Experimental Study on Three-Dimensional Deformation Field of Portevin–Le Chatelier Effect Using Digital Image Correlation

In view of its high precision and high efficiency, three-dimensional digital image correlation (3D-DIC) is widely used to accurately measure full-field deformation. A spatiotemporal experimental study using 3D-DIC to explore the Portevin–Le Chatelier (PLC) deformational behavior, provides a new insight into the whole 3D deformation field, including the out-of-plane displacement, and in particular the relationship between the serrations and the strain field in the deformation bands corresponding to individual serrations. Specimens 1, 2 and 3 mm thick of 5456 Al-based alloy were tested in uniaxial tension at room temperature at strain rates from 1.8 × 10^?4 to 9.1 × 10^?3s^?1. The spatial and temporal characteristics of the strain localization were quantitatively analyzed. The out-of-plane displacement increment field (w) of the localized bands was observed by 3D-DIC, and found to be related to the specimen thickness and the in-plane strain increment. The largest displacement increments were respectively 15, 10 and 5 μm for 3, 2 and 1 mm specimens at maximum strain increment of about 12000 με. The elastic shrinkage outside the deformation bands was found to be an essential characteristic of the PLC effect. The width of the PLC band (w_band) increased with increasing thickness; the angle of the PLC band (??_band) was not affected by either specimen thickness or serration amplitude. Temporally, the serrations in the plots both of in-plane strain and out-of-plane displacement vs. time coincided throughout the entire loading procedure. When PLC banding occurred, the serration amplitude within the bands was found to be proportional to the maximum strain increment in the direction of the applied tensile force (??_max).     

Prediction of Quasi-Brittle Fracture of Concrete and Rock Structures Using Laboratory-Sized Specimens

A simple method is developed for predicting the fracture behaviour of struetures made of quasi-brittle materials sueh as eonerete and roek using the data from laboratory-sized speeimens. The method is based on the reeently-developed boundary effeet concept and associated asymptotic model. It is demonstrated that the ＂apparent＂ size dependence of fraeture behaviour of concrete and rock is in fact due to the influence of specimen boundaries. Various size effect phenomena that are often observed in fracture meehanies tests of eoncrete and roek are related to each other, and the asymptotie boundary effect model can explain all the observed ＂size＂ effeet phenomena. Four types of experimental results available in the literature （ineluding the data measured on （1） the speeimens of identical size with different crack-to-size （α） ratios, （2） specimens of different sizes with different a-ratios, （3） different types of specimens and （4） geometrieally similar speeimens） are used to verify the asymptotic boundary effect model, and it is found that the predictions of the model agree very well with the experimental results. Furthermore, the important fracture properties, fracture toughness KIC and strength f, of quasi-brittle materials sueh as eonerete and roek can also be calculated using the formulae provided in the model.     

Large In-plane Deformation Mapping and Determination of Young’s Modulus of Rubber Using Scanner-Based Digital Image Correlation

Experimental Techniques - We propose a novel scanner-based digital image correlation (DIC) method to determine the full-field in-plane displacement as well as the Young’s modulus of...     

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.     

Digital Image Correlation Analysis and Numerical Simulation of Aluminum Alloys under Quasi-static Tension after Necking Using the Bridgman’s Correction Method

Experimental Techniques - Quasi-static tensile test is a common, yet fundamental, experiment in determining the mechanical properties of materials. Often, the determination of the equivalent...     

A Novel “Subset Splitting” Procedure for Digital Image Correlation on Discontinuous Displacement Fields

Digital Image Correlation (DIC) is an easy to use yet powerful approach to measure displacement and strain fields. While the method is robust and accurate for a variety of applications, standard DIC returns large error and poor correlation quality near displacement discontinuities such as cracks or shear bands. This occurs because the subsets used for correlation can only capture continuous deformations from the reference to the deformed image. As a result the regions around discontinuities are typically removed from the area of interest, before or after analysis. Here, a novel approach is proposed which enables the subset to split in two sections when a discontinuity is detected. This method enables the measurement of “displacement jumps”, and also of displacements and strains right by the discontinuity (for example a crack profile or residual strains in the wake). The method is validated on digitally created images based on mode I and mode II asymptotic displacement fields, for both sub-pixel and super-pixel crack opening displacements. Finally, an actual fracture experiment on a high density polyethylene (HDPE) specimen demonstrates the robustness of the method on actual images. Compared to other methods capable of handling discontinuities, this novel “subset-splitting” procedure offers the advantage of being a direct extension of the now popular standard DIC, and can therefore be implemented as an “upgrade” to that method.     

