Strength and Fracture Toughness of Polyurethane Elastomers Modified with Carbon Nanotubes

Very small additions of single-wall carbon nanotubes produce an anomalous change in the mechanical properties of a cross-linked polyurethane-amide-urea elastomer containing 10% of polyamide-6: its elastic modulus and ultimate stress reveal local maxima at a nanofiller content of hundredths and thousandths of a percent. Previously, the behavior of the elastic modulus was simulated reasoning from the formation of an intermediate phase layer in the elastomer at particle contact boundaries. Here, on the same basis, we simulate the behavior of its strength as a function of nanotube concentration and consider crack models accounting for the influence of nanotubes on the crack tip zone and fracture toughness.     

High pressure effect on structural and mechanical properties of some LnO (Ln=Sm, Eu, Yb) compounds

The structural and mechanical properties of LnO (Ln=Sm, Eu, Yb) compounds have been investigated using a modified interionic potential theory, which includes the effect of Coulomb screening. We predicted a structural phase transition from NaCl (B₁)- to CsCl (B₂)-type structure and elastic properties in LnO compounds at very high pressure. The anomalous properties of these compounds have been correlated in terms of the hybridisation of f-electrons of the rare earth ion with conduction band and strong mixing of f-states of lanthanides with the p-orbital of neighbouring chalcogen ion. For EuO, the calculated transition pressure, bulk modulus and lattice parameter are close to the experimental data. The nature of bonds between the ions is predicted by simulating the ion-ion (Ln-Ln and Ln-O) distances at high pressure. The second order elastic constants along with shear modulus and Young's modulus, elastic anisotropy and Poisson's ratio are also presented for these oxides.     

Structural phase transition and elastic properties of cerium chalcogenides at high pressure

The structural and elastic properties of cerium chalcogenides (CeZ, Z = S, Se, Te) under high pressure have been investigated by using the potential model considered up to third nearest neighbor interaction. The computed values of B1-B2 phase transition pressure, equation of state (compression curve), bulk modulus, its first order pressure derivative and elastic constants in the case of cerium chalcogenides agree well with the experimental results. The present study shows the anomalous behavior of cerium chalcogenides in comparison to the alkaline earth chalcogenides, due to the presence of Kondo effect and reentrant valence behavior of Ce in cerium chalcogenides.     

Coupling of the lattice and superlattice deformations and hysteresis in thermal expansion for the quasi-one-dimensional conductor TaS3

An original interferometer-based setup for measurements of length of needlelike samples is developed, and thermal expansion of o-TaS(3) crystals is studied. Below the Peierls transition the temperature hysteresis of length L is observed, the width of the hysteresis loop deltaL/L being up to 5 x 10(-5). The behavior of the loop is anomalous: the length changes so that it is in front of its equilibrium value. The hysteresis loop couples with that of conductivity. With lowering the temperature down to 100 K the charge-density waves' elastic modulus grows achieving a value comparable with the lattice Young modulus. Our results could be helpful in consideration of different systems with intrinsic superstructures.     

Anomaly of the internal friction in helium-4 crystals prepared with the burst-like growth method

The internal friction is measured in the ⁴He crystals prepared with the conventional and burst-like methods at temperature 0.65 K and frequency 75 kHz. It is observed that the crystals, grown too rapidly, have an excess damping and smaller dynamic elastic modulus. The magnitude of the effect enhances as the initial overpressure increases. The contribution to the excess damping vanishes at the critical overpressure 3.5 mbar separating the regions of the normal and anomalous crystal growth at the corresponding temperature. Corrections to the modulus and decrement relax with the time constant of about 3 ms. The regime of the burst-like growth may result in the crystals with the internal state different from that of equilibrium crystals.     

Effect of heat treatment on the elastic characteristics of a bulk amorphous Zr-Cu-Ni-Al-Ti alloy

The changes in the elastic properties of a bulk Zr_52.5Cu_17.9Ni_14.6Al₁₀Ti₅ metallic glass exposed to heat treatments at temperatures of up to 700°C were studied by acoustic methods. An anomalous decrease in the alloy shear modulus (to values lower than that in the amorphous state) was found after the first stages of nanocrystallization.     

Universal elasticity and fluctuations of nematic gels

We study elasticity of spontaneously orientationally ordered amorphous solids, characterized by a vanishing transverse shear modulus, as realized by nematic elastomers and gels. We show that local heterogeneities and elastic nonlinearities conspire to lead to anomalous nonlocal universal elasticity controlled by a nontrivial infrared fixed point. Namely, such solids are characterized by universal shear and bending moduli that, respectively, vanish and diverge at long scales, are universally incompressible, and exhibit a universal negative Poisson ratio and a non-Hookean elasticity down to arbitrarily low strains. Based on expansion about five dimensions, we argue that the nematic order is stable to thermal fluctuation and local heterogeneities down to d(lc)<3.     

