Axial damping in metal-matrix composites. II: A theoretical model and its experimental verification

In the companion paper we describe a new experimental technique for resolving the phase difference between two electrical sinusoidal signals to an accuracy of 2/2¹⁶ or 9.587×10^–7 radians. In this paper we demonstrate the use of that technique in measuring the intrinsic material damping of metal-matrix composites in axial tension using strain gages. In particular, the influence of ply, angle, , on the axial damping of a Pitch 55 graphite/6061 aluminum [±]_s laminate is studied at a fixed frequency, a fixed strain level, and at room temperature. Recently, Ni and Adams proposed a model for predicting theflexural damping of a liminate from the flexural damping properties of a lamina. A close agreement between the model and the experiment was observed. As far as we know these are the first measurements of intrinsic material damping of metal-matrix composites.Paper was presented at the 1990 SEM Spring Conference on Experimental Mechanics held in Albuquerque, NM on June 3–6.     

Axial damping in metal-matrix composites. I: A new technique for measuring phase difference to 10−4 radians

A majority of the current experimental techniques for measuring damping employ either flexural or torsional vibrations.In either case the strain field is nonhomogeneous. If the material damping is linear, i.e., strain independent, then the measured quantity equals the intrinsic material damping. if, on the other hand, the material damping is nonlinear, i.e., strain dependent, then the measured quantity also reflects the nonhomogeneity of the strain field and, therefore, is not equal to the intrinsic material damping. In this work we describe a new experimental technique in which the foregoing problem is circumvented by employing a homogeneous strain field, namely, uniform uniaxial tension. Damping is viewed as the phase angle by which the stress leads the strain. The finiteduration, time-harmonic stress and strain signals are transformed to the frequency domain via the use of Fourier transforms. It is shown that if one confines attention to the immediate neighborhood of the excitation frequency then, for all practical purposes, the phase difference between the two sinusoids is equal to the phase difference between their Fourier transforms. We will demonstrate that this phase difference can be measured to an accuracy of 2/2¹⁶ or 9.587×10^–5 radians.Paper was presented at the 1990 SEM Spring Conference on Experimental Mechanics held in Albuquerque, NM on June 3–6.     

The interaction between crack and electric dipole of piezoelectricity

Discrete dipoles located near the crack tip play an important role in nonlinear electric field induced fracture of piezoelectric ceramics. A physico-mathematical model of dipole is constructed of two generalized concentrated piezoelectric forces with equal density and opposite sign. The interaction between crack and electric dipole in piezoelectricity is analyzed. The closed form solutions, including those for stress and electric displacement, crack opening displacement and electric potential, are obtained. The function of piezoelectric anisotropic direction,p _a (θ)=cosθ+p _a sinθ, can be used to express the influence of a dipole's direction. In the case that a dipole locates near crack tip, the piezoelectric stress intensity factor is a power function with −3/2 index of the distance between dipole and crack tip. Supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China(No. 10072033)     

Uniaxial material damping measurements using a fiber optic lattice: A discussion of its performance envelope

Damping is the internal transfer of kinetic energy to other forms of energy. Today, most methods use either bending or torsional vibration to measure damping. This means that the strain field in the specimen is nonhomogeneous. If the damping of the tested material is linear, strain-independent, the values acquired with these traditional methods will be equal to the intrinsic material damping of the material. If, however, the damping is strain-dependent, nonlinear, the measured value will be an average of the damping of the specimen, and not equal to its intrinsic material damping. To address this problem, a method is required to experimentally determine the damping in uniaxial tension in order to produce the same strain level in all parts of the test specimen and hence obtain a measurement of the intrinsic material damping. Using such a method, it is possible to view the material damping as the phase angle between the stress and the strain in a harmonic oscillation. In this paper, a method is suggested for measuring this phase shift in uniaxial tension to determine the material damping properties. It uses a tensile test machine, an optical fiber Bragg grating technique and a lock-in amplifier. Measurements with the phase shift technique have been suggested previously, but its performance envelope has been overestimated. In this paper, the performance envelope is discussed and restricted. It is shown that the envelope depends on the specimen length, loss factor and test frequency. An optical strain measurement method is also believed to help avoid many electrical measurement problems seen with the originally proposed method.     

