Development of High Temperature Nanoindentation Methodology and its Application in the Nanoindentation of Polycrystalline Tungsten in Vacuum to 950 °C

The capability for high temperature nanoindentation measurements to 950 °C in high vacuum has been demonstrated on polycrystalline tungsten, a material of great importance for nuclear fusion and spallation applications and as a potential high temperature nanomechanics reference sample. It was possible to produce measurements with minimal thermal drift (typically ~0.05 nm/s at 750–950 °C) and no visible oxidative damage. The temperature dependence of the hardness, elastic modulus, plasticity index, creep, creep strain, and creep recovery were investigated over the temperature range, testing at 25, 750, 800, 850, 900 and 950 °C. The nanoindentation hardness measurements were found to be consistent with previous determinations by hot microhardness. Above 800 °C the hardness changes relatively little but more pronounced time-dependent deformation and plasticity were observed from 850 °C. Plasticity index, indentation creep and creep recovery all increase with temperature. The importance of increased time-dependent deformation and pile-up on the accuracy of the elastic modulus measurements are discussed. Elastic modulus measurements determined from elastic analysis of the unloading curves at 750–800 °C are close to literature bulk values (to within ~11 %). The high temperature modulus measurements deviate more from bulk values determined taking account of the high temperature properties of the indenter material at the point (850 °C) at which more significant time-dependent deformation is observed. This is thought to be due to the dual influence of increased time-dependency and pile-up that are not being accounted for in the elastic unloading analysis. Accounting for this time-dependency by applying a viscoelastic compliance correction developed by G. Feng and A.H.W. Ngan (J. Mater. Res. (2002) 17:660–668) greatly reduces the values of the elastic modulus, so they are agree to within 6 % of literature values at 950 °C.     

Approximate creep rupture lifetimes for butt welded ferritic steel pressurised pipes

The creep rupture of butt welded ferritic steel pipes composed of a range of weld and heat affected zone materials has been previously analysed in detail (Leckie and Hayhurst, 1994). These analyses required substantial computational resources which cannot be justified during the preliminary phases of the design process. To reduce cost and improve speed an approximate method for the analysis of kinematically determinate structures, known as the modal method (Leckie and Hayhurst, 1974), has been developed to compute creep rupture lifetimes. This paper reports an extension of the method for the analysis of multi-material structures, such as weldments, and its implementation as a post processor to a stationary state finite element creep analysis. Histories of stress and damage have been determined using the modal method for weldments with a range of heat affected zone and weld material combinations. The lifetimes determined in this way are compared with those determined using complete continuum damage mechanics analyses, and are shown to be conservative; in addition the regions of intense damage have been shown to be accurately predicted. The modal method is also shown to be superior to more approximate reference stress methods.     

Identification of Local Viscoplastic Properties in P91 Welds from Full Field Measurements at Room Temperature and 625 °C

A methodology to obtain visco-plastic laws in heterogeneous materials with digital image correlation (DIC) is proposed based on tensile and tensile-relaxation tests conducted at room temperature and at 625 °C. Tested samples are manufactured from a P91 weld in which a microstructural heterogeneity translates into graded mechanical properties. To simplify the problem, a classical decomposition of the weld into five different domains is considered. Strain field in each domain is obtained by means of digital image correlation applied to high magnification pictures recorded with an optical long distance microscope. The conducted identifications exhibit key features in the behaviour of each domain in terms of yield stress, ultimate tensile stress and hardening at both room temperature and 625 °C. Experimental fields are compared to the fields provided by finite element simulations. Eventually, the benefit of accounting for transverse strains in the identification procedure is examined, and the robustness of the procedure with addition of noise (representative of experimental conditions) in the measurement is characterized.     

