An experimental study was made to characterise and model the deformation field in sequential circular indentation of a model strain hardening material. Digital image correlation was used to measure the evolving subsurface deformation field in terms of displacement, strain rate and strain as a function of indentation spacing and depth. These measurements were used to validate a finite element model for complementary simulations. The results identify relationships between sequential indentation parameters and overlap of subsurface strain distributions, maximum subsurface strains and indentation loads. Maximum strain and the degree of strain field overlap in the deformed subsurface were maximised when the ratio of indentation spacing (S) to projected indentation contact length (L) was approximately S/L?=?[1.1, 1.2]. Also discussed are the implications for understanding process-scale considerations for indentation-based mechanical surface treatments, including energy dissipation and relationship of surface coverage measures to subsurface strain overlap. Relative differences in energy expended were found for conditions that produce similar levels of subsurface plastic strain and strain field overlap. Finally, the role of sequential indentation parameters on strain path changes and path reversals in the deformed subsurface is investigated and discussed in the context of heterogeneous mechanics and corresponding effects on subsurface microstructure evolution.     

Indentation analysis of mechanical behaviour of torsion-processed single-crystal copper by crystal plasticity finite-element method modelling

A crystal plasticity finite-element (CPFE) constitutive model is developed to investigate the mechanical properties and microtexture evolution of torsion-processed single-crystal copper by indentation modelling. The mesh-to-mesh solution (mapping) is used during modelling to bridge the gap between two different processes (torsion and indentation) and integrate them. The parameters for CPFE modelling are validated by comparison with experimental observations. The numerical results indicate that linearly increased effective strain along the radius of the torsion-processed single-crystal copper workpiece may slightly improve its radical hardness and ductility, while grain refinement will enhance its radical hardness and ductility significantly.     

Temperature dependence of mechanical properties and pressure sensitivity in metallic glasses below glass transition

An experimental investigation into the variation of the mechanical properties (yield stress, yield strain, elastic moduli, hardness) from sub-ambient temperature (77 K) to that just below the glass transition temperature, of different bulk metallic glasses was conducted. Particular emphasis was on the constraint factor, the ratio of hardness to compressive yield stress, which is taken to be the proxy for the temperature dependence of pressure sensitive plastic flow. All the mechanical properties, except the constraint factor, decrease linearly, throughout the temperature range examined, with temperature and when normalized exhibit certain universal tendencies. The constraint factor was found to increase, monotonically but not necessarily linearly, with temperature. Finite element analyses, with pressure dependent constitutive behaviour, were performed in order to extract pressure sensitivity from the indentation load-displacement curves reported by Schuh et al. in 2004. This, in turn, was used to predict the variation of constraint factor with temperature. A good correlation suggests that the increase in constraint factor with temperature is indeed associated with enhanced pressure sensitivity.     

Experimental and computational creep characterization of Al–Mg solid-solution alloy through instrumented indentation

Carefully designed indentation creep experiments and detailed finite-element computations were carried out in order to establish a robust and systematic method to extract creep properties accurately during indentation creep tests. Samples made from an Al–5.3?mol%?Mg solid-solution alloy were tested at temperatures ranging from 573 to 773?K. Finite-element simulations confirmed that, for a power-law creep material, the indentation creep strain field is indeed self-similar in a constant-load indentation creep test, except during short transient periods at the initial loading stage and when there is a deformation mechanism change. Self-similar indentation creep leads to a constitutive equation from which the power-law creep exponent n, the activation energy Q _c for creep, the back or internal stress and so on can be evaluated robustly. The creep stress exponent n was found to change distinctively from 4.8 to 3.2 below a critical stress level, while this critical stress decreases rapidly with increasing temperature. The activation energy for creep in the stress range of n = 3.2 was evaluated to be 123?kJ?mol^?1, close to the activation energy for mutual diffusion of this alloy, 130?kJ?mol^?1. Experimental results suggest that, within the n = 3.2 regime, the creep is rate controlled by viscous glide of dislocations which drag solute atmosphere and the back or internal stress is proportional to the average applied stress. These results are in good agreement with those obtained from conventional uniaxial creep tests in the dislocation creep regime. It is thus confirmed that indentation creep tests of Al–5.3?mol%?Mg solid-solution alloy at temperatures ranging from 573 to 773?K can be effectively used to extract material parameters equivalent to those obtained from conventional uniaxial creep tests in the dislocation creep regime.     