Mechanical Testing of Solid–Solid Interfaces at the Microscale

In order to determine the influence of internal interfaces on the material’s global mechanical behavior, the strength of single interfaces is of great interest. The experimental framework presented here enables quantitative measurements of the initiation and propagation of interfacial cracks on the microscale. Cantilever beams are fabricated by focused ion beam milling out of a bulk sample, with an interface of interest placed close to the fixed end of the cantilever. Additionally, a U-notch is fabricated at the location of the interface to serve as a stress concentrator for the initiation of the crack. The cantilevers are then mechanically deflected using a nanoindentation system for high resolution load-displacement measurements. In order to determine the onset and propagation of damage, the stiffness of the cantilevers is recorded by partial unloads during the test as well as by making use of a continuous stiffness technique. A finite element model is used to normalize the load and stiffness in order to establish the framework for comparisons between different interfaces.     

Acoustic-Emission Monitoring of the Deformation and Fracture of Metal–Composite Pressure Vessels

This paper presents the results of experimental studies of damage accumulation in a metal–composite pressure vessel by pneumatic strength tests. The deformation and fracture of the composite structure accompanied by matrix cracking and fiber rupture are analyzed. It is shown that the cracks and fractures generate acoustic-emission signals of various types. The results of acoustic-emission monitoring were used to develop a criterion for ranking vessels according to the strength characteristics of the pressure composite shell.     

EBSD Study of Delamination Fracture in Al–Li Alloy 2090

Aluminum–lithium (Al–Li) alloys offer attractive combinations of high strength and low density for aerospace structural applications. However, a tendency for delamination fracture has limited their use. Identification of the metallurgical mechanisms controlling delamination may suggest processing modifications to minimize the occurrence of this mode of fracture. In the current study of Al–Li alloy 2090 plate, high quality electron backscattered diffraction (EBSD) information has been used to evaluate grain boundary types exhibiting delamination fracture and characterize microtexture variations between surrounding grains. Delamination was frequently observed to occur between variants of the brass texture component, along near-Σ3, incoherent twin boundaries. EBSD analyses indicated a tendency for intense deformation along one side of the fractured boundary. A through-thickness plot of grain-specific Taylor factors showed that delaminations occurred along boundaries with the greatest difference in Taylor factors. Together, these suggest a lack of slip accommodation across the boundary, which promotes significantly higher deformation in one grain, and stress concentrations that result in delamination fracture.     

A Γ-Convergence Approach to Stability of Unilateral Minimality Properties in Fracture Mechanics and Applications

We prove a stability result for a large class of unilateral minimality properties which arise naturally in the theory of crack propagation proposed by Francfort & Marigo in [14]. Then we give an application to the quasistatic evolution of cracks in composite materials. The main tool in the analysis is a Γ-convergence result for energies of the form where S(u) is the jump set of u and is a sequence of rectifiable sets with We prove that no interaction occurs in the Γ-limit process between the bulk and the surface part of the energy. Relying on this result, we introduce a new notion of convergence for (N−1)-rectifiable sets called σ-convergence, which is useful in the study of the stability of unilateral minimality properties.     

Fine Properties of Self-Similar Solutions of the Navier–Stokes Equations

We study the solutions of the nonstationary incompressible Navier–Stokes equations in , of self-similar form , obtained from small and homogeneous initial data a(x). We construct an explicit asymptotic formula relating the self-similar profile U(x) of the velocity field to its corresponding initial datum a(x).     

Asymptotic Properties of Axis-Symmetric D-Solutions of the Navier–Stokes Equations

We consider asymptotic behavior of Leray’s solution which expresses axis-symmetric incompressible Navier–Stokes flow past an axis-symmetric body. When the velocity at infinity is prescribed to be nonzero constant, Leray’s solution is known to have optimum decay rate, which is in the class of physically reasonable solution. When the velocity at infinity is prescribed to be zero, the decay rate at infinity has been shown under certain restrictions such as smallness on the data. Here we find an explicit decay rate when the flow is axis-symmetric by decoupling the axial velocity and the horizontal velocities. The first author was supported by KRF-2006-312-C00466. The second author was supported by KRF-2006-531-C00009.     

Coordinated Variation of Contact Angles During Mobilization of Double Liquid–Gas Interfaces in a Microcapillary

Transport in Porous Media - Effectively mobilizing displacement and predicting mobilization pressure in a porous-type reservoir filled with bubbles or blobs require the knowledge of variation of...     

Group Properties of 2–Submodels for the Evolutionary Class of Gas–Dynamic Equations

Invariant 2–submodels (submodels with two independent variables) of the evolutionary class are considered for the equations of gas dynamics with an equation of state of general form. Group analysis of these submodels is performed. Allowable operators and transformations of equivalence are indicated, and group classification is performed.     

