Creep and recovery of polypropylene/carbon nanotube composites

The creep and recovery of polypropylene/multi-walled carbon nanotube composites were studied. It was found for thermoplastics in general that the creep strain reduces with decreased temperature, and with enhanced content of carbon nanotubes. The incorporation of nanotubes improved the recovery property remarkably, especially at high temperature. The unrecovered creep strain of nanocomposites with content of 1 and 2.8 vol.% carbon nanotubes decreased by 53% and 73% compared to that of polymer matrix. To understand the mechanisms, the Burger’s model and Weibull distribution function were employed since the variations in the simulating parameters illustrated the influence of nano-fillers on the creep and recovery performance of the bulk matrix. To further study the recovery properties, the particular contribution of each Burger’s element to the total deformation was obtained and the recovery percentage was calculated. The time-temperature-superposition-principle was applied to predict the long-term creep behavior.     

Experimental investigation and modelling of compressibility induced by damage in carbon black-reinforced natural rubber

While natural rubber is commonly considered as an incompressible material, this study shows how carbon black-reinforced natural rubber (NR-CB), when subjected to various mechanical loading conditions (uniaxial, hydrostatic, monotonic, cyclic), is affected by volume change. Experiments show a volume variation even for low straining values and a significant volume change for large elongations. Moreover, volume change can be either reversible or not, depending on the loading conditions. It is related to a competition between void growth, chain orientation, and stress softening. At a microscopic scale, in situ Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) examinations and image analysis allow one to record damage and microscopic volume change as a function of elongation. Therefore the volume change measured at the microscopic scale is equal to the macroscopic one. Based on the experimental results, this paper shows that the hypothesis of incompressibility is worth being revisited. Thus, a nearly compressible approach was considered, where the strain energy is assumed to be the sum of spherical and deviatoric parts that are both affected by damage. The model was then implemented in a finite-element code. Good agreement was obtained between experimental results and model predictions for low triaxiality test conditions.     

Parametric study on single shot peening by dimensional analysis method incorporated with finite element method

Shot peening is a widely used surface treatment method by generating compressive residual stress near the surface of metallic materials to increase fatigue life and resistance to corrosion fatigue,cracking,etc.Compressive residual stress and dent profile are important factors to evaluate the effectiveness of shot peening process.In this paper,the influence of dimensionless parameters on maximum compressive residual stress and maximum depth of the dent were investigated.Firstly,dimensionless relations of processing parameters that affect the maximum compressive residual stress and the maximum depth of the dent were deduced by dimensional analysis method.Secondly,the influence of each dimensionless parameter on dimensionless variables was investigated by the finite element method.Furthermore,related empirical formulas were given for each dimensionless parameter based on the simulation results.Finally,comparison was made and good agreement was found between the simulation results and the empirical formula,which shows that a useful approach is provided in this paper for analyzing the influence of each individual parameter.     

Coarse-graining atomistic dynamics of brittle fracture by finite element method

In this work we present the finite element (FE) implementation of an atomistic formulation of balance equations and its application to coarse-grained (CG) simulation of dynamic fracture. First, we simulate a notched specimen that contains about 1.8 million atoms by the CG-FE method, and we compare the CG-FE results with that by all-atom molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. We find that CG-FE simulations with about 5% degrees of freedom of the MD simulation can capture the essential dynamic features, not in exact correspondence, but qualitatively and quantitatively similar to that obtained by MD simulations. We then proceed to simulate a series of micron-sized specimens by the CF-FE method. We find that it is the interaction of the forward propagating crack with the stress waves being reflected back by the boundaries of the specimen that triggers the dynamic instability and hence the branching of cracks in micron-sized specimens. The potential application of the method and future work for improvements are discussed.     

Transonic viscous-inviscid interaction by a finite element method

A method is outlined for solving two-dimensional transonic viscous flow problems, in which the velocity vector is split into the gradient of a potential and a rotational component. The approach takes advantage of the fact that for high-Reynolds-number flows the viscous terms of the Navier-Stokes equations are important only in a thin shear layer and therefore solution of the full equations may not be needed everywhere. Most of the flow can be considered inviscid and, neglecting the entropy and vorticity effects, a potential model is a good approximation in the flow core. The rotational part of the flow can then be calculated by solution of the potential, streamfunction and vorticity transport equations. Implementation of the no-slip and no-penetration boundary conditions at the walls provides a simple mechanism for the interaction between the viscous and inviscid solutions and no extra coupling procedures are needed. Results are presented for turbulent transonic internal choked flows.     