Synchronous Full-Field Strain and Temperature Measurement in Tensile Tests at Low,Intermediate and High Strain Rates

Tensile tests with simultaneous full-field strain and temperature measurements at the nominal strain rates of 0.01, 0.1, 1, 200 and 3000 s^?1 are presented. Three different testing methods with specimens of the same thin and flat gage-section geometry are utilized. The full-field deformation is measured on one side of the specimen, using the DIC technique with low and high speed visible cameras, and the full-field temperature is measured on the opposite side using an IR camera. Austenitic stainless steel is used as the test material. The results show that a similar deformation pattern evolves at all strain rates with an initial uniform deformation up to the strain of 0.25–0.35, followed by necking with localized deformation with a maximum strain of 0.7–0.95. The strain rate in the necking regions can exceed three times the nominal strain rate. The duration of the tests vary from 57 s at the lowest strain rate to 197 μs at the highest strain rate. The results show temperature rise at all strain rates. The temperature rise increases with strain rate as the test duration shortens and there is less time for the heat to dissipate. At a strain rate of 0.01 s^?1 the temperature rise is small (up to 48 °C) but noticeable. At a strain rate of 0.1 the temperature rises up to 140 °C and at a strain rate of 1 s^?1 up to 260 °C. The temperature increase in the tests at strain rates of 200 s^?1 and 3000 s^?1 is nearly the same with the maximum temperature reaching 375 °C.     

Combined Temperature and Deformation Measurement During Glass Forming in a Real Scale Setup

An experimental setup has been built and instrumented with non intrusive measurement methods aiming at measuring temperature fields and deformations of a soda-lime-silica glass piece during thermoforming process. A real scale furnace has been used and a realistic thermal load case applied. Infrared measurements based on the Christiansen effect have been performed on the present glass sample, providing the temperature distribution on the sample surface through IR images at 7.8 μm. Piece deformation has been registered simultaneously, using a DIC (Digital Image Correlation) technique combined with a fringe projection method. Results have been analysed in a combined manner, showing a non symmetrical deformation despite a quite homogeneous thermal field, which could be explained by mould/glass contact problems. The non intrusive measurement technique has been proven to be relevant for a possible control of the thermal environment of the piece during the thermoforming process. Further tests should be carried out on a wide range of shapes and glass types.     

Ceramic-Based Speckles and Enhanced Feature-Detecting Algorithm for Deformation Measurement at High Temperature

The mechanical properties of Ni-base alloys have drawn considerable attention owing to their wide application in the hot components of aircrafts and gas turbines. To accurately measure the deformation of Ni-based alloys at high temperatures, a new type of high-temperature speckles is fabricated on the surface of specimens subjected to long heating durations at temperatures up to 1400 °C. Meanwhile, a novel measurement method based on the scale-invariant feature transform algorithm is developed to measure the deformation and obtain a more accurate result. Both of the above proposed methods are used in a creep test of Inconel 713C at 860 °C. The experimental results indicate that the speckles exhibit excellent performance under heating conditions and adhere well to the substrate at high temperatures. Also, the proposed deformation measurement method exhibits superior image processing even when the speckle quality is imperfect with respect to speckle size.     

Multiaxial creep and cyclic plasticity in nickel-base superalloy C263

Physically-based constitutive equations for uniaxial creep deformation in nickel alloy C263 [Acta Mater. 50 (2002) 2917] have been generalised for multiaxial stress states using conventional von Mises type assumptions. A range of biaxial creep tests have been carried out on nickel alloy C263 in order to investigate the stress state sensitivity of creep damage evolution. The sensitivity has been quantified in C263 and embodied within the creep constitutive equations for this material. The equations have been implemented into finite element code. The resulting computed creep behaviour for a range of stress state compares well with experimental results. Creep tests have been carried out on double notched bar specimens over a range of nominal stress. The effect of the notches is to introduce multiaxial stress states local to the notches which influences creep damage evolution. Finite element models of the double notch bar specimens have been developed and used to test the ability of the model to predict correctly, or otherwise, the creep rupture lifetimes of components in which multiaxial stress states exist. Reasonable comparisons with experimental results are achieved. The γ^′ solvus temperature of C263 is about 925 °C, so that thermo-mechanical fatigue (TMF) loading in which the temperature exceeds the solvus leads to the dissolution of the γ^′ precipitate, and a resulting solution treated material. The cyclic plasticity and creep behaviour of the solution treated material is quite different to that of the material with standard heat treatment. A time-independent cyclic plasticity model with kinematic and isotropic hardening has been developed for solution treated and standard heat treated nickel-base superalloy C263. It has been combined with the physically-based creep model to provide constitutive equations for TMF in C263 over the temperature range 20–950 °C, capable of predicting deformation and life in creep cavitation-dominated TMF failure.     