Measurement of length-scale and solution of cantilever beam in couple stress elasto-plasticity

Owing to the absence of proper analytical solution of cantilever beams for couple stress/strain gradient elasto-plastic theory, experimental studies of the cantilever beam in the micro-scale are not suitable for the determination of material length-scale. Based on the couple stress elasto-plasticity, an analytical solution of thin cantilever beams is firstly presented, and the solution can be regarded as an extension of the elastic and rigid-plastic solutions of pure bending beam. A comparison with numerical results shows that the current analytical solution is reliable for the case of σ0 〈〈 H 〈〈 E, where σ0 is the initial yield strength, H is the hardening modulus and E is the elastic modulus. Fortunately, the above mentioned condition can be satisfied for many metal materials, and thus the solution can be used to determine the material length-scale of micro-structures in conjunction with the experiment of cantilever beams in the micro-scale.     

Nonlinear rheology of concentrated spherical silica suspensions: 3. Concentration dependence

Nonlinear rheology was examined for concentrated suspensions of spherical silica particles (with radius of 40 nm) in viscous media, 2.27/1 (wt/wt) ethylene glycol/glycerol mixture and pure ethylene glycol. The particles were randomly and isotropically dispersed in the media in the quiescent state, and their effective volume fraction φ_eff ranged from 0.36 to 0.59. For small strains, the particles exhibited linear relaxation of the Brownian stress σ_B due to their diffusion. For large step strains γ, the nonlinear relaxation modulus G(t,γ) exhibited strong damping and obeyed the time-strain separability. This damping was related to γ-insensitivity of strain-induced anisotropy in the particle distribution that resulted in decreases of σ_B/γ. The damping became stronger for larger φ_eff. This φ_eff dependence was related to a hard-core volume effect, i.e., strain-induced collision of the particles that is enhanced for larger φ_eff. Under steady/transient shear flow, the particles exhibited thinning and thickening at low and high γ˙, respectively. The thinning behavior was well described by a BKZ constitutive equation using the G(t,γ) data and attributable to decreases of a Brownian contribution, σ_B/γ˙. The thickening behavior, not described by this equation, was related to dynamic clustering of the particles and corresponding enhancement of the hydrodynamic stress at high γ˙. In this thickening regime, the viscosity growth η₊ after start-up of flow was scaled with a strain γ˙t. Specifically, critical strains γ_d and γ_s for the onset of thickening and achievement of the steadily thickened state were independent of γ˙ but decreased with increasing φ_eff. This φ_eff dependence was again related to the hard-core volume effect, flow-induced collision of the particles enhanced for larger φ_eff. Received: 26 June 1998 Accepted: 9 December 1998     

Bifurcations of Heteroclinic Orbits

The search for traveling wave solutions of a semilinear diffusion partial differential equation can be reduced to the search for heteroclinic solutions of the ordinary differential equation ü − cu̇ + f(u) = 0, where c is a positive constant and f is a nonlinear function. A heteroclinic orbit is a solution u(t) such that u(t) → γ ₁ as t → −∞ and u(t) → γ ₂ as t → ∞ where γ ₁, γ ₂ are zeros of f. We study the existence of heteroclinic orbits under various assumptions on the nonlinear function f and their bifurcations as c is varied. Our arguments are geometric in nature and so we make only minimal smoothness assumptions. We only assume that f is continuous and that the equation has a unique solution to the initial value problem. Under these weaker smoothness conditions we reprove the classical result that for large c there is a unique positive heteroclinic orbit from 0 to 1 when f(0) = f(1) = 0 and f(u) > 0 for 0 < u < 1. When there are more zeros of f, there is the possibility of bifurcations of the heteroclinic orbit as c varies. We give a detailed analysis of the bifurcation of the heteroclinic orbits when f is zero at the five points −1 < −θ < 0 < θ < 1 and f is odd. The heteroclinic orbit that tends to 1 as t → ∞ starts at one of the three zeros, −θ, 0, θ as t → −∞. It hops back and forth among these three zeros an infinite number of times in a predictable sequence as c is varied.     

Density Maximum Effect on Double-diffusive Natural Convection in a Porous Cavity with Variable Wall Temperature

The effect of density maximum of water on double-diffusive natural convection in a two-dimensioned cavity filled with a water saturated isotropic porous medium is studied numerically. The horizontal walls of the cavity are insulated. The opposing vertical walls are kept at different temperatures θ _h (linearly varies with height) and θ _c (θ _c ≤ θ _h ). The concentration levels at cold wall and hot wall are, respectively, c ₁ and c ₂ with c ₁ > c ₂. Brinkman-Forchheimer extended Darcy model is used to investigate the average heat and mass transfer rates. The non-dimensional equations for momentum, energy, and concentration are solved by finite volume method with power law scheme for convection and diffusion terms. The results are presented in the form of streamlines, isotherms, and isoconcentration lines for various values of Grashof numbers, Schmidt number, porosity, and Darcy numbers. It is observed that the density maximum of water has profound effect on the thermosolutal convection. The effects of different parameters on the velocity, temperature, and species concentrations are also shown graphically.     

