Decoupling of Autogenous Shrinkage and Tensile Creep Strain in High Strength Concrete at Early Ages

Appropriately interpreting the measured creep strain is critical for obtaining the actual creep strain, especially for high-strength concretes characterized by a low water/cement ratio (w/c) because autogenous shrinkage is significant in such concrete at early ages. To investigate the interaction between the autogenous shrinkage and tensile creep of concrete at early ages, various tests were conducted on concretes with water/cement (w/c) ratios =0.3 and 0.4, including basic tensile creep, strength, autogenous shrinkage, and the internal relative humidity (RH) measurements. The load was applied at the ages of 1 and 7 days at the stress/strength levels of 40% and 70%, respectively. It was found that the measured early-age tensile creep strain becomes negative due to the large autogenous shrinkage involved. The principle of superposition can be used for creep-autogenous shrinkage decoupling to obtain the actual basic tensile creep, as there is virtually no additional RH reduction or stress-induced shrinkage in concrete due to the sustained tensile load at early ages. An average tensile strength gain of 8.2% was found in specimens after sustained tensile loading compared to the unloaded specimens. An exponential function is proposed to quantify the autogenous shrinkage effect on the basic tensile creep in terms of specific creep/autogenous shrinkage ratio.     

多层氧化石墨烯-水泥基复合材料的力学性能与微观结构

研究了大片径多层氧化石墨烯(Graphene Oxide,GO)对水泥砂浆力学性能和微观结构的影响。发现掺入多层GO对水泥砂浆的抗压强度和抗折强度增强效果明显。随着GO掺量的增加,水泥砂浆的抗压强度和抗折强度呈现出先增大后减小的趋势。通过SEM观察其微观结构,发现GO作为载体,促使花状晶体和针状晶体等水化产物的生成,并且调节水泥的水化产物规则生长,形成致密结构。此外,GO纳米片可以形成阻止裂纹扩展的屏障,抑制裂纹在水泥砂浆中的传播,增强水泥砂浆的力学性能。相比于小片径薄层GO,大片径多层GO对水泥基材料性能的增强效果明显,经济实用性更高。     

Experimental investigation and modeling of non-monotonic creep behavior in polymers

The deformation behavior of two unfilled engineering thermoplastics, ultra high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) and polycarbonate (PC), has been investigated in creep test conditions. It has been found that a loading history (prior to the creep test) comprising of loading to a maximum stress or strain value followed by partial unloading to arrive at the target stress value can greatly modify the strain-time behavior. Under such a test protocol, while the expected increase in strain during creep (constant tensile load) is observed, at relatively low creep stresses specimens have also demonstrated a monotonic decrease in strain. In an intermediate stress range, specimens have demonstrated time dependent behavior comprising of a transition from decreasing to increasing strain during creep in tension. This paper presents experimental results to delineate these findings and explore the effect of prior strain rate on the qualitative and quantitative changes in the output (strain-time) behavior. Furthermore, modification of the viscoplasticity theory based on overstress (VBO) model into a double element configuration is introduced. These changes confer upon the model the ability to yield non-monotonic behavior in creep, and supporting simulation results have been included. These changes, therefore, allow the model to simulate strain rate sensitivity, creep, relaxation, and recovery behavior, but more importantly address the issue of non-monotonic changes in creep and relaxation when a loading history involves some degree of unloading.     

Comparison of different shear rheometers with regard to creep and creep recovery measurements

The performance of two shear rheometers with regard to creep and creep recovery measurements is investigated. The first one is a commercially available stress-controlled rheometer that uses an air bearing, and the second one is a magnetic bearing torsional creep apparatus that was built at the Institute of Polymer Materials in Erlangen. The creep and creep recovery measurements were performed in the linear-viscoelastic regime of two polyethylene melts at a temperature of 150°C. The creep compliances of the polyethylenes measured by both rheometers are in excellent agreement. The recoverable compliances of both polyethylene melts, however, have lower values in the case of the commercial rheometer than in the case of the magnetic bearing rheometer. The experimental parameters of creep recovery experiments and the features of the two bearings that are responsible for the different results of the two rheometers are discussed. The influence of the level of the applied shear stress on the short time behavior is investigated as well as the residual torque of the bearings which influences the long time region of the recoverable compliances. Also addressed are the influence of the momentum of inertia of the rotor and the bearing friction which is different for the two rheometers.     