On the uniqueness and sensitivity issues in determining the elastic and plastic properties of power-law hardening materials through sharp and spherical indentation

A systematic study of the uniqueness, reversibility and sensitivity issues associated with seven indentation-based methods of property extraction demonstrates that: (i) The indentation algorithms generally identify the elastic and plastic properties of materials uniquely for most materials. (ii) The indentation forward algorithms (wherein the indention responses are determined from the elastic and plastic properties of the indented materials) and the reverse algorithms (wherein the elastic and the plastic properties of materials are extracted from the indentation responses) are distinct for each indentation method and are internally consistent in that the differences in the elastic and plastic properties determined through the reverse analysis and the ‘true’ material properties are generally small for a large number of materials, for each of the seven methods. (iii) While the differences in the indentation response parameters predicted by each of the seven indentation methods (for a particular material) could be small, there could be considerable dispersion in the elastic and plastic properties predicted by the reverse algorithms of the seven methods (for a particular set of indentation response parameters). (iv) In the forward analysis, small uncertainties in the elasto-plastic properties lead to small uncertainties in the predictions of the indentation response of materials. The sensitivity distribution is generally heterogeneous and symmetric across positive and negative variations in the material elasto-plastic properties. (v) In the reverse analysis, the elastic modulus exhibits low sensitivity, while the yield strength and the strain-hardening exponent generally exhibit high sensitivity to uncertainties in the indentation response parameters. The sensitivity distribution is heterogeneous and asymmetric across positive and negative variations in the indentation response parameters. (vi) The representative stresses are fairly robust to uncertainties in the indentation response parameters. Consequently, dual sharp and spherical indentation methods, which identify multiple representative stresses, exhibit reduced sensitivity in the determination of the plastic properties.     

用纳米压痕法分析溶剂对聚醚醚酮(PEEK)力学性能的影响

Poly (ether ether ketone)(PEEK) is a high-performance semi-crystalline thermoplastic polymer.Exposure of the polymeric surface to solvents can have a strong effect like softening/swelling of polymeric network or dissolution.In this study,nano-indentation analysis was performed to study the effect of acetone on the surface mechanical properties of PEEK using different exposure time.The experiments were performed with a constant loading rate (10 nm/s) to a maximum indentation displacement (1000 nm).A 30-second hold segment was included at the maximum load to account for any creep effects followed by an unloading segment to 80% unloading.The indentation hardness and the elastic modulus were computed as a continuous function of the penetration displacement in the continuous stiffness mode (CSM) indentation.The experimental data showed that the peak load decreased from ~5.2 mN to ~1.7 mN as exposure time in solvent environment increased from 0 to 18 days.The elastic modulus and the hardness of PEEK samples also displayed a decreasing trend as a function of exposure time in the solvent environment.Two empirical models were used to fit the experimental data of hardness as a function of exposure time which showed a good agreement with the experimental values.     

A discrete dislocation plasticity analysis of a single-crystal semi-infinite medium indented by a rigid surface exhibiting multi-scale roughness

Discrete dislocation plasticity was used to analyse plane-strain indentation of a single-crystal elastic–plastic semi-infinite medium by a rigid surface exhibiting multi-scale roughness, characterised by self-affine (fractal) behaviour. Constitutive rules of dislocation emission, glide and annihilation were used to model short-range dislocation interactions. Dislocation multiplication and the development of subsurface shear stresses due to asperity microcontacts forming between a single-crystal medium and a rough surface were examined in terms of surface roughness and topography (fractal) parameters, slip-plane direction and spacing, dislocation source density, and contact load (surface interference). The effect of multi-scale interactions between asperity microcontacts on plasticity is elucidated in light of results showing the evolution of dislocation structures. Numerical solutions yield insight into plastic flow of crystalline materials in normal contact with surfaces exhibiting multi-scale roughness.     