On Saint-Venant's Principle for a Homogeneous Elastic Arch-Like Region

In this paper, we consider a two-dimensional homogeneous isotropic elastic material state in the arch-like region a ≤ r ≤ b, 0 ≤ θ ≤ α, where (r, θ) denote plane polar coordinates. We assume that three of the edges r = a, r = b, θ = α are traction-free, while the edge θ = 0 is subjected to an (in plane) self-equilibrated load. We define an appropriate measure for the Airy stress function φ and then we establish a clear relationship with the Saint-Venant's principle on such regions. We introduce a cross-sectional integral function I(θ) which is shown to be a convex function and satisfies a second-order differential inequality. Consequently, we establish a version of the Saint-Venant principle for such a curvilinear strip, without requiring of any condition upon the dimensions of the arch-like region.     

Rheology of poly(methyl methacrylate-<Emphasis Type="Italic">co</Emphasis>-styrene) particles suspended in water: effects of electrostatic surface layer

 Linear and nonlinear viscoelastic properties were examined for aqueous suspensions of monodisperse poly(methyl methacrylate-co-styrene) (MS) particles having the radius a ₀ =45 nm and the volume fractions φ=0.428−0.448. These particles had surface charges and the resulting electrostatic surface layer (electric double layer) had a thickness of t_s=5.7 nm. At low frequencies in the linear viscoelastic regime, the MS particles behaved approximately as the Brownian hard particles having an effective radius a _eff=a ₀ + t_s, and the dependence of their zero-shear viscosity η₀ on an effective volume fraction φ_eff (={a _eff/a ₀}³φ) agreed with the φ dependence of η₀ of ideal hard-core silica suspensions. In a range of φ_eff < 0.63, this φ_eff dependence was well described by the Brady theory. However, the φ_eff dependence of the high-frequency plateau modulus was weaker and the terminal relaxation mode distribution was narrower for the MS suspensions than for the hard-core suspensions. This result suggested that the electrostatic surface layer of the MS particles was soft and penetrable (at high frequencies). In fact, this “softness” was more clearly observed in the nonlinear regime: the nonlinear damping against step strain was weaker and the thinning under steady shear was less significant for the MS suspension than for the hard-core silica suspensions having the same φ_eff. These weaker nonlinearities of the concentrated MS particles with φ_eff∼ 0.63 (maximum volume fraction for random packing) suggested that the surface layers of those particles were mutually penetrating to provide the particles with a rather large mobility. Received: 10 July 2001 Accepted: 2 November 2001     

Centrifugal instability and the rib vortices in the cylinder wake

The physical mechanism for generation of streamwise vortices (or rib vortices) in the cylinder wake is numerically investigated with a finite-difference scheme. Rayleigh's theory of centrifugal instability for inviscid axisymmetric flow is extended to analyze the 2-D primary flows. Accordingly, an analytical dimensionless groupRay=−(r/v _θ)∂v _θ/∂r−1 is derived, wherev _θ represents the velocity of a fluid element relative to the oncoming flow,r is the local curvature radius of the element pathline. Centrifugal instability occurs whenRay>0. Stability analyses are carried out with this discriminant for primary flows at different time levels in a half shedding period of the von Kármán (or vK) vortices. Unstable areas are identified and the locations of rib vortices are coincident well with the unstable areas within the first wavelength of vK vortices behind the cylinder. The numerical results also show that rib vortices experience amplification in this region. It is apparent that centrifugal instability plays an important role in the generation of rib vortices in the cylinder wake. The project spported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China     

The interfacial crack between two dissimilar elastic-plastic materials

This paper presents an exact asymptotic analysis on the interfacial crack between two dissimilar elastic-plastic materials. These two materials have identical hardening exponent (n ₁=n ₂) but different hardening coefficient (α₁ ≠ α₂). Two groups of the near-crack-tip fields have been obtained, which not only satisfy the continuity of both tractions (σ_θ, τ_rθ) and displacements (u _r ,u _θ) on the interface, but also meet the traction free conditions on the crack faces. The first group of fields have the mode mixityM ^P quite close toM ^P =1 (MODE I) within the whole range 0 ≤ α₁/α₂ < ∞. As for the second group of fields, which is only obtained within the narrow range 0.9 ≤ α₁/α₂ ≤ 1, it is found that the mode mixity changes sharply with the ratio value α₁/α₂. The project supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China     

