Dynamically equilibrium shapes and directions of motion of ocean current rings

The dynamically equilibrium shapes of a uniform-density rotating mass of liquid (a ring) in the surface layer of a quiescent stratified ocean are determined. The examination is carried out in a plane tangential to the Earth, taking into account the vertical and horizontal projections of the angular velocity of its rotation. Exact solutions of the equations of motion of an ideal incompressibe fluid are obtained, making it possible, for a linearly stratified ocean, to determine the dynamic all equilibrium shape of the interfaces of water masses and the free boundaries of cyclonic and antocyclonic rings. These shapes comprise second-order surfaces inclined to the water level in the meridian plane, the type of surfaces depending on the governing parameters of the problem. Expressions are obtained for the angles of inclination of the principal axes. For small deviations from equilibrium, due to a difference in the gravitational forces and Archimedes forces, motion of the ring occurs, governed by the inclination of the principal axes and the nature of change (increase or reduction) in the average density of the ring, determined by the ratio of the rates of diffusion of heat and salt. The displacement along the parallel comprises geostrophic motion, for the velocity of which an analytical expression is obtained. The displacement along the meridian comprises motion over an inclined plane. An analytical expression is given that relates the change in the depth of the centre of mass of the ring to the velocity of motion along the meridian through the angle of inclination of the principal axes of the ring. This explains the motion of both types of Gulf Stream ring to the south-west and of the Oyasio ring to the north-east.     

The stability of the equilibrium of two-phase elastic solids

The distinctive features of the loss of stability of elastic solids which undergo phase transitions are investigated for the case of small deformations. The non-uniqueness of the solution of the boundary-value problem for the describing of the thermodynamic equilibrium of a two-phase body is caused by the non-linearity associated with the unknown interface. The solution can be chosen by comparing the potential energies of the body in the two-phase and single phase states and by analysing of the local stability of the two-phase states. A linearized boundary-value problem is formulated which describes infinitesimal small perturbations of an initial two-phase state which is in thermodynamic equilibrium. Analysis of the stability of the two-phase state reduces to an investigation of the bifurcation points and the behaviour of the small solutions of the system of integrodifferential equations in terms of functions describing the perturbations of the interface. The problem of the non-uniqueness and loss of stability of centrisymmetric equilibrium two-phase deformations is investigated as an example. A theorem concerning the number of centrisymmetric solutions is proved. The energy changes accompanying the formation and development of two-phase states and the stability of the solutions obtained are investigated. The concept of topological instability as a bifurcation is introduced, as a result of which the type of geometry of a solution of the boundary-value problem changes and surfaces of separation of the phases actually appear and disappear. Macrodiagrams of the deformational are constructed which demonstrate the effect of deformation softening in the path of a phase transition.     

Inspection and maintenance optimization methods

Three methods of the optimal planning of the inspection and maintenance of offshore structures are described. The models are based on respectively: the maximization of the effect of inspections, measured by the total importance value of the errors detected, subject to a given total economical budget; the minimization of the total costs of obtaining respectively: a given importance value of errors detected or given numbers of inspections of various types. Special selections of the importance values of structural elements give problems of the maximization of the reliability of the structural system, or the minimization of the economical consequences of failures, or the minimization of the sum of the costs of inspections and failure-consequences, subject to a given total failure probability of the system.Different failure types of elements and time schedules of inspections can be included in the model.An extension of the incremental method of Fox is applied, and an evaluation measure is given for the calculation of bounds of the optimal objective value, or given numbers of inspections are planned by application of continuous linear programming with integral solutions.     

Localization of microfailure in fibrous composites

Conclusion When a fibrous composite is loaded, the process of microfailures becomes localized in consequence of the nonuiformity of internal stresses. The degree of localization can be quantitatively characterized by the magnitude of the parameter of localization whose determination was provided in the present work. The dependence of the parameter of localization on the stress applied to the specimen can be measured experimentally from the data on the location of the coordinates of the sources of AE, and it can be calculated theoretically on the basis of the model of failure of the composite. A comparison of the theoretical model with the experimental data makes it possible to determine the magnitude of the overstresses in the fibers of the composite material and the form of the distribution function of these overstresses.Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, No. 3, pp. 437–443, May–June, 1989.     