Characterization of mechanical properties of aluminum cast alloy at elevated temperature

The tensile response, the low cycle fatigue(LCF) resistance, and the creep behavior of an aluminum(Al) cast alloy are studied at ambient and elevated temperatures.A non-contact real-time optical extensometer based on the digital image correlation(DIC)is developed to achieve strain measurements without damage to the specimen. The optical extensometer is validated and used to monitor dynamic strains during the mechanical experiments. Results show that Young's modulus of the cast alloy decreases with the increasing temperature, and the percentage elongation to fracture at 100℃ is the lowest over the temperature range evaluated from 25℃ to 300℃. In the LCF test, the fatigue strength coefficient decreases, whereas the fatigue strength exponent increases with the rising temperature. The fatigue ductility coefficient and exponent reach maximum values at 100℃. As expected, the resistance to creep decreases with the increasing temperature and changes from 200℃ to 300℃.     

CDM predictions of creep damage initiation and growth in ferritic steel weldments in a medium-bore branched pipe under constant pressure at 590° C using a four-material weld model

The paper reports the use of three-dimensional creep continuum damage mechanics techniques to study the creep failure of a medium-bore low-alloy ferritic-steel cylinder–cylinder branched pressure vessel welded connection, tested at a constant pressure of 4 MPa, at a uniform temperature of 590°C. The development of computational techniques is reported to analyse this problem with a four-material model of the welded connection which includes: parent, type IV, heat-affected zone (HAZ) and weld materials. The results of analyses are presented for two sets of creep damage constitutive equations. For both equation sets, lifetimes are conservatively, yet accurately predicted; however, the results of metallographic examinations of a tested vessel are not accurately predicted. To overcome this deficiency further analyses of the vessel are recommended which include: a coarse-grained HAZ (CGHAZ), adjacent to the weld material; and, more-refined finite element modelling.     

Measurement of Local Thermal Deformations in Heterogeneous Microstructures via SEM Imaging with Digital Image Correlation

It is challenging to measure accurately and with high spatial resolution the local thermal strains in heterogeneous microstructures due of the complex nature of the thermal deformations and local boundary conditions. In the enclosed study, a digital image correlation (DIC) based, thermal strain mapping technique is described that is able to probe thermal deformations with sub-micron spatial resolution and sub-nanometer displacement accuracy for both homogeneous and heterogeneous materials, including cross-sections of IC packages. The full-field thermal deformation maps of different materials within a nanostructured IC chip cross-section are established from room temperature up to 160 °C, uncovering the heterogeneous nature of the specimen while accurately measuring the highly non-uniform displacement and strain fields across the multiple material constituents. As described in this work, the DIC-enabled technique is capable of high resolution mapping of local thermo-mechanical deformations in heterogeneous materials, providing a methodology that can improve our understanding of complex material systems under controlled thermal-environmental conditions.     

Experimental investigation on surface deformation of soft half plane indented by rigid wedge

In this work, the mechanical behavior of a block of soft material subject to large deformation from a series of wedge-shaped indenters is evaluated. Data fields acquired from digital image correlation (DIC) are compared with the existing theoretical models. The slope angles of the wedges vary from 5° to 73.5°, and the minimum measurement uncertainties of the DIC system are established in advance to define the accuracy. It is concluded that the assumptions underpinning the analytical theory make it difficult to characterize large deformation of soft materials during contact. The strain fields are also obtained from the measured displacement field and verify the previously postulated existence of two deformation sectors, namely, a so-called shrinkage sector symmetric to the loading axis and an expansion sector, which become smaller with the increasing load and decreasing wedge angle.     

Influence of Mass Ratio on Forward and Reverse Ballistic Impact Equivalence: Experiments,Simulations, and Mechanism Analysis

Reverse ballistic impact tests are widely used for studying dynamic responses because they provide more comprehensive and quantitative projectile/rod response results than forward impact tests. To examine equivalent forward and reverse conditions, a series of 8-cm length oxygen-free copper rods with varying length–diameter ratios was used in forward and reverse ballistic Taylor impact experiments with velocities and strain ratios of 104–215 m/s and 1.25?×?10³–2.5?×?10³ s^-1, respectively. Digital image correlation (DIC) and traditional optical measurements were used to determine instantaneous responses at the μs level. Based on DIC, transient structural deformation, and plastic wave propagation, the forward and reverse length difference at similar velocities ranges from 2 to 6.95 %. Rules governing deformation from the perspective of energy, along with rules for changes in energy and plastic wave propagation were determined. The relative deformation energy error was below 5 % for target projectile mass ratios above 20.     