Identification of Heterogeneous Constitutive Parameters in a Welded Specimen: Uniform Stress and Virtual Fields Methods for Material Property Estimation

Local strain data obtained throughout the entire weld region encompassing both the weld nugget and heat affected zones (HAZs) are processed using two methodologies, uniform stress and virtual fields, to estimate specific heterogeneous material properties throughout the weld zone. Results indicate that (a) the heterogeneous stress–strain behavior obtained by using a relatively simple virtual fields model offers a theoretically sound approach for modeling stress–strain behavior in heterogeneous materials, (b) the local stress–strain results obtained using both a uniform stress assumption and a simplified uniaxial virtual fields model are in good agreement for strains ɛ _xx < 0.025, (c) the weld nugget region has a higher hardening coefficient, higher initial yield stress and a higher hardening exponent, consistent with the fact that the steel weld is overmatched and (d) for ɛ _xx > 0.025, strain localization occurs in the HAZ region of the specimen, resulting in necking and structural effects that complicate the extraction of local stress strain behavior using either of the relatively simple models.

Thermal reliability testing of functionally gradient materials using thermal shock method

We found a solution of an unsteady two-dimensional heat conduction equation in a functionally gradient material (FGM) which is subjected to a double thermal shock, namely, a local heating of a specimen by a power laser beam and cooling of a heated surface by a water-air spray. We developed an analytical method whereby a coating is described as a laminated plate composed of n layers with the constant material properties within a layer. Temperature distribution in a nonhomogeneous laminated plate is obtained in a form of series using the Laplace–Hankel integral transforms. In order to extend the model of a laminated plate to describe FGM where thermal physical characteristics are continuous functions of spatial coordinate, we considered the limiting case of the obtained temperature distribution when the thickness of the layer iΔ _i → 0, and the number of layers n→∞. This allowed us to obtain the temperature distribution in an easy-to-use analytical form which can be used for determining thermal stresses in FGM. The dependence of the temperature distribution in FGM on the operating parameters of a double thermal shock method, e.g., a duration of heating, laser beam radius, the rate of a spray cooling, is discussed. Received on 3 May 1999     

Asymptotic computation of the inhomogeneity energy in a body in an external stress field

We consider a problem on an ellipsoidal inhomogeneity in an infinitely extended homogeneous isotropic elastic medium. The inhomogeneity differs from the ambient body in the elastic moduli (Poisson’s ratio ν and shear modulus μ) and in that it has intrinsic strains. We use the equivalent inclusion method to write out expressions for the Helmholtz and Gibbs free energy of the inhomogeneity as quadratic forms in the intrinsic strains and strains at infinity. The general expressions for the coefficients of these quadratic forms are written out as three rank four tensors characterizing the contribution to the energy by the plastic strain (ɛ _p ²), by the strain at infinity (ɛ ₀²), and (only for the Gibbs energy) by the cross term ɛ ⁰ ɛ _p .     

Theoretical development and closed-form solution of nonlinear vibrations of a directly excited nanotube-reinforced composite cantilevered beam

The nonlinear equations of motion of planar bending vibration of an inextensible viscoelastic carbon nanotube (CNT)-reinforced cantilevered beam are derived. The viscoelastic model in this analysis is taken to be the Kelvin–Voigt model. The Hamilton principle is employed to derive the nonlinear equations of motion of the cantilever beam vibrations. The nonlinear part of the equations of motion consists of cubic nonlinearity in inertia, damping, and stiffness terms. In order to study the response of the system, the method of multiple scales is applied to the nonlinear equations of motion. The solution of the equations of motion is derived for the case of primary resonance, considering that the beam is vibrating due to a direct excitation. Using the properties of a CNT-reinforced composite beam prototype, the results for the vibrations of the system are theoretically and experimentally obtained and compared.     

Apparatus for Testing Concrete under Multiaxial Compression at Elevated Temperature (mac2T)

This paper describes a new test facility for determining material mechanical properties of structural concrete. The novel facility subjects 100 mm cubic concrete specimens to true multiaxial compression (σ₁ ≠ σ₂ ≠ σ₃) up to 400 MPa at temperatures of up to 300°C. Forces are delivered through three independent loading frames equipped with servo-controlled hydraulic actuators creating uniform displacement boundary conditions via rigid platens. Specimen deformation is calculated from displacements measured to an accuracy of 10⁻⁶ m using a system of six laser interferometers. The combination of stiff loading frames, rigid platens, an accurate and reliable strain measurement system and a fast control system enables investigation of the material response in the post-peak range. The in-house developed control software allows complex multi-stage experiments involving (i) load and temperature cycling, (ii) small stress probes and (iii) arbitrary (pre-defined) loading paths. The program also enables experiments in which the values of the control parameters and the execution of the test sequences depend on the response of the specimen during the test. The capabilities of the facility are illustrated in this paper by experiments determining the effects of different heat-load regimes on the strength and stiffness of the material and tests identifying the tangent stiffness matrix of the material and the associated changes in the acoustic tensor under multiaxial compression.     