A study of the causes of the reduced strength of glass-reinforced phenolformaldehyde plastics

A study of the curing kinetics of phenolformaldehyde resin in the presence of glass and quartz has shown that one of the chief causes of the reduced strength of glass-reinforced plastics based on phenol-formal-dehyde resin is the difference in the rate and degree of cure in layers close to the fibers and in the bulk of the resin. This is caused by the presence on the surface of the fibers of a hydrate sheath with increased concentration of hydroxyl ions and by the presence of hydrogen bonds between the oxyphenyl groups of the resin and the silanol groups on the surface of the fibers. Chemical treatment of the glass fibers has the effect of diminishing those factors responsible for the reduced rate and degree of cure, and in spite of the lower surface energy of the fibers, the strength of the glass-reinforced plastic increases.Mekhanika Polimerov, Vol. 1, No. 3. pp. 8–14, 1965     

Problems of geometric non-linearity and stability in the mechanics of thin shells and rectilinear columns

An analysis of the current state of the geometrically non-linear theory of elasticity and of thin shells is presented in the case of small deformations but large displacements and rotations, the ratios of which are known as the ratios of the non-linear theory in the quadratic approximation. It is shown that they required specific revision and correction by virtue of the fact that, when they are used in the solution of problems, spurious bifurcation points appear. In view of this, consistent geometrically non-linear equations of the theory of thin shells of the Timoshenko type are constructed in the quadratic approximation which enable one to investigate in a correct formulation both flexural as well as previously unknown non-classical forms of loss of stability (FLS) of thin plates and shells, many of which are encountered in practice, primarily in structures made of composite materials with a low shear stiffness. In the case of rectilinear elastic whereas, which are subjected to the action of conservative external forces and are made of an orthotropic material, the three-dimensional equations of the theory of elasticity are reduced to one-dimensional equations by using the Timoshenko model. Two versions of the latter equations are derived. The first of these corresponds to the use of the consistent version of the three-dimensional, geometrically non-linear relations in an incomplete quadratic approximation and the Timoshenko model without taking account of the transverse stretching deformations, and the second corresponds to the use of the three- dimensional relations in the complete quadratic approximation and the Timoshenko model taking account of the transverse stretching deformations. A series of new non-classical problems of the stability of columns is formulated and their analytical solutions are found using the equations which have been derived with the aim of analyzing their richness of content. Among these are problems concerning the torsional, flexural and shear FLS of a column in the case of a longitudinal axial, bilateral transverse and trilateral compression, a flexural-torsional FLS in the case of pure bending and axial compression together with pure bending and, also, a flexural FLS of a column in the case of torsion and a flexural-torsional FLS under conditions of pure shear. Five FLS of a cylindrical shell under torsion are investigated using the linearized neutral equilibrium equations which have been constructed: 1) a torsional FLS where the solution corresponding to it has a zero variability of the functions in the peripheral direction, 2) a purely beam bending FLS that is possible in the case of long shells and is accompanied by the formation of a single half-wave along the length of the shell while preserving the initial circular form of the cross-section, 3) a classical bending FLS, which is accompanied by the formation of a small number of half-waves in the axial direction and a large number of half-waves in a peripheral direction which is true in the case of long shells, 4) a classical bending FLS which holds in the case of short and medium length shells (the third and fourth types of FLS have already been thoroughly studied in the case of isotropic cylindrical shells), 5) a non-classical FLS characterized by the formation of a large number of shallow depressions in the axial as well as in the peripheral directions; the critical value of the torsional moment corresponding to this FLS is practically independent of the relative thickness of the shell. It is established that the well-known equations of the geometrically non-linear theory of shells, which were formulated for the case of the mean flexure of a shell, do not enable one to reveal the first, second and fifth non-classical FLS.     