Measurement of the Residual Stress Tensor in a Compact Tension Weld Specimen

Neutron diffraction measurements have been performed to determine the full residual stress tensor along the expected crack path in an austenitic stainless steel (Esshete 1250) compact tension weld specimen. A destructive slitting method was then implemented on the same specimen to measure the stress intensity factor profile associated with the residual stress field as a function of crack length. Finally deformations of the cut surfaces were measured to determine a contour map of the residual stresses in the specimen prior to the cut. The distributions of transverse residual stress measured by the three techniques are in close agreement. A peak tensile stress in excess of 600 MPa was found to be associated with an electron beam weld used to attach an extension piece to the test sample, which had been extracted from a pipe manual metal arc butt weld. The neutron diffraction measurements show that exceptionally high residual stress triaxiality is present at crack depths likely to be used for creep crack growth testing and where a peak stress intensity factor of 35 MPa√m was measured (crack depth of 21 mm). The neutron diffraction measurements identified maximum values of shear stress in the order of 50 MPa and showed that the principal stress directions were aligned to within ~20° of the specimen orthogonal axes. Furthermore it was confirmed that measurement of strains by neutron diffraction in just the three specimen orthogonal directions would have been sufficient to provide a reasonably accurate characterisation of the stress state in welded CT specimens.     

An Extension of the Monkman-Grant Model for the Prediction of the Creep Rupture Time Using Small Punch Tests

Creep tests on a small scale have the potential to be used without significant removal of material or in areas where the available material is limited. In this paper an extension of the modified Monkman-Grant model for the prediction of the creep rupture time using Small Punch Creep Tests (SPCT) is investigated. This test basically consists of punching, under constant load, a small size specimen (10×10×0.5 mm) with the ends fixed. For this purpose an AZ31B magnesium alloy, taking a test temperature of 150?ºC, has been selected. The Monkman-Grant relation is a predictive model, initially developed for uniaxial creep tests, which can be used to predict the rupture time of tests which have been interrupted once secondary stage of creep has been reached. The proposed extension of the Monkman-Grant model for SPCT is based on the definition of the Minimum Relative Punch Displacement Rate. The experimental techniques and data analysis, involving small punch testing, are explained in detail. The proposed predictive model allows the test times of small punch testing to be reduced and it can be directly applied to predict the failure time from an interrupted test at the time when the Minimum Relative Punch Displacement Rate is reached. Good correlations are obtained by comparing the failure time from the proposed Monkman-Grant extension with the experimental failure time.     

A phenomenological model for anisotropic creep in a multipass weld metal

Creep strength of welded joints can be estimated by continuum damage mechanics. In this case constitutive equations are required for different constituents of the welded joint: the weld metal, the heat-affected zone, and the parent material. The objective of this paper is to model the anisotropic creep behavior in a weld metal produced by multipass welding. To explain the origins of anisotropic creep, a mechanical model for a binary structure composed of fine-grained and coarse-grained constituents with different creep properties is introduced. The results illustrate the basic features of the stress redistribution and damage growth in the constituents of the weld metal and agree qualitatively with experimental observations. The structural analysis of a welded joint requires a model of creep for the weld metal under multiaxial stress states. For this purpose the engineering creep theory based on the creep potential hypothesis, the flow rule, and assumption of transverse isotropy is applied. The outcome is a coordinate-free equation for secondary creep formulated in terms of the Norton–Bailey–Odqvist creep potential and three invariants of the stress tensor. The material constants are identified according to the experimental data presented in the literature.     

Rate (time)-dependent deformation behavior: an overview of some properties of metals and solid polymers

The inelastic deformation behaviors of metals and polymers are discussed with the aim of finding a common base that would simplify academic and engineering analyses. Only monotonic loading conditions at room temperature are considered. For loading at different rates, nonlinear relations between loading rate and stress level, creep stress level and creep strain, and relaxation rate and stress were common to both type of materials. There are, of course, significant differences in elastic properties, strength levels and the strains involved. Special properties such as relaxation behaviors and creep anomalies can be qualitatively and quantitatively reproduced by the state variable model VBO (viscoplasticity theory based on overstress). Since experimental investigations typically concentrate on one particular aspect of inelastic deformation behavior such as creep or strain-rate dependence, it is often difficult to gather a comprehensive data set for a given material. In spite of this, considerable similitude in the deformation behavior of metals and polymers in various test conditions has nevertheless been established.     