Stress relaxation,creep and set recovery of elastomers

The stress relaxation, creep and recovery behaviour of a cross-linked unfilled natural rubber has been investigated at moderate stresses in tension. The aim being to extend the idea, initially developed by Alan Gent in his seminal 1962 paper on the relaxation behaviour of rubber, in order to understand and examine the time dependent mechanisms that are present in elastomers under strain. A method based upon the Boltzmann superposition principle was used to compare the creep compliance with a measurement of its recovery after release from a range of constant loads held for different times. The creep behaviour was seen to exhibit the usual linear dependence on the logarithm of time. The recovery data was also seen to reduce onto a single recovery curve for any given applied tensile stress for a range of loading times using the Boltzmann superposition principle. The differences between the relative rates of the creep and the recovery behaviour can in part be attributed to the non-linearity in the stress–strain behaviour exhibited in tension of the elastomer.     

泥岩三轴蠕变实验研究

采用MTS伺服刚性压力实验机对高家梁煤矿泥岩进行了三轴蠕变实验研究,获得了泥岩在不同应力条件下的蠕变变形规律。实验表明围压对泥岩微观缺陷的发展有一定的限制作用。随着围压的增加,泥岩的三轴抗压强度和弹性模量均有所增加。在围压一定时:衰减蠕变量随轴压的增大而增大;衰减蠕变率随偏应力的增加而增大;稳态蠕变率随偏应力的增大而增大。在偏应力一定时,稳态蠕变率随围压的增大而减小。当围压大于4MPa后,围压的限制作用将明显减小。随着围压继续增大,稳态蠕变率变化并不明显。根据获得的实验数据,用回归法求出了H-K模型蠕变方程的参数。结果表明H-K模型能较好地模拟实验结果。在实际工程中可通过支护增加围压以提高围岩屈服强度,也可根据实际工程中泥岩蠕变的变化趋势确定合理的二次支护时间,避免流变破坏的发生。     

A study of the generation and creep relaxation of triaxial residual stresses in stainless steel

This paper presents results from a numerical and experimental research programme motivated by the need to predict creep damage generated by multi-axial states of stress in austenitic stainless steels. It has been hypothesized that highly triaxial residual stress fields may be sufficient to promote creep damage in thermally aged components, even in the absence of in-service loads. Two prerequisites to test this hypothesis are the provision of test specimens containing a highly triaxial residual stress field and an accurate knowledge of how this residual stress field relaxes due to creep. Creep damage predictions may then be made for these specimens and compared to damage observed in experiments. This paper provides solutions to both of these prerequisites. Cylindrical and spherical test specimens made from type 316H stainless steel are heated to 850 °C and then quenched in water. Finite element predictions of the residual stress state, validated by extensive neutron diffraction measurements, are presented which confirm the high level of triaxiality present in the specimens. The specimens are then thermally aged at 550 °C and numerical predictions of the residual stress relaxation are given, again validated by extensive neutron diffraction measurements. The results confirm the validity of the creep relaxation models employed. In addition, the results show the influence of specimen size and permit comparisons to be made between three different types of neutron diffractometers.     

Mechanical characterization of sisal reinforced cement mortar

This work aims at evaluating the mechanical behavior of sisal fiber reinforced cement mortar. The composite material was produced from a mixture of sand, cement, and water. Sisal fibers were added to the mixture in different lengths. Mechanical characterization of both the composite and the plain mortar was carried out using three point bend, compression, and impact tests. Specimens containing notches of different root radii were loaded in three point bending in an effort to determine the effect of the fibers on the fracture toughness of the material. The results obtained indicate that, while fiber reinforcement leads to a decrease in compressive strength, J-integral calculations at maximum load for the different notch root radii have indicated, particularly for the case of long fibers, a significant superiority of the reinforced material in comparison with the plain cement mortar, in consistence with the impact test data.     

Modelling creep tests in HMPE fibres used in ultra-deep-sea mooring ropes

Due to its low density and high strength, HMPE (high modulus polyethylene) fibres are being increasingly used in synthetic ropes for offshore mooring. Nevertheless, the occurrence of creep at sea temperature can be a shortcoming for its practical use. Creep tests performed at different load levels in a sub-system of the HMPE rope (yarn) are frequently used as a first step to obtain some information about the susceptibility to creep deformation at a given temperature. The present paper is concerned with the phenomenological modelling of creep tests in HMPE yarns. In this macroscopic approach, besides the classical variables (stress, total strain), an additional scalar variable related with the damage induced by creep process is introduced. An evolution law is proposed for this damage variable. The predicted lifetimes and elongations of HMPE specimens in creep tests at different load levels and room temperature are compared with experimental results showing a good agreement.     