钨合金的高压本构研究

通过静高压实验、动高压实验及理论计算相结合的方法，确定了钨合金的一种高压本构方程 （Steinberg模型方程）中的各参数.用数值模拟计算方法，采用几种不同的本构模型进行了 计算，并与实测结果进行了比较.结果显示，确定的高压本构方程计算值与实测值符合最好. 关键词： 高压本构方程 Steinberg 模型 数值模拟计算 粒子速度波形     

A study on the determination of mechanical properties of a power law material by its indentation force–depth curve

In this study a novel optimization approach is proposed to extract mechanical properties of a power law material whose stress–strain relationship may be expressed as a power law from its given experimental indentation P–h curve. A set of equations have been established to relate the P–h curve to mechanical properties E, σ _y and n of the material. For the loading part of a P–h curve this approach is based on the assumption that the indentation response of an elastic–plastic material is a linear combination of the corresponding elastic and elastic–perfect plastic materials. For the unloading part of the P–h curve it is based on the assumption that the unloading response of the elastic–plastic material is a linear combination of the full contact straight line and the purely elastic curve. Using the proposed optimization approach it was found that the mechanical properties of an elastic–plastic material usually cannot be decided uniquely by using only a single indentation P–h curve of the material. This is because in general a few matched sets of mechanical properties were found to produce a given P–h curve. It is however possible to identify the best matched set of mechanical properties by knowing some background information of the material. If the best matched material is identified, the predictions of mechanical properties are quite accurate.     

The lattice-Boltzmann method for simulation of the thermoplastic holographic recording process

A multicomponent lattice Boltzmann model including external electric forces interactions is developed to study the behavior of a classical thermoplastic film which is used as a holographic recording material. The model incorporate also the spinodal decomposition originated in this type of polymeric fluids when a fast thermal pulse is used to develop the hologram. The surface deformation of the electrically charged thermoplastic film is simulated using the lattice Boltzmann model and the main holographic parameters, i.e., spatial frequency response (MTF) and diffraction efficiency are given and related to the hydrodynamic behavior of the fluid. The influence of the phase transition on the growth rate of the deformation and, hence, on the MTF response of the medium is studied and correlated with experimental results. The results obtained with our model are in agreement with those obtained using more complex theoretical analysis. The text was submitted by the author in English.     

Nanoindentation of ion-irradiated reactor pressure vessel steels – model-based interpretation and comparison with neutron irradiation

Ion-irradiation-induced hardening is investigated on six selected reactor pressure vessel (RPV) steels. The steels were irradiated with 5 MeV Fe²⁺ ions at fluences ranging from 0.01 to 1.0 displacements per atom (dpa) and the induced hardening of the surface layer was probed with nanoindentation. To separate the indentation size effect and the substrate effect from the irradiation-induced hardness profile, we developed an analytic model with the plastic zone of the indentation approximated as a half sphere. This model allows the actual hardness profile to be retrieved and the measured hardness increase to be assigned to the respective fluence. The obtained values of hardness increase vs. fluence are compared for selected pairs of samples in order to extract effects of the RPV steel composition. We identify hardening effects due to increased levels of copper, manganese-nickel and phosphorous. Further comparison with available neutron-irradiated conditions of the same heats of RPV steels indicates pronounced differences of the considered effects of composition for irradiation with neutrons vs. ions.     