The existence of smooth solutions in a problem of the optimal control of the rotation of an axisymmetric rigid body

The problem of the existence of a solution in the problem of the optimal control of the rotation of an axisymmetric rigid body for the arbitrary case of angular velocity boundary conditions is studied. A square integrable functional, which is consistent with the symmetry of the rotating body and characterizes the power consumption, is chosen as the criterion. The principal moment of the applied external forces serves as the control and the time of termination of a manoeuvre can be both specified as well as free. In the case of a specified termination time, it is shown that the solution (control) belongs to the class of infinitely-differentiable functions of time. The reasoning is based on the use of the singularities of the structure of the differential equations and the possibility of reducing the initial problem to two successive variational problems. The existence of a solution of the first of these problems in the class of square integrable functions is proved using the Cauchy–Bunyakovskii inequality. The second problem reduces to a search for the minimum of a functional which is weakly lower semi-continuous on a weakly compact set and the existence of its solution in the same class of functions follows from the Weierstrass theorem. The required conclusion concerning the smoothness of the solution of the optimal control problem is obtained from the necessary conditions of Pontryagin's maximum principle. In the case of a free termination time, one of the minimizing sequence can be constructed and it can be shown that, in the general case, there is no solution in the class of measurable controls.     

Some qualitative effects in the exact solutions of the Lamé problem for large deformations

Qualitative effects in the solution of a number of radially symmetric and plane axisymmetric problems for bodies made of non-linearly elastic incompressible materials are analysed for large deformations. In the case of problems of the axisymmetric plane deformation of cylindrical bodies, the lack of uniqueness of the solution for a given follower load in the case of a Bartenev–Khazanovich material and the existence of a limiting load in the case of a Treloar (neo-Hookian) material have been studied in detail and the dependences of the limiting load on the ratio of the external and internal radii of a hollow cylinder in the undeformed state have been presented. A similar study has been carried out for constitutive relations of a special form that well describe the properties of rubber. For this material, the lack of uniqueness of the solution is revealed for fairly high loads. The axisymmetric problem of the plane stress state of a circular ring made of a Bartenev–Khazanovich material has been solved and a lack of uniqueness of the solution for a given follower load was discovered in the case when the dimensions of the ring are given in the undeformed state. Similar studies have been carried out for Chernykh and Treloar materials in the case of the problem of the radially symmetric deformation of a spherical shell. It was established that, in the case of a Chernykh material, the lack of uniqueness of the solution depends considerably on the constant characterizing the physical non-linearity. The limit case of the deformation of a spherical cavity in an infinitely extended body has been investigated. The effect of an unbounded increase in the boundary stresses is observed for finite external loads, that appears in the case of the problem of the plane axisymmetric deformation of a cylindrical cavity in an infinitely extended body made of a Bartenev–Khazanovich material and in the case of the problem of the radially symmetric deformation of an infinitely extended body made of a Chernykh material with a spherical cavity.     

The unconditional stable and convergent difference methods with intrinsic parallelism for quasilinear parabolic systems

A kind of the general finite difference schemes with intrinsic parallelism forthe boundary value problem of the quasilinear parabolic system is studied without assum-ing heuristically that the original boundary value problem has the unique smooth vectorsolution. By the method of a priori estimation of the discrete solutions of the nonlineardifference systems, and the interpolation formulas of the various norms of the discretefunctions and the fixed-point technique in finite dimensional Euclidean space, the exis-tence and uniqueness of the discrete vector solutions of the nonlinear difference systemwith intrinsic parallelism are proved. Moreover the unconditional stability of the generalfinite difference schemes with intrinsic parallelism is justified in the sense of the continu-ous dependence of the discrete vector solution of the difference schemes on the discretedata of the original problems in the discrete w_2~(2,1) norms. Finally the convergence of thediscrete vector solutions of the certain differe     

The local boundedness of the perturbed motions of an imperfect gyroscope in gimbals with dissipative and accelerating forces

An unbalanced dynamically symmetrical gyroscope in gimbals with constructive imperfections is considered in a central Newtonian field of forces. It is assumed that there is a moment of forces of viscous friction acting on the axis of rotation of one of the rings of the suspension and an accelerating (electromagnetic) moment applied to the axis of rotation of another ring. The equations of motion have a partial solution for which the basic plane of the frame is perpendicular to the direction from the specified fixed point of the frame to the centre of gravitation, the basic plane of the mantle is parallel to this direction and the rotor rotates with an arbitrary constant angular velocity.