A hybrid finite volume/finite element method for incompressible generalized Newtonian fluid flows on unstructured triangular meshes

This paper presents a hybrid finite volume/finite element method for the incompressible generalized Newtonian fluid flow （Power-Law model）. The collocated （i.e. non-staggered） arrangement of variables is used on the unstructured triangular grids, and a fractional step projection method is applied for the velocity-pressure coupling. The cell-centered finite volume method is employed to discretize the momentum equation and the vertex-based finite element for the pressure Poisson equation. The momentum interpolation method is used to suppress unphysical pressure wiggles. Numerical experiments demonstrate that the current hybrid scheme has second order accuracy in both space and time. Results on flows in the lid-driven cavity and between parallel walls for Newtonian and Power-Law models are also in good agreement with the published solutions.     

Multi-scale modeling of tensile behavior of carbon nanotube-reinforced composites

A multi-scale representative volume element (RVE) for modeling the tensile behavior of carbon nanotube-reinforced composites is proposed. The RVE integrates nanomechanics and continuum mechanics, thus bridging the length scales from the nano- through the mesoscale. A progressive fracture model based on the modified Morse interatomic potential is used for simulating the behavior of the isolated carbon nanotubes and the FE method for modeling the matrix and building the RVE. Between the nanotube and the matrix a perfect bonding is assumed until the interfacial shear stress exceeds the corresponding strength. Then, nanotube/matrix debonding is simulated by prohibiting load transfer in the debonded region. Using the RVE, a unidirectional nanotube/polymer composite was modeled and the results were compared with corresponding rule-of-mixtures predictions. A significant enhancement in the stiffness of the polymer owing to the adding of the nanotubes is predicted. The effect of interfacial shear strength on the tensile behavior of the nanocomposite was also studied. Stiffness is found to be unaffected while tensile strength to significantly decrease with decreasing the interfacial shear strength.     

Generalized magneto-thermoelasticity in a nonhomogeneous isotropic hollow cylinder using the finite element method

In this paper, we constructed the equations of generalized magneto-thermoelasticity in a perfectly conducting medium. The formulation is applied to generalizations, the Lord–Shulman theory with one relaxation time, and the Green–Lindsay theory with two relaxation times, as well as to the coupled theory. The material of the cylinder is supposed to be nonhomogeneous isotropic both mechanically and thermally. The problem has been solved numerically using a finite element method. Numerical results for the temperature distribution, displacement, radial stress, and hoop stress are represented graphically. The results indicate that the effects of nonhomogeneity, magnetic field, and thermal relaxation times are very pronounced. In the absence of the magnetic field or relaxation times, our results reduce to those of generalized thermoelasticity and/or classical dynamical thermoelasticity, respectively. Results carried out in this paper can be used to design various nonhomogeneous magneto-thermoelastic elements under magnetothermal load to meet special engineering requirements. An erratum to this article can be found at     

Nonlinear vibration of symmetrically laminated composite skew plates by finite element method

Here, the large amplitude free flexural vibration behavior of symmetrically laminated composite skew plates is investigated using the finite element method. The formulation includes the effects of shear deformation, in-plane and rotary inertia. The geometric non-linearity based on von Kármán's assumptions is introduced. The nonlinear matrix amplitude equation obtained by employing Galerkin's method is solved by direct iteration technique. Time history for the nonlinear free vibration of composite skew plate is also obtained using Newmark's time integration technique to examine the accuracy of matrix amplitude equation. The variation of nonlinear frequency ratios with amplitudes is brought out considering different parameters such as skew angle, fiber orientation and boundary condition.     

Determination of stress intensity factors by the finite element discretized symplectic method

When rewriting the governing equations in Hamiltonian form, analytical solutions in the form of symplectic series can be obtained by the method of separation of variable satisfying the crack face conditions. In theory, there exists sufficient number of coefficients of the symplectic series to satisfy any outer boundary conditions. In practice, the matrix relating the coefficients to the outer boundary conditions is ill-conditioned unless the boundary is very simple, e.g., circular. In this paper, a new two-level finite element method using the symplectic series as global functions while using the conventional finite element shape functions as local functions is developed. With the available classical finite elements and symplectic series, the main unknowns are no longer the nodal displacements but are the coefficients of the symplectic series. Since the first few coefficients are the stress intensity factors, post-processing is not required. A number of numerical examples as well as convergence studies are given.     