Elastic Modulus of Fe72.5Ga27.5 Magnetostrictive Alloy

The elastic modulus of Fe72.5Ga27.5 magnetostrictive alloy is determined by testing ac impedance resonance frequency and first-principle calculations. The observed elastic modulus is 90.2 GPa for a directionally solidified sample and 103.4 GPa for a water-quenched sample tested in a dc magnetic field of 32. 7mT without compressive pre-stress. The bulk modulus by first-principles calculation is 179.3GPa which is basically consistent with the experimental result. The elastic modulus first increases and then decreases with increasing dc magnetic field, attributed to magnetostriction occurrence in the Fe72.5Ga27.5 alloy. The elastic modulus increases with increasing compressive pre-stress, resulting from the initial magnetic states change under the applied compressive pre-stress. The elastic modulus increases match well with the improved magnetostriction after quenching.     

Compliance profile of the human cornea as measured by atomic force microscopy

The ability to accurately determine the elastic modulus of each layer of the human cornea is a crucial step in the design of better corneal prosthetics. In addition, knowledge of the elastic modulus will allow design of substrates with relevant mechanical properties for in vitro investigations of cellular behavior. Previously, we have reported elastic modulus values for the anterior basement membrane and Descemet's membrane of the human cornea, the surfaces in contact with the epithelial and endothelial cells, respectively. We have completed the compliance profile of the stromal elements of the human cornea by obtaining elastic modulus values for Bowman's layer and the anterior stroma. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) was used to determine the elastic modulus, which is a measure of the tissue stiffness and is inversely proportional to the compliance. The elastic response of the tissue allows analysis with the Hertz equation, a model that provides a relationship between the indentation force and depth and is a function of the tip radius and the modulus of the substrate. The elastic modulus values for each layer of the cornea are: 7.5±4.2 kPa (anterior basement membrane), 109.8±13.2 kPa (Bowman's layer), 33.1±6.1 kPa (anterior stroma), and 50±17.8 kPa (Descemet's membrane). These results indicate that the biophysical properties, including elastic modulus, of each layer of the human cornea are unique and may play a role in the maintenance of homeostasis as well as in the response to therapeutic agents and disease states. The data will also inform the design and fabrication of improved corneal prosthetics.     

黏弹性吸声材料复弹性模量优化研究

针对黏弹性材料吸声效率问题,利用分层介质声传播理论和数值算法优化了不同物理条件下材料的复弹性模量。采用参数等效的方法分析了含气泡黏弹性材料的声学特性,并给出了此种材料优化后的弹性模量曲线。根据物理模型计算了一定边界条件下材料复弹性模量等吸声系数曲线,得到了几种背衬条件下黏弹性材料吸声系数大于0.8的弹性模量和损耗因子范围。研究表明调节黏弹性材料的复弹性模量可以有效提高材料的吸声性能,吸声系数大于0.8时其弹性模量和损耗因子范围在不同背衬条件下差异较大,发现一定厚度的钢背衬会降低调控复弹性模量的难度,对含气泡黏弹性材料的计算也可得到类似结果。      

Experiment investigation on effects of elastic modulus on cavitation erosion of silicone rubber

Research into cavitation phenomena in various fields shows that the elastic modulus of a boundary has a potential impact on cavitation erosion. To obtain the direct relationship between the elastic modulus of the boundary and cavitiation erosion, single-layer samples with different chemical composition and moduli, and double-layer samples with different elastic moduli and the same surface layer material, were prepared with silicone rubber. The results of cavitation experiments on single-layer samples, show that the coating chemical composition and mechanical properties together affect the cavitation morphology of the coating, and dominant factors vary with erosion stage. Through the cavitation test of double-layer samples, it was found that there is a positive correlation between the elastic modulus of the coating and the degree of cavitation. This study helps us to understand the relationship between coating elastic modulus and cavitation more directly, and provides theoretical and technical guidance for the application of anti-cavitation for elastic coating in engineering.     

Regulation of the elastic modulus of polyurethane microarrays and its influence on gecko-inspired dry adhesion

We studied the influence of the elastic modulus on the gecko-inspired dry adhesion by regulating the elastic modulus of bulk polyurethane combined with changing the size of microarrays. Segmented polyurethane (PU) was utilized to fabricate micro arrays by the porous polydimethyl siloxane (PDMS) membrane molding method. The properties of the micro arrays, such as the elastic modulus and adhesion, were investigated by Triboindenter. The study demonstrates that bulk surfaces show the highest elastic modulus, with similar values at around 175 MPa and decreasing the arrays radius causes a significant decrease in E, down to 0.62 MPa. The corresponding adhesion experiments show that decrease of the elastic modulus can enhance the adhesion which is consistent with the recent theoretical models.     