The equations of perturbed motions of the reduced system with two degrees of freedom are obtained to within third-order terms at the corresponding position of equilibrium. In the domain of admissible values of the parameters F_o the characteristic equation of the system is considered and its coefficients are written down. A domain in F_o is specified in which complex conjugate pairs of the eigenvalues have small moduli of the real parts but the absolute values of the second- to fourth-order off-resonance mistuning between the imaginary parts are not small. For an imperfect gyroscope in gimbals with dissipative and accelerating forces the sufficient conditions of the local uniform boundedness of motions perturbed with respect to the specified partial solution are obtained in this domain. The conditions found provide the local uniform boundedness of solutions irrespective of the forms of higher than the third order in the equations of perturbed motions. These conditions are obtained in the form of constraints for the coefficients of the normal form and, finally, for the original parameters of the system and the real and imaginary parts of the eigenvalues. To provide a clear interpretation of the results, special cases when all but two parameters are fixed are analysed. The domains of local uniform boundedness are constructed in the two-dimensional domains F_o using a personal computer.     

Effect of contact stiffness modulation in contact-mode AFM under subharmonic excitation

We report on the effect of fast contact stiffness modulation on frequency response to 2:1 subharmonic resonance in contact-mode atomic force microscopy. The model of the contact-mode dynamic between the tip of the microbeam and the moving surface consists of a lumped single degree of freedom Hertzian contact oscillator. Perturbation methods are applied to obtain the frequency response of the slow dynamic of the system. We focus on the effect of the amplitude and the frequency of the modulation on the nonlinear characteristic of the contact stiffness, the jump phenomenon and the shift in the frequency response of the subharmonic. We also show the effect of the contact stiffness modulation on the interval of the unstable trivial solution which is directly correlated to the depth of the jump. The obtained results can directly influence the material properties and the loss of contact between the tip and the sample.     

The rolling of a wheel along a corrugated rail

The rolling without detachment of a rigid massive wheel, carrying a static load, along a rail with undulations on the running surface, which arises as a result of non-uniform wear, is investigated. The rail is supported by an elastoviscous base. Because of the inertia of the wheel and the carriage the horizontal component of the velocity of the wheel centre differs only slightly from a constant quantity, and hence the motion of the wheel along the rail is assumed to be uniform. Steady vertical vibration of the wheel is considered. The vertical coordinate of the wheel centre, and also the difference between the longitudinal coordinates of the wheel centre and the point of contact of the wheel and the rail, are periodic and, correspondingly, even and odd functions of the longitudinal coordinate of the wheel centre, and their period is equal to the wave length on the rail surface. The periodic force of interaction of the wheel and the rail is given in the form of a Fourier series. Short waves, the amplitude of which is much less than their length, are often observed on the rail surface, and this length is much less than the wheel radius. In this case the coefficients of the Fourier series are expressed in terms of Bessel functions of the first kind of integer order. Observations show that the depth of the short wave on the rail surface increases until the radius of curvature in the rail trough approximates to the wheel radius, and hence it is assumed that these radii are close to or equal to one another. In this case the trajectory of the wheel centre differs considerably from the wave on the rail surface.     

The oscillations of a body with an orbital tethered system

The motion about a centre of mass of a rigid body with a tethered system, designed to launch a re-entry capsule from a circular orbit is considered. In the deployment of the tethered system the direction and value of the tensile strength of the tether vary and, if the point of application of the tensile strength does not coincide with the centre of mass of the body, a moment occurs which leads to oscillations of the body with variable amplitude and frequency. A non-linear equation of the perturbed motion of the body about the centre of mass under the action of the tensile force of the tether and the gravitational moment is derived. Assuming that the change in the value and direction of the tensile force is slow and also that the gravitational moment is small, approximate and exact solutions of the non-linear differential equation of the unperturbed motion are obtained in terms of elementary functions and elliptic Jacobi functions. For perturbed motion, the action integral is expressed in terms of complete elliptic integrals of the first and second kind.     