A total linearization method for solving viscous free boundary flow problems by the finite element method

In this paper a total linearization method is derived for solving steady viscous free boundary flow problems (including capillary effects) by the finite element method. It is shown that the influence of the geometrical unknown in the totally linearized weak formulation can be expressed in terms of boundary integrals. This means that the implementation of the method is simple. Numerical experiments show that the iterative method gives accurate results and converges very fast.     

Analysis of the electromechanical behavior of ferroelectric ceramics based on a nonlinear finite element model

A nonlinear finite element (FE) model based on domain switching was proposed to study the electromechanical behavior of ferroelectric ceramics. The incremental FE formulation was improved to avoid any calculation instability. The problems of mesh sensitivity and convergence, and the efficiency of the proposed nonlinear FE technique have been assessed to illustrate the versatility and potential accuracy of the said technique. The nonlinear electromechanical behavior, such as the hysteresis loops and butterfly curves, of ferroelectric ceramics subjected to both a uniform electric field and a point electric potential has been studied numerically. The results obtained are in good agreement with those of the corresponding theoretical and experimental analyses. Furthermore, the electromechanical coupling fields near (a) the boundary of a circular hole, (b) the boundary of an elliptic hole and (c) the tip of a crack, have been analyzed using the proposed nonlinear finite element method (FEM). The proposed nonlinear electromechanically coupled FEM is useful for the analysis of domain switching, deformation and fracture of ferroelectric ceramics.The project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (10025209, 10132010 and 90208002), the Research Grants of the Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China (HKU7086/02E) and the Key Grant Project of the Chinese Ministry of Education (0306)     

Cross validation of analytical and finite element models for Hydrodynamic Ram loads prediction in thin walled liquid filled containers

To reduce the vulnerability of both civilian and military aircraft, it is important to take the Hydrodynamic Ram pressure into account when designing their fuel tanks. Hydrodynamic Ram is especially dangerous for thin walled lightweight structures that cannot be armoured due to weight penalty reasons. Similarities in bubble behaviour between Hydrodynamic Ram and underwater explosion situations were observed in recent high-speed tank penetration/water entry experiments. A confined version of the Rayleigh–Plesset equation – which is classically used for incompressible bubble dynamics analysis (including underwater explosion) – was developed to simulate a bubble created by a Hydrodynamic Ram event induced by projectile penetration at ballistic speed in a confined geometry filled with a liquid. In the present work, the authors validate the proposed confined Rayleigh–Plesset equation for application on a spherical container thanks to quasi-incompressible ALE finite element simulation results. Then to determine the effect of liquid compressibility on confined bubble dynamics, the authors compare predictions of bubble radii obtained with the confined Rayleigh–Plesset equation with the prediction obtained using compressible finite element simulations. Eventually, the authors discuss differences in the bubble dynamics and hydrodynamic loads predictions obtained with the two approaches.     

Three-dimensional elastic–plastic finite element analysis for orthogonal cutting with discontinuous chip of 6-4 brass

An elastic–plastic finite element model is developed for 3D orthogonal cutting of discontinuous chips. The tool is P20 while the workpiece is made of 6-4 brass. Examined under the condition of low cutting speed are the initial crack location, the direction of crack growth and variations of discrete chips. These predictions are made possible by application of the strain energy density (SED) theory. The initial crack was formed above the tool tip and grew progressively along the stationary values of the SED function until the trajectory intersects with the free surface. The plastic deformation and friction result in a high equivalent stress in the secondary deformation zone of the first longitudinal chip. Stresses are also high at the location of crack initiation. The chip node near the tool face is sensitive to the contact of the tool face. As more residual stress prevails after the first longitudinal cut, degradation of the workpiece surface prevails and should be accounted for.     

Determination of stress intensity factor with direct stress approach using finite element analysis

In this article,a direct stress approach based on finite element analysis to determine the stress intensity fac-tor is improved.Firstly,by comparing the rigorous solution against the asymptotic solution for a problem of an infinite plate embedded a central crack,we found that the stresses in a restrictive interval near the crack tip given by the rigorous solution can be used to determine the stress intensity fac-tor,which is nearly equal to the stress intensity factor given by the asymptotic solution.Secondly,the crack problem is solved numerically by the finite element method.Depending on the modeling capability of the software,we designed an adaptive mesh model to simulate the stress singularity.Thus, the stress result in an appropriate interval near the crack tip is fairly approximated to the rigorous solution of the corre-sponding crack problem.Therefore,the stress intensity factor may be calculated from the stress distribution in the appro-priate interval,with a high accuracy.     