Plastic Strain Mapping with Sub-micron Resolution Using Digital Image Correlation

Digital image correlation (DIC) of images obtained using scanning electron microscopy has been used to study, quantitatively, the plastic deformation of stainless steel at the microstructural scale. An artificial speckle pattern was generated by the remodelling of a deposited gold layer. A new experimental setup was shown to accelerate the remodelling process and promote the formation of finer nano-scale speckles with sizes ranging 30 nm to 150 nm and of similar spacing. The effects of surface preparation on speckle morphology are discussed. The high density of speckles enabled displacement mapping with resolution of one displacement vector each 0.2?×?0.2 μm² of surface area. It is shown that sub-micron resolution is necessary to capture the plastic deformation associated with the formation of slip bands in stainless steel, which are an important component of the deformation of these materials at the microscale. Electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) was used to reconstruct the surface grain boundaries and enabled these deformation features to be linked to the microstructure.     

Micro- and Nanoscale Deformation Measurement of Surface and Internal Planes via Digital Image Correlation

The digital image correlation (DIC) technique is successfully applied across multiple length scales through the generation of a suitable speckle pattern at each size scale. For microscale measurements, a random speckle pattern of paint is created with a fine point airbrush. Nanoscale displacement resolution is achieved with a speckle pattern formed by solution deposition of fluorescent silica nanoparticles. When excited, the particles fluoresce and form a speckle pattern that can be imaged with an optical microscope. Displacements are measured on the surface and on an interior plane of transparent polymer samples with the different speckle patterns. Rigid body translation calibrations and uniaxial tension experiments establish a surface displacement resolution of 1 μm over a 5×6 mm scale field of view for the airbrushed samples and 17 nm over a 100×100 μm scale field of view for samples with the fluorescent nanoparticle speckle. To demonstrate the capabilities of the method, we characterize the internal deformation fields generated around silica microspheres embedded in an elastomer under tensile loading. The DIC technique enables measurement of complex deformation fields with nanoscale precision over relatively large areas, making it of particular relevance to materials that possess multiple length scales.     

Creep behavior of crack near bi-material interface characterized by integral parameters

Creep behavior of crack in dissimilar materials is studied using steady-state C^* path independent integral and ABAQUS finite element code. The specific geometry involves an edge crack parallel to the interface of a bi-material tensile specimen at high temperature. Under extensive creep, the C^* value for the bi-material specimen can be significantly higher than that for the homogeneous specimen. For small-scale creep material mismatch has little influence on the transient integral designated by C_t. The integral parameters C^* or C_t are shown to depend on the inhomogeneity of the system and cannot characterize the creep behavior of cracks.The approach is extended to creep crack growth in a welded compact tension specimen. Modification factors are introduced for different crack and weld interface geometries.     

Specimen and Grain Size Effects of Al1100 on Strain and Strain Rate Hardening at Various Strain Rates for Al1100

This paper is concerned with comparison of the tensile properties of Al1100 thin film in a micro-scale to that of Al1100 sheet in a macro-scale. The material properties of Al1100 film and sheet with a thickness of 96 μm and 1 mm respectively have been investigated at strain rates ranging from 0.001 to 100 s^?1. The experiments were conducted with Static Micro-Material Testing Machine (SMMTM) and High Speed Micro-Material Testing Machine (HSMMTM) for micro-specimens and with Instron 5583 and high speed material testing machine (HSMTM) for macro-specimens. A reliable jig system for SMMTM and HSMMTM has been newly developed for easy installation of a specimen and accurate alignment between a specimen and the jig system to enhance the reproducibility of tests. The digital image correlation (DIC) method is employed to measure the axial strain of the specimens. In order to obtain a fine speckle pattern for the DIC method, a novel technique is employed to print the speckle pattern with fine particles by blowing sprayed particles before printing. The grain sizes of two Al1100 specimens have been compared and the number of grains in the gauge cross-section has been calculated to obtain the grain number which is related to the specimen size effect. Electron Back Scattered Diffraction (EBSD) images were obtained for both micro-specimens and macro-specimens and analyzed to measure the grain size. The Al1100 film with a smaller average grain size shows larger strain hardening than the Al1100 sheet with a larger average grain size.