Modeling of Solute Transport in a 3D Rough-Walled Fracture–Matrix System

Fluid flow and solute transport in a 3D rough-walled fracture–matrix system were simulated by directly solving the Navier–Stokes equations for fracture flow and solving the transport equation for the whole domain of fracture and matrix with considering matrix diffusion. The rough-walled fracture–matrix model was built from laser-scanned surface tomography of a real rock sample, by considering realistic features of surfaces roughness and asperity contacts. The numerical modeling results were compared with both analytical solutions based on simplified fracture surface geometry and numerical results by particle tracking based on the Reynolds equation. The aim is to investigate impacts of surface roughness on solute transport in natural fracture–matrix systems and to quantify the uncertainties in application of simplified models. The results show that fracture surface roughness significantly increases heterogeneity of velocity field in the rough-walled fractures, which consequently cause complex transport behavior, especially the dispersive distributions of solute concentration in the fracture and complex concentration profiles in the matrix. Such complex transport behaviors caused by surface roughness are important sources of uncertainty that needs to be considered for modeling of solute transport processes in fractured rocks. The presented direct numerical simulations of fluid flow and solute transport serve as efficient numerical experiments that provide reliable results for the analysis of effective transmissivity as well as effective dispersion coefficient in rough-walled fracture–matrix systems. Such analysis is helpful in model verifications, uncertainty quantifications and design of laboratorial experiments.     

Stability Properties of POD–Galerkin Approximations for the Compressible Navier–Stokes Equations

Fluid flows are very often governed by the dynamics of a mall number of coherent structures, i.e., fluid features which keep their individuality during the evolution of the flow. The purpose of this paper is to study a low order simulation of the Navier–Stokes equations on the basis of the evolution of such coherent structures. One way to extract some basis functions which can be interpreted as coherent structures from flow simulations is by Proper Orthogonal Decomposition (POD). Then, by means of a Galerkin projection, it is possible to find the system of ODEs which approximates the problem in the finite-dimensional space spanned by the POD basis functions. It is found that low order modeling of relatively complex flow simulations, such as laminar vortex shedding from an airfoil at incidence and turbulent vortex shedding from a square cylinder, provides good qualitative results compared with reference computations. In this respect, it is shown that the accuracy of numerical schemes based on simple Galerkin projection is insufficient and numerical stabilization is needed. To conclude, we approach the issue of the optimal selection of the norm, namely the H ¹ norm, used in POD for the compressible Navier–Stokes equations by several numerical tests. Received 21 April 1999 and accepted 18 November 1999     

Optimal Navier–Stokes Design of Compressor Impellers Using Evolutionary Computation

In the design of modern centrifugal compressor impellers, it is fundamental to account for three-dimensional effects and to use an optimization strategy that helps the designer to achieve the required objectives with the presence of constraints. In this paper, a fully three-dimensional optimization method is described that combines a CFD code and an evolutionary algorithm. The design scenario contemplated here involves the maximization of impeller peak efficiency with constraints on the impeller pressure ratio and operating range. The method is used to improve the performances of a baseline impeller of known characteristics. An optimal solution is proposed and compared to the original configuration.     

Explicit Rate–Time Solutions for Modeling Matrix–Fracture Flow of Single Phase Gas in Dual-Porosity Media

One of the widely used methods for modeling matrix–fracture fluid exchange in naturally fractured reservoirs is dual porosity approach. In this type of modeling, matrix blocks are regarded as sources/sinks in the fracture network medium. The rate of fluid transfer from matrix blocks into fracture medium may be modeled using shape factor concept (Warren and Root, SPEJ 3:245–255, 1963); or the rate–time solution is directly derived for the specific matrix geometry (de Swaan, SPEJ 16:117–122, 1976). Numerous works have been conducted to study matrix–fracture fluid exchange for slightly compressible fluids (e.g. oil). However, little attention has been taken to systems containing gas (compressible fluid). The objective of this work is to develop explicit rate–time solutions for matrix–fracture fluid transfer in systems containing single phase gas. For this purpose, the governing equation describing flow of gas from matrix block into fracture system is linearized using pseudopressure and pseudotime functions. Then, the governing equation is solved under specific boundary conditions to obtain an implicit relation between rate and time. Since rate calculations using such an implicit relation need iterations, which may be computationally inconvenient, an explicit rate–time relation is developed with the aid of material balance equation and several specific assumptions. Also, expressions are derived for average pseudopressure in matrix block. Furthermore, simplified solutions (originated from the complex general solutions) are introduced applicable in infinite and finite acting flow periods in matrix. Based on the derived solutions, expressions are developed for shape factor. An important observation is that the shape factor for gas systems is the same as that of oil bearing matrix blocks. Subsequently, a multiplier is introduced which relates rate to matrix pressure instead of matrix pseudopressure. Finally, the introduced equations are verified using a numerical simulator.