Assessment of creep crack growth due to stress relief

An analysis is conducted to predict stress relief cracking at 550 °C in notched compact tension specimens of Type 316H austenitic stainless steel. The specimens had been subjected to pre-compression to generate a tensile residual stress distribution at the notch tip. This stress distribution is represented by a uniform reference stress over the zone of tension ahead of the notch tip. Creep rupture and creep crack growth data alone are required and used to make the predictions. It is found that the shape of the crack growth curve is correctly predicted when mean data are employed. However, upper bound crack growth properties are required to accurately predict the actual extent of cracking. Sensitivity studies show that the amount of stress relief cracking predicted is relatively insensitive to the reference stress initially assumed to describe the residual stress distribution, since the reference stress relaxes to a magnitude that is almost independent of its initial value. Adoption of an initial reference stress equal to the ultimate tensile strength of the steel, when combined with mean creep rupture and upper bound crack growth properties, results in safe predictions that are not overly conservative. The analysis should only be regarded as reliable for small amounts of crack extension of less than the size of the tensile zone ahead of the crack tip.     

Effect of creep prestrain on subsequent plastic deformation

The effect of creep prestrain on subsequent plastic deformation is experimentally investigated. The experiments are performed by subjecting thin-walled tubular specimens of stainless steel SUS 304 after creep prestraining to combined axial load and torsion at room temperature to 600°C. The stress-strain relations subsequent to creep prestrain are determined under combined stress state with and without temperature changes in prestraining and subsequent plastic straining. On the experimental results, the plastic hardening effects by creep prestrain are discussed under various temperature conditions. The subsequent stress-strain relations are compared with the calculated results on the equi-plastic strain surfaces.     

Nonlinear creep of unidirectional fibrous composites tensioned along the reinforcement

Creep strains in unidirectional organic-fiber-and organic-glass-fiber-reinforced plastics subject to tension in the reinforcement direction are predicted. Based on homogeneity condition and statistical criteria, it is shown that the creep of the composites is essentially nonlinear. To predict creep strains, use is made of a nonlinear creep model based on a modified Rabotnov’s similarity hypothesis for isochrones and of material constants determined from tests on specimens made of a composite as a whole and specimens made of its separate components, the mixing rule applied in the latter case. The calculated results and the experimental data are in satisfactory agreement __________ Translated from Prikladnaya Mekhanika, Vol. 43, No. 5, pp. 20–34, May 2007.     

A simple endochronic transient creep model of metals with applications to variable temperature creep

Similar to the theory of endochronic plasticity, modified by Valanis in 1980, a simple endochronic transient creep model of metals is proposed by using a definition of intrinsic time ζ, measured within the creep strain tensor space, whose metric tensor is treated as a simple power form of creep strain-rate sensitive material function. The resulting constitutive equation of creep (Endocreep) contains only three material constants whose values can be determined completely by a simple creep test. An incremental form involving isothermally constant creep stress, with or without jump, and constant stress with temperature jump, are then formulated.In the applications of Endocreep on 304SS under variable temperature creep, data of simple creep tests, provided by Ohashi et al. at 650°C, Ohno et al. at 600°C, Findley and Cho at 593°C–649°C, are employed to determine material constants. The computational results in the simulation of creep tests under step-up and step-down temperature with constant axial stress are found in very good agreement with data provided by Findley and Cho. However, the results reveal that the model is too simple to deal with the recovery response of unloading. Beside this deficiency the model and its computational method proposed have a potential in the future FEM creep analysis of general thermomechanical loading history.     

EQUIVALENT MODEL OF EXPANSION OF CEMENT MORTAR UNDER SULPHATE EROSION

The expansion property of cement mortar under the attack of sulfate ions is studied by experimental and theoretical methods. First, cement mortars are fabricated with the ratio of water to cement of 0.4, 0.6, and 0.8. Secondly, the expansion of specimen immerged in sulphate solution is measured at different times. Thirdly, a theoretical model of expansion of cement mortar under sulphate erosion is suggested by virtue of represent volume element method. In this model, the damage evolution due to the interaction between delayed ettringite and cement mortar is taken into account. Finally, the numerical calculation is results indicate that the model perfectly describes performed. The numerical and experimental the expansion of the cement mortar.     

Effect of constraint induced by crack depth on creep crack-tip stress field in CT specimens

In this paper, the effect of constraint induced by the crack depth on creep crack-tip stress field in compact tension (CT) specimens is examined by finite element analysis, and the effect of creep deformation and damage on the Hutchinson–Rice–Rosengren (HRR) singularity stress field are discussed. The results show the constraint induced by crack depth causes the difference in crack-tip opening stress distributions between the specimens with different crack depth at the same C*. The maximum opening stress appears at a distance from crack tips, and the stress singularity near the crack tips does not exist due to the crack-tip blunting caused by the large creep deformation in the vicinity of the crack tips. The actual stress calculated by the finite element method (FEM) in front of crack tip is significantly lower than that predicted by the HRR field. Based on the reference stress field in the deep crack CT specimen with high constraint, a new constraint parameter R is defined and the constraint effect in the shallow crack specimen is examined at different distances ahead of the crack tip from transient to steady-state creep conditions. During the early stages of creep constraint increases with time, and then approaches a steady state value as time increases. With increasing the distance from crack tips and applied load, the negative R increases and the constraint decreases.     