Experimental and numerical studies of nonlinear ultrasonic responses on plastic deformation in weld joints

The experimental measurements and numerical simulations are performed to study ultrasonic nonlinear responses from the plastic deformation in weld joints. The ultrasonic nonlinear signals are measured in the plastic deformed30Cr2Ni4 Mo V specimens, and the results show that the nonlinear parameter monotonically increases with the plastic strain, and that the variation of nonlinear parameter in the weld region is maximal compared with those in the heat-affected zone and base regions. Microscopic images relating to the microstructure evolution of the weld region are studied to reveal that the change of nonlinear parameter is mainly attributed to dislocation evolutions in the process of plastic deformation loading. Meanwhile, the finite element model is developed to investigate nonlinear behaviors of ultrasonic waves propagating in a plastic deformed material based on the nonlinear stress–strain constitutive relationship in a medium. Moreover, a pinned string model is adopted to simulate dislocation evolution during plastic damages. The simulation and experimental results show that they are in good consistency with each other, and reveal a rising acoustic nonlinearity due to the variations of dislocation length and density and the resulting stress concentration.     

35CrMoA钢塑性损伤非线性超声响应有限元模拟

基于混合位错超声非线性模型,使用有限元法模拟了非线性超声纵波在35CrMoA钢中的传播过程,并开展了实验验证。结果表明,超声非线性系数与塑性应变具有显著的相关性。金属材料塑性变形引起的超声非线性响应主要来自于位错,文中使用的有限元模型可以较好的模拟不同塑性变形下35CrMoA钢的超声非线性响应。在塑性变形的早期阶段,超声非线性系数模拟结果低于实验结果,其原因可能是在塑性变形初期,在位错密度较高的区域出现位错缠结,阻碍了位错运动,从而降低了位错超声非线性响应。在塑性变形后期,位错密度增加,位错之间相互堆积,形成位错胞和位错墙,而位错胞和位错墙引发的超声非线性响应高于平面位错。因此,在塑性变形后期超声非线性系数计算结果低于实验结果。     

Numerical simulation of flat-tip micro-indentation of glassy polymers: Influence of loading speed and thermodynamic state

Flat-tip micro-indentation tests were performed on quenched and annealed polymer glasses at various loading speeds. The results were analyzed using an elasto-viscoplastic constitutive model that captures the intrinsic deformation characteristics of a polymer glass: a strain-rate dependent yield stress, strain softening and strain hardening. The advantage of this model is that changes in yield stress due to physical aging are captured in a single parameter. The two materials studied (polycarbonate (PC) and poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA)) were both selected for the specific rate-dependence of the yield stress that they display at room temperature. Within the range of strain rates experimentally covered, the yield stress of PC increases linearly with the logarithm of strain rate, whereas, for PMMA, a characteristic change in slope can be observed at higher strain rates. We demonstrate that, given the proper definition of the viscosity function, the flat-tip indentation response at different indentation speeds can be described accurately for both materials. Moreover, it is shown that the model captures the mechanical response on the microscopic scale (indentation) as well as on the macroscopic scale with the same parameter set. This offers promising possibilities of extracting mechanical properties of polymer glasses directly from indentation experiments.     

Regions of the portevin-Le chatelier effect existing under the conditions of continuous room-temperature indentation of an Al-2.7% Mg alloy

Dynamic indentation is used to study the character of a plastic flow during room-temperature deformation of an Al-2.7% Mg alloy in micro-and submicrovolumes (the indentation depth is varied from 50 nm to 15 μm) at strain rates varying in the range 0.0005–1 s⁻¹. In this region of parameters, the boundaries of stable deformation and two modes of unstable deformation have been found. __________ Translated from Fizika Tverdogo Tela, Vol. 46, No. 9, 2004, pp. 1618–1620. Original Russian Text Copyright ? 2004 by Golovin, Ivolgin, Lebedkin, Sergunin.     

