Variation of the structure and permeability of tensioned fiber layers during impregnation with a thermoplastic polymer melt

The influence of displacements of tensioned fibers on the impregnation of fibrous layers with a polymer melt and on the final composite structure is studied. Using computer simulation, it is shown that, during impregnation, the structure of tensioned fibrous layers changes considerably depending on the initial arrangement and tensioning of fibers. The consolidated regions formed under the melt front move inside the impregnated layer with the advancing melt front. Displacement of the tensioned fibers as well as the formation of “washouts” favors the impregnation of internal layers, but cause significant inhomogeneity of the polymer structure. The surface (on the side of the melt flow) regions are more saturated with the polymer than the internal ones. A difference in the melt percolation mechanisms at various impregnation regimes is revealed. The effective permeability coefficients of a tensioned fiber layer are not constant but depend on the conditions and regimes of impregnation. Submitted to the 11th Conference on the Mechanics of Composite Materials (Riga, June 11–15, 2000). Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, Vol. 36, No. 2, pp. 259–270, March–April, 2000.     

Physicomechanical characteristics of a disperse-filled polytetrafluoroethylene

Composite polymer materials based on PTFE containing ultradisperse -sialon (1–10 wt.%) as the cross-linking agent are studied. It is shown that the injection of small amounts of fillers (1–2 wt.%) increases the degree of composite crystallinity. A correlation between the structure, element distribution on the surface layers of samples, and tribotechnical characteristics of composites is found. The change in the physicomechanical characteristics is associated with the effect of the interstructural plasticization.Ammosov Yakutsk State University, Yakutsk, Russia. Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, Vol. 35, No. 6, pp. 797–806, November–December, 1999.     

Creep of polymer concrete in the nonlinear region

Two polyester-based polymer concretes with various volume content of diabase as an extender and aggregate are tested in creep under compression at different stress levels. The phenomenological and structural approaches are both used to analyze the experimental data. Common features of changes in the instantaneous and creep compliances are clarified, and a phenomenological creep model which accounts for the changes in the instantaneous compliance and in the retardation spectrum depending on the stress level is developed. It is shown that the model can be used to describe the experimental results of stress relaxation and creep under repeated loading. Modeling of the composite structure and subsequent solution of the optimization problem confirm the possibility of the existence of an interphase layer more compliant than the binder. A direct correlation between the interphase volume content and the instantaneous compliance of the composite is revealed. It is found that the distinction in nonlinearity of the viscoelastic behavior of the two polymer concretes under investigation can be due to the difference in their porosity. Submitted to the 11th International Conference on Mechanics of Composite Materials (Riga, June 11–15, 2000.) Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, Vol. 36, No. 2, pp. 147–164, 2000.     

Fast formula of a reliability ofm-consecutive-k-out-of-n:F system with cyclek

Anm-consecutive-k-out-of-n:F system is a system ofn linearly arranged components which fails if and only if at leastm non-overlapping sequences ofk components fail, when there arek distinct components with failure probabilitiesq _i fori=1,...,k and where the failure probability of thej-th component (j=rk+i (1 ≤i ≤k) isq _j =q _i , we call this system by anm-consecutive-k-out-of-n:F system with cycle (or period)k. In this paper we give a formula of the failure probability ofm-consecutive-k-out-of-n:F system with cyclek via the failure probability of consecutive-k-out-of-n:F system.     

Exact Convergence Rate for the Distributions of GI/M/c/K Queue as K Tends to Infinity

We obtain the exact convergence rate of the stationary distribution ^(K) of the embedded Markov chain in GI/M/c/K queue to the stationary distribution of the embedded Markov chain in GI/M/c queue as K. Similar result for the time-stationary distributions of queue size is also included. These generalize Choi and Kim's results of the case c=1 by nontrivial ways. Our results also strengthen the Simonot's results [5].     

Non-negative scalar curvature

We study topological obstructions to the existence of Riemannian metrics of non-negative scalar curvature on almost spin manifolds using the Dirac operator, the Bochner technique, C ^* algebras and von Neumann algebras. We also derive some obstructions in terms of the eta invariants of Atiyah, Patodi and Singer. Next, we prove vanishing theorems for the Atiyah-Milnor genus. Finally, we derive obstructions to the existence of metrics of non-negative scalar curvature along the leaves of a leafwise non-amenable foliation on a spin manifold.     