声波在一维易膨胀介质中传播的计算机模拟

建立了一种新的介质模型，其弹性模量在声波处于压缩状态时较大，而在膨胀状态时较小. 在这种介质中，纯的压缩或膨胀波的传播特性与一般弹性介质类似，只是它们分别以压缩声 速或膨胀声速传播.但当它们在某一区域中同时存在时，它们之间会相互耦合，产生非常强 的非线性效应.对这两种波在对行和追赶两种情况的耦合特性作了详细地模拟计算.结果显示 在两种情况下，压缩波和膨胀波的耦合均会造成体系的膨胀.体系的膨胀与压缩弹性模量和 膨胀弹性模量的相对差有关.此外，还对弹性模量随声波压力连续变化的体系进行了模拟计 算.结果证实由非连续变化的弹性模量所得的结论可由连续变化的弹性模量的极限情况得到. 关键词： 颗粒物质 声波 弹性介质     

Temperature dependence of elastic moduli of submicrocrystalline copper

The possibility of applying the two-component model of single-phase hybrid materials to the explanation of the anomalous temperature dependence of elastic moduli of copper with a submicrocrystalline structure has been discussed. An analysis has been performed based on new experimental data. A twin mechanism of changes in the crystallite orientation has been proposed. These changes cause the anomalous behavior of the elastic moduli of copper during deformation and subsequent heatings.     

Elastic moduli and poisson ratio for amorphous polymers and glasses

We propose that the product of the density by the square of the rms velocity of strain waves, which exhibits the features typical of elastic moduli, be referred to as effective (or characteristic) elastic modulus. The ratio of the bulk compression modulus to the effective elastic modulus is a single-valued function of the Poisson ratio not only for crystals and glasses, but also for amorphous organic polymers. The effective elastic modulus may be helpful in analysis of anharmonism of lattice vibrations of deformable bodies.     

光学玻璃弹性模量的自动化测量方法

针对现有光学玻璃弹性模量测量周期长、测量过程复杂等问题,提出了一种利用计算机图像处理技术快速测量小样品光学平板玻璃弹性模量的方法。基于接触力学理论和牛顿环干涉原理推导出测量光学玻璃弹性模量的解析式,利用图像处理技术的优势,通过摄像头拍摄牛顿环干涉图像,设计MFC监控与单张图片拍摄界面程序,自动测量牛顿环干涉图像中心黑斑半径,最后根据光学玻璃弹性模量与牛顿环干涉图像中心黑斑半径及牛顿环中心应力之间的关联关系,实现小样品光学玻璃弹性模量的快速测量。实验结果表明:在应力31.17 N～55.11 N范围内,光学玻璃弹性模量的测量相对误差不超过±8.8%;在应力55.11 N～71.07 N范围内,测量相对误差不超过±16%。     

TiN/TiB2异结构纳米多层膜的共格生长与力学性能

采用多靶磁控溅射法制备了一系列具有不同TiB₂调制层厚度的TiN/TiB_{2纳米多层膜.利用x射线衍射仪、高分辨电子显微镜和微力学探针研究了TiB2层厚变化对多层膜生长结构和力学性能的影响.结果表明，在fcc-TiN层(111)生长面的模板 作用下，原为非晶态的TiB2层在厚度小于2.9nm时形成hcp晶体态，并与fcc-TiN 形成共格外延生长；其界面共格关系为{111}TiN//{0001}TiB2，〈110〉TiN//〈1120〉TiB2.由于共格界面存在晶格失配 度，多层膜中形成拉、压交变的应力场，导致多层膜产生硬度和弹性模量升高的超硬效应， 最高硬度和弹性模量分别达到46.9GPa和465GPa.继续增加TiB2层的厚度，TiB2形成非晶态并破坏了与TiN层的共格外延生长，多层膜形成非晶TiN层和非晶TiB< sub>2层交替的调制结构，其硬度和弹性模量相应降低. 关键词： 2}纳米多层膜')" href="#">TiN/TiB₂纳米多层膜 共格生长 晶体化 力学性能     

Reinforcement of Carbon Nanotube/Polydimethylsiloxane True Nanocomposite

Russian Physics Journal - The paper shows that the elastic modulus of carbon nanotubes in a polymer matrix nanocomposite is lower not only than its nominal value, but also the elastic modulus of...     

Temperature effect on elastic modulus of thin films and nanocrystals

The stability of nanoscale devices is directly related to elasticity and the effect of temperature on the elasticity of thin films and nanocrystals. The elastic instability induced by rising temperature will cause the failure of integrated circuits and other microelectronic devices in service. The temperature effect on the elastic modulus of thin films and nanocrystals is unclear although the temperature dependence of the modulus of bulk materials has been studied for over half a century. In this paper, a theoretical model of the temperature-dependent elastic modulus of thin films and nanocrystals is developed based on the physical definition of the modulus by considering the size effect of the related cohesive energy and the thermal expansion coefficient. Moreover, the temperature effect on the modulus of Cu thin films is simulated by the molecular dynamics method. The results indicate that the elastic modulus decreases with increasing temperature and the rate of the modulus decrease increases with reducing thickness of thin films. The theoretical predictions based on the model are consistent with the results of computational simulations, semi-continuum calculations and the experimental measurements for Cu, Si thin films and Pd nanocrystals.     

Elastic modulus of polypyrrole nanotubes

The first measurements of the tensile elastic modulus of polypyrrole nanotubes are presented. The nanotubes were mechanically tested in three points bending using atomic force microscopy. The elastic tensile modulus was deduced from force-curve measurements on different nanotubes with outer diameter ranging between 35 and 160 nm. It is shown that the elastic modulus strongly increases when the thickness or outer diameter of polypyrrole nanotubes decreases.