Modelling and optimal control of coupled structural acoustic systems with piezoelectric elements

We construct a model of a shell with piezoelectric elements (patches) that take into account the mutual influence of deformations and electric fields. Coupled problems for the shell with piezoelectric patches and an acoustic field, are studied and results on the existence and the uniqueness are obtained. For this system we consider an optimal control problem on noise attenuation and obtain results on the existence, the uniqueness, necessary and sufficient conditions of optimality. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Theoretical study of hydrolysis mechanism of khellin

This paper describes khellin hydrolysis mechanism using semiemperical PM3 implemented in Gaussian 03 package. The calculations show that in the presence of an acidic media, an enolate molecular ion leads directly to ω-acetokhellinone while in the basic media it leads to khellinone.     

High pressure elastic and plastic deformations