On helicoidal ends of minimal surfaces

This article analyzes the behaviour of helicoidal ends of properly embedded minimal surfaces, namely properly embedded infinite total curvature minimal annuli of parabolic type, satisfying a growth condition on the curvature via the Gauss map, and a geometric transversality condition. Then we show that embeddedness forces the end to be asymptotic either to a plane, or a helicoid or a spiraling helicoid. In all three cases, the Gauss map can be described in very simple terms. Finally this local result yields a global corollary stating the rigidity of embedded minimal helicoids.     

Extending analyticK-subanalytic functions

Letg:U→ℝ (U open in ℝⁿ) be an analytic and K-subanalytic (i. e. definable in ℝ _an ^K , whereK, the field of exponents, is any subfield ofℝ) function. Then the set of points, denoted Σ, whereg does not admit an analytic extension is K-subanalytic andg can be extended analytically to a neighbourhood of Ū\∑. Partially supported by the European RTN Network RAAG (contract no. HPRN-CT-00271)     

The minimizing of the Nielsen root classes

Given a map f: X→Y and a Nielsen root class, there is a number associated to this root class, which is the minimal number of points among all root classes which are H-related to the given one for all homotopies H of the map f. We show that for maps between closed surfaces it is possible to deform f such that all the Nielsen root classes have cardinality equal to the minimal number if and only if either N R[f]≤1, or N R[f]>1 and f satisfies the Wecken property. Here N R[f] denotes the Nielsen root number. The condition “f satisfies the Wecken property is known to be equivalent to |deg(f)|≤N R[f]/(1−χ(M ₂)−χ(M ₁0/(1−χ(M ₂)) for maps between closed orientable surfaces. In the case of nonorientable surfaces the condition is A(f)≤N R[f]/(1−χ(M ₂)−χ(M ₂)/(1−χ(M ₂)). Also we construct, for each integer n≥3, an example of a map f: K _n →N from an n-dimensionally connected complex of dimension n to an n-dimensional manifold such that we cannot deform f in a way that all the Nielsen root classes reach the minimal number of points at the same time.     

Sets with two associative operations

In this paper we consider duplexes, which are sets with two associative binary operations. Dimonoids in the sense of Loday are examples of duplexes. The set of all permutations carries a structure of a duplex. Our main result asserts that it is a free duplex with an explicitly described set of generators. The proof uses a construction of the free duplex with one generator by planary trees.     

An existence result for a quadrature surface free boundary problem

The aim of this paper is to present two different approachs in order to obtain an existence result to the so-called quadrature surface free boundary problem. The first one requires the shape derivative calculus while the second one depends strongly on the compatibility condition of the Neumann problem. A necessary and sufficient condition of existences is given in the radial case.     

Smooth approximations without critical points

In any separable Banach space containing c ₀ which admits a C ^k-smooth bump, every continuous function can be approximated by a C ^k-smooth function whose range of derivative is of the first category. Moreover, the approximation can be constructed in such a way that its derivative avoids a prescribed countable set (in particular the approximation can have no critical points). On the other hand, in a Banach space with the RNP, the range of the derivative of every smooth bounded bump contains a set residual in some neighbourhood of zero.     

On the lattice of deductive systems of a BL-algebra

For a BL-algebra A we denote by Ds(A) the lattice of all deductive systems of A. The aim of this paper is to put in evidence new characterizations for the meet-irreducible elements on Ds(A). Hyperarchimedean BL-algebras, too, are characterized.     

Existence and nonexistence results for reaction-diffusion equations in product of cones

Problems of existence and nonexistence of global nontrivial solutions to quasilinear evolution differential inequalities in a product of cones are investigated. The proofs of the nonexistence results are based on the test-function method developed, for the case of the whole space, by Mitidieri, Pohozaev, Tesei and Véron. The existence result is established using the method of supersolutions.     

Analysis of customers’ impatience in queues with server vacations

Many models for customers impatience in queueing systems have been studied in the past; the source of impatience has always been taken to be either a long wait already experienced at a queue, or a long wait anticipated by a customer upon arrival. In this paper we consider systems with servers vacations where customers’ impatience is due to an absentee of servers upon arrival. Such a model, representing frequent behavior by waiting customers in service systems, has never been treated before in the literature. We present a comprehensive analysis of the single-server, M/M/1 and M/G/1 queues, as well as of the multi-server M/M/c queue, for both the multiple and the single-vacation cases, and obtain various closed-form results. In particular, we show that the proportion of customer abandonments under the single-vacation regime is smaller than that under the multiple-vacation discipline. This work was supported by the Euro-Ngi network of excellence.     