Effect of different sized transverse square grooves on a turbulent boundary layer

The effect of three different sized transverse square grooves (5, 10, and 20 mm) on a turbulent boundary layer was investigated at two values of momentum thickness Reynolds numbers (R _θ =1,000 and 3,000) using hot-wire anemometry. The ratios of the groove depth to the boundary layer thickness (d/δ ₀) are approximately 0.07, 0.13, and 0.27. Wall shear stress (τ _w), mean velocity (U), and turbulence intensity downstream of the grooves are compared to those on a corresponding smooth wall The effects of the grooves are more significant at the higher R _θ , with the most pronounced effects caused by the largest size groove. There is an increase in mean velocity (U), streamwise (u′/U ₀), and wall-normal (ν′/U ₀) turbulence intensities in the near-wall region immediately downstream of the grooves. The increase propagates outwards in the layer as the streamwise distance increases downstream of the grooves. The increase in ν′/U ₀ is much more significant than that of u′/U ₀, which is also evident in the spectra of u′ and ν′. There is an increase in τ _w over the smooth wall value immediately downstream of the grooves at R _θ =1,000, with the increase being more pronounced as the groove size increases. The growth of the internal layer downstream of the grooves is found to scale with the groove size, and is more rapid at R _θ =3,000. Published online: 23 November 2002     

Forced oscillations of a rotating shaft with nonlinear spring characteristics and internal damping (1/2 order subharmonic oscillations and entrainment)

Nonlinear forced oscillations of a rotating shaft with nonlinear spring characteristics and internal damping are studied. In particular, entrainment phenomena at the critical speeds of 1/2 order subharmonic oscillations of forward and backward whirling modes are investigated. A self-excited oscillation appears in the wide range above the major critical speed. The amplitude of this oscillation reaches a limit value and then a self-sustained oscillation occurs. In the vicinity of a 1/2 order subharmonic oscillation of a forward whirling mode, a self-excited oscillation is entrained by a subharmonic oscillation. In the vicinity of a 1/2 order subharmonic oscillation of a backward whirling mode, either a self-excited oscillation or a subharmonic oscillation occurs.Experiments were made by an elastic rotating shaft with a disc. Nonlinearity in its restoring force was due to an angular clearance of a bearing and internal damping was due to friction between the shaft and an inner ring of the bearing. A self-excited oscillation was observed in the range above the major critical speed and this self-excited oscillation was entrained by a 1/2 order subharmonic oscillation of a forward whirling mode.Nomenclature O–xyz rectangular coordinate system - , _x, _y inclination angle of a shaft and its projections on the xz- and yz-planes - _x, _y inclination angles in rotating coordinates - , polar coordinates - I _p polar moment of inertia of a rotor - I diametral moment of inertia of a rotor - i _p ratio of I _p to I - dynamic unbalance of a rotor - rotating speed (angular velocity) - F magnitude of a dynamic unbalance force, F = (1 – i _p )² - c external damping coefficient - h internal damping coefficient - t time - D _x , D _y internal damping terms in stationary coordinates - D _x , D _y internal damping terms in rotating coordinates - N _x , N _y nonlinear terms in restoring forces     

Limiting conditions for compression testing of flat specimens in the split hopkinson pressure bar

The split Hopkinson pressure bar (SHPB) technique is analyzed during the initial stages of loading by means of axisymmetric finite element simulations of dynamic compression tests. Limiting strains as functions of the test parameters such as the specimen diameterd and heighth were found to ensure a one-dimensional stress state and axial stress homogeneity in specimens of elastic-perfectly plastic material. The one-dimensional stress state is necessary and sufficient for accurate test results for flat specimens (h/d≤0.5) and nonflat specimens, respectively, with diameters up to half of the bar diameter. Only very small values of the Coulomb friction constraint (μ≈0.01) seem to be acceptable. The significance of the determined limiting conditions to the more practical case of a rate dependent material is investigated using an elastic-viscoplastic material for the specimen. The stress and strain rate reconstructed from the calculated bar signals (according to the SHPB analysis) are compared with stresses and strain rates averaged over the cross section of the specimen. Well-known inertia corrections improve the results of the SHPB procedure, but errors remain for small strains and highly time dependent strain rates.