An asymptotic analysis of the solution in the neighbourhood of the corner point of a crack along the kinked interface of two media

The asymptotic behaviour of an elastic field in the neighbourhood of the corner point of a crack at the interface of different materials is investigated within the framework of plane elasticity, taking into account the contact of its surfaces and the possibility of their mutual slippage with dry friction. The problem is solved by the method of complex Kolosov-Muskhelishvili potentials. The results obtained enable one to estimate the angular range of existence of contact zones and the singularity of the stresses close to the corner point of the crack. It is shown that the formation of contact zones, taking into account the friction forces accompanying slippage, depends essentially on the magnitude of the angle of the interface kinking the elasticity moduli of the materials and the friction coefficient. Numerical calculations are carried out and the stress and displacement distributions in the neighbourhood of the corner point are obtained.     

Structural macroscopic theory of stiff and soft composites. Invariant description

A structural macroscopic theory of stiff and soft composites, which generalizes the theory in [1] constructed with application of a model of one-dimensional stressed state of reinforcing fibers in the current configuration of a composite is presented. The theory combines the micro- and macromechanics of composite materials. The two trends in the mechanics of composites are based on the idea of a field of macroscopic displacements and the concept of macroscopic stresses of the composite material when changes in the metrics of the matrix and reinforcing fibers in the current state of a composite medium are taken into consideration. The fibers of the reinforcing systems and matrix are analyzed on the basis of a general 3D model of deformation. No limits on the stiffness of the materials of the structural components are imposed. The analysis of the composite medium, on the macromechanical level, includes a definition of macrodisplacement and macrodeformation fields, as well as parametric structural fields in the current configuration. On the micromechanical level, the fields of macroscopic stresses in the medium, together with the fields of microscopic strains and stresses in the structural components, are defined on the basis of information obtained from the analysis of the field of the macroscopic displacements. With the corresponding interpretation of the field of macroscopic displacements, the structural macroscopic theory is applied to composite media with fibrous, laminated, and matrix structures.     

Structural theory of elastomeric composites based on fiber systems — Invariant description

A three-dimensional theory of elastomeric composites with elastomeric matrices reinforced by systems of fibers is presented. The theory is based on a structural approach in which the matrix and the reinforcement of the composite are considered separately without reduction to a medium having continuously changing characteristics. The approach is based on the idea of a vector field of macroscopic displacements given by the positions of the axial lines of the fibers in the curret (deformed) configuration of the composite. The vector field determines the current macroscopic configuration, the tensor fields of the measures of macroscopic strain, and the field of the macroscopic stress tensor in the composite. The displacement, strain, and stress fields in the elastomeric matrix and the fibers of the reinforcing systems are regarded as derivatives of the field of macroscopic displacements of the medium. Relations are presented to describe the kinematics of the fibers in the current configuration of the composite, including the evolution of their orientation and the frequency of their planar and spatial distribution. Equations are obtained for the macroscopic motion of the fiber-reinforced matrix, and the dynamic variational principle that governs this motion is established. The elastic macroscopic potential of the matrix is found and related to the components of the macroscopic stress tensor. The procedure to be followed in constructing the constitutive equations of the composite is described. The proposed system of equations, relations, and algorithms is closed and can be used to solve problems involving the deformation of products made of fiber-reinforced elastomers and the creation of elastomeric composite products, based on fiber systems, that possess the requisite properties.     

Reflection of acoustic waves in a cylindrical channel from the perforated part

The reflection and transmission of harmonic waves and waves of finite duration through the boundary of the perforated part of a cylindrical channel (a lined borehole), filled with a fluid and surrounded by a permeable porous medium, is investigated. A model of the plane time-varying fluid flow in the cylindrical channel in a quasi-one-dimensional approximation and of the seepage absorption of the fluid in the porous medium surrounding the channel is presented. The effect of the collector characteristics of the porous medium surrounding the channel and the quality of the perforation (the length of the perforation channels) on the evolution of the waves when they are reflected from the boundary of the perforated part of the wall are investigated.     

The boundary layer transition at supersonic velocities

The transition to turbulent flow in a boundary layer at supersonic velocities, the study of which was started at the Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics of the Siberian Branch of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR on the initiative of V. V. Struminskii is considered. It is shown that complex investigations into this problem, including the stability of the laminar boundary layer and structure of the perturbations in the operational part of a wind tunnel at supersonic velocities, enable the mechanism of the boundary layer transition on a flat plate to be established and demonstrate the decisive effect of the spectral composition of the external flow perturbations and the blunting of the leading edge of the model that enables one to determine the role of the unit Reynolds number.