Spectral geometry for Riemannian foliations

Let F be a Riemannian foliation on a Riemannian manifold (M, g), with bundle-like metric g. Aside from the Laplacian △_g associated to the metric g, there is another differential operator, the Jacobi operator J▽, which is a second order elliptic operator acting on sections of the normal bundle. Its spectrum is discrete as a consequence of the compactness of M. Hence one has two spectra, spec (M, g) = spectrum of △_g (acting on functions), and spec (F, J▽) = spectrum of J▽. We discuss the following problem: Which geometric properties of a Riemannian foliation F on a Riemannian manifold (M, g) are determined by the two types of spectral invariants?     

Partial decay on simple manifolds

Existence, uniqueness and weighted regularity of solutions of linear and nonlinear second-order uniformly elliptic differential equations on complete punctured compact N-manifolds, N > 2. Application to prescribed curvature problems: scalar curvature in a quasi-isometry class (including a contribution to the Lichnérowicz-York equation of General Relativity); Ricci curvature in a weighted Kähler class (with a related result in equiaffine geometry). A new asymptonic behaviour is allowed throughout, called partial decay, which requires its own maximum principle.Current support: CNRS; partial support; CEE contract GADGET # SC1-0105-C.     

Quaternionic geometry of matroids

Building on a recent paper [8], here we argue that the combinatorics of matroids are intimately related to the geometry and topology of toric hyperkähler varieties. We show that just like toric varieties occupy a central role in Stanley’s proof for the necessity of McMullen’s conjecture (or g-inequalities) about the classification of face vectors of simplicial polytopes, the topology of toric hyperkähler varieties leads to new restrictions on face vectors of matroid complexes. Namely in this paper we will give two proofs that the injectivity part of the Hard Lefschetz theorem survives for toric hyperkähler varieties. We explain how this implies the g-inequalities for rationally representable matroids. We show how the geometrical intuition in the first proof, coupled with results of Chari [3], leads to a proof of the g-inequalities for general matroid complexes, which is a recent result of Swartz [20]. The geometrical idea in the second proof will show that a pure O-sequence should satisfy the g-inequalities, thus showing that our result is in fact a consequence of a long-standing conjecture of Stanley.     

Transverse compression of PPTA fibers

Results of single transverse compression testing of PPTA and PIPD fibers, using a novel test device, are presented and discussed. In the tests, short lengths of single fibers are compressed between two parallel, stiff platens. The fiber elastic deformation is analyzed as a Hertzian contact problem. The inelastic deformation is analyzed by elastic-plastic FE simulation and by laser-scanning confocal microscopy of the compressed fibers ex post facto. The results obtained are compared to those in the literature and to the theoretical predictions of PPTA fiber transverse elasticity based on PPTA crystal elasticity.Presented at the 11th International Conference on Mechanics of Composite Materials (Riga, June 11–15, 2000).3TEX, Inc. 109, MacKenan Drive, Cary, North Carolina 27511, USA. Published in Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, Vol. 36, No. 4, pp. 533–544, March–April, 2000.     

Effect of the adhesion interaction and the degree of filling on the internal stresses in finely divided crystalline fillers of epoxy composites

Two kinds of model composite materials with finely divided (1) crystal fillers—LiF or polyethylene-filled epoxy resin cured by polyethylenepolyamine — are investigated by X-ray diffractometry. It is found that tensile stresses arise in LiF crystals, which show a strong adhesion interaction with the binder, for all degrees of filling (from =2.2 to =74 vol.%) examined. Their values remain constant up to a degree of filling at which the boundary layers come into contact with one another. Then, the inner stresses decrease with increasing . In the crystalline regions of polyethylene, where the adhesion between the binder and crystals is weak, the inner stresses are compressive. It is shown that the thickness of the boundary layer of the matrix on the surface of filler particles can be evaluated by the method used.Institute of Polymer Mechanics, Latvian University, Riga, LV-1006 Latvia. Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, Vol. 35, No. 6, pp. 807–820, November–December, 1999.