Galerkin finite element simulation of convection driven by rotation and gravitation

The performance of the Galerkin finite element method when applied to time-dependent convection involving rotation, self-gravitation and the normal gravity field in a horizontal cylinder is discussed in this paper. The governing equations, the parameters of the problem and our implementation of the numerical schemes are presented. The accuracy, spatial scale of resolution, flexibility and robustness of the resulting code show the element method as a valuable tool for research in this area or in related problems in astrophysical fluid dynamics. The numerical difficulties in large-amplitude flows are associated with an error-control scheme for time integration and the ‘short-time’ wiggles in transient Dirichlet problems. Coarse grids give the correct qualitative picture in most simulations, but the type of solution at short time (and hence grid refinement) presumably resolves the degeneracy in the azimuthal orientation of convection cells in flows driven by self-gravitation and (perhaps) centrifugal buoyancy. The final state in transient flows is a motionless isothermal fluid. However, residual motions can be nullified only in the limit of zero grid size in flows driven by centrifugal buoyancy (self-gravitation), while a fairly coarse grid is sufficient for this purpose in normal gravity-driven flows.     

Complex wavenumber Fourier analysis of the B-spline based finite element method

We present the results of one-dimensional complex wavenumber Fourier analysis of the B-spline variant of Finite Element Method (FEM). Generally, numerical results of elastic wave propagation in solids obtained by FEM are polluted by dispersion and attenuation. It was shown for the higher-order B-spline based FEM, that the optical modes did not occur in the case of infinite domains, unlike the higher-order Lagrangian and Hermitian finite elements, and also the dispersion errors are smaller. The paper’s main focus is on the wave propagation through B-spline multi-patch/segment discretization with the C⁰$C^0$ connection of B-spline segments and, chiefly, to the determining of dispersion and attenuation dependences. The numerical approach employed leads to substantial minimization of dispersion errors. Furthermore, the errors decrease in line with the increasing order of the B-spline elements/segments, with the local refinement, and also by the particular choice of the positions of control points through the optimizing procedure.     

Nodeless variable finite element method for heat transfer analysis by means of flux-based formulation and mesh adaptation

Based on flux-based formulation, a nodeless variable element method is developed to analyze two-dimensional steady-state and transient heat transfer problems. The nodeless variable element employs quadratic interpolation functions to provide higher solution accuracy without necessity to actually generate additional nodes. The flux-based formulation is applied to reduce the complexity in deriving the finite element equations as compared to the conventional finite element method. The solution accuracy is further improved by implementing an adaptive meshing technique to generate finite element mesh that can adapt and move along corresponding to the solution behavior. The technique generates small elements in the regions of steep solution gradients to provide accurate solution, and meanwhile it generates larger elements in the other regions where the solution gradients are slight to reduce the computational time and the computer memory. The effectiveness of the combined procedure is demonstrated by heat transfer problems that have exact solutions. These problems are: (a) a steady-state heat conduction analysis in a square plate subjected to a highly localized surface heating, and (b) a transient heat conduction analysis in a long plate subjected to a moving heat source. The English text was polished by Yunming Chen.     

Dual variational formulation for Trefftz finite element method of elastic materials

A dual variational principle is presented for Trefftz finite element analysis. The proof of the stationary conditions of the variational functional and the theorem on the existence of extremum are provided in this paper. They are boundary displacement condition, surface traction condition and interelement continuity condition. Based on the assumed intraelement and frame fields, element stiffness matrix equation is obtained which can easily be implemented into computer programs for numerical analysis with Trefftz finite element method. Two numerical examples are considered to illustrate the effectiveness and applicability of the proposed element model.     

Introduction of turbulent model in a mixed finite volume/finite element method

The aim of this work is to present a new numerical method to compute turbulent flows in complex configurations. With this in view, a k-? model with wall functions has been introduced in a mixed finite volume/finite element method. The numerical method has been developed to deal with compressible flows but is also able to compute nearly incompressible flows. The physical model and the numerical method are first described, then validation results for an incompressible flow over a backward-facing step and for a supersonic flow over a compression ramp are presented. Comparisons are performed with experimental data and with other numerical results. These simulations show the ability of the present method to predict turbulent flows, and this method will be applied to simulate complex industrial flows (flow inside the combustion chamber of gas turbine engines). The main goal of this paper is not to test turbulence models, but to show that this numerical method is a solid base to introduce more sophisticated turbulence model.