Rapid fabrication of surface-relief plastic diffusers by ultrasonic embossing

This paper discusses an innovative and effective ultrasonic embossing process, which enables the rapid fabrication of surface-relief plastic diffusers. The metallic mold bearing the microstructures is fabricated using a tungsten carbide turning machine. A 1500-W ultrasonic vibrator with an output frequency of 20 kHz was used to replicate the microstructure onto 1-mm-thick PMMA plates in the experiments. During ultrasonic embossing, the ultrasonic energy is converted into heat through intermolecular friction at the master mold/plastic plate interface due to asperities to melt the thermoplastic at the interface and thereby to replicate the microstructure. Under the proper processing conditions, high-performance plastic diffusers have been successfully fabricated. The cycle time required to successfully fabricate a diffuser is less than 2 s. The experimental results suggest that ultrasonic embossing could provide an effective way of fabricating high-performance plastic diffusers with a high throughput.     

Effects of membrane pre-stress and intrinsic viscoelasticity on nanoindentation of cells using AFM

Nanoindentation using atomic force microscopy (AFM) has found a wide range of applications in characterizing the mechanical properties of cells. However, both conventional Hertz theory and Sneddon's solution face difficulties in interpreting cell indentation data due to lack of considerations of the bilayered structure of cells, the pre-stress of cell membranes and the intrinsic viscoelasticity of cell interior phases. In the present study, the indentation of a cell using AFM is modelled as that of a pre-tensed elastic shell supported by a viscoelastic half-space. Analytical solutions are derived for the shallow indentation of the elastic counterpart of the bilayered structure and then extended to moderate-depth indentation. The cell membrane and its pre-tension are important in interpreting the indentation data if a small indenter is used. Based on the elastic solutions, viscoelastic solutions are derived for creep tests, relaxation tests and linear loading tests, and verified by finite element analysis. Parametric studies were performed to investigate the effects of the membrane pre-stress and the intrinsic viscoelasticity of the cell on the relation between the indentation load vs. indentation depth. In addition, an inverse analysis was performed to extract the viscoelastic parameters of the cell interior phase and the uniqueness of the extraction was assessed.     

Critical measurements for validation of constitutive equations under shock and impact loading conditions

Interpretation of the data often requires numerical simulations of the experiments and comparisons with the data. However, determination of an appropriate set of values for parameters in constitutive equations valid under shock and high strain rate loading remains one of the most difficult tasks for material model developers. Most researchers employ experimental data obtained under idealized stress/strain states in the model parameter calibration scheme. Since the dynamic response of materials is very complex, especially the failure response, the generality of the model parameters is highly questionable. For example, the fracturing of ceramic materials involves nucleation, propagation, and coalescence of microcracks under shock and impact. The dynamic deformation processes in ceramics include dynamic pore collapse, dislocation generation, twinning, and microcracking. When shocked above the Hugoniot elastic limit, the ceramic deformation becomes inelastic; therefore, the constitutive model formulation should consider modeling the effects of these various processes on the degradation of strength and stiffness of ceramic. This paper presents a brief summary of diagnostic measurements and modeling techniques associated with validation and verification of ceramic constitutive/damage models under high strain rate, shock, and penetration loading applications.     

Measurement of the dispersion relation of guided non-axisymmetric waves in filament-wound cylindrical structures

To determine the dispersion relation, guided waves are excited in specimens over a broad frequency range. The surface displacements are measured over time and space. The recorded data are analysed using a quasi-three-dimensional spectrum estimation algorithm. In the time domain a fast Fourier transform is used to extract the frequencies. To obtain the wave numbers, in space a two-dimensional matrix-pencil approach is applied to the data set. Using a suitable constitutive model (transversely isotropic or orthotropic) dispersion curves are calculated. Good agreement was found between the experimental and the numerically calculated dispersion relations after adjusting the material parameters. Since the dispersion relation of a structure depends on the mechanical material properties frequency-dependent material parameters can be extracted from the above-mentioned relation between frequency and wave number.