岩石含水蠕变损伤模型的开发与应用

摘要：为研究岩石含水率对蠕变的影响,将含水开关与蠕变损伤阀值引入蠕变模型,实现了含水劣化与蠕变损伤在本构关系上的耦合,建立了岩石含水蠕变损伤模型。模型与某软岩的三轴压缩蠕变试验结果取得了较好的拟合效果,并由麦夸特法+通用全局优化（LM-UGO）算法反演出了模型参数随岩石含水率的变化规律。在C++语言和FLAC3D中Fish语言的环境下,通过推导模型本构方程的三维差分形式,并利用FLAC3D所提供的接口实现了模型的二次开发。通过对开发的岩石含水蠕变损伤模型进行算例验证和分析,验证了模型的可靠性,也得出了软岩巷道蠕变变形随围岩含水率增大而增加的结论,进一步反映出蠕变模拟计算中考虑岩石含水率的必要性。     

Long-term strength of metals and creep equations based on the Coulomb-Mohr criterion

It is proposed to construct long-term strength and creep relations for metals on the basis of the Coulomb-Mohr criterion. The creep equations and the long-term strength criterion for plane stress are analyzed in detail. Results of long-term strength calculations are compared with data of experiments with metallic materials. It is established that theoretical and experimental results are in satisfactory agreement. __________ Translated from Prikladnaya Mekhanika i Tekhnicheskaya Fizika, Vol. 48, No. 6, pp. 115–123, November–December, 2007.     

Room-temperature post-yield creep

Post-yield creep of smooth specimens at room temperature in nine different metals was studied. Significant creep was observed in eight of the nine metals tested. The average creep strain from all tests was equal to nearly half of the total strain after one hour at constant load. Creep strains of significant magnitude were also found to occur within plastic enclaves of otherwise elastically deformed notched members. The characteristics of localized creep in the notched members strongly parallel the creep behavior observed in unnotched members. The need to consider time-dependent deformation in experimental mechanics is discussed. Post-yield time-dependent deformation as a cause of failure, as a cause of residual-stress relaxation affecting fatigue life, and as a primary feature of inelastic deformation needing to be modeled, are also discussed.     

Calculation of discrete retardation spectra from creep data — II. Analysis of measured creep curves

An algorithm for the calculation of discrete, logarithmic equidistant retardation spectra from creep or recovery is applied to experimental data in different regions of consistency. Spectra in the glass-rubber transition region are given for technical poly(styrene), poly(methylmethacrylate), and poly(carbonate) as well as the course of all characteristic compliance type functions. The spectrum in the terminal region of a poly(styrene) of narrow molecular weight distribution is calculated both from creep and recovery data. The course of the dynamic moduli calculated from the spectra and by direct conversion is found in excellent agreement to measurements by means of a dynamic viscometer.Dedicated to Prof. Dr. H. Janeschitz-Kriegl at the occassion of his 70th birthday.     

On the elastic properties of model suspensions as investigated by creep recovery measurements in shear

 The elastic properties of model suspensions with spherical monodisperse hydrophilic glass spheres that were dispersed in a Newtonian liquid were determined in creep and creep recovery measurements in shear with a magnetic bearing torsional creep rheometer. The creep and creep recovery measurements were performed depending on the applied level of shear stresses ranging from 0.19 Pa to 200 Pa. Since the recoverable creep compliances of the chosen suspending medium (i.e. a low molecular weight polyisobutylene) were far below the lower limit of the resolution of the creep rheometer it can be considered to behave as purely viscous. By applying a large shear stress in the creep tests the investigated suspensions with a volume fraction of Φ _t =0.35 behave as Newtonian liquids, too. For these suspensions no significant recoverable creep compliances could be detected, as well. In contrast to the Newtonian state of suspensions at high shear stresses, where a shear induced ordering of the particles can be expected, a non-Newtonian behaviour arises by applying a very low shear stress in the creep test. In this state large recoverable creep compliances were detected for the suspensions. The magnitude of the recoverable creep compliances of the suspensions exceeded the largest creep compliances of polymer melts that are reported in the literature by more than two decades. From the results obtained by creep recovery measurements with a magnetic bearing torsional creep rheometer it can clearly be concluded that the particle structure present in the chosen model suspension gives rise to a pronounced elasticity. Received: 21 November 2000 Accepted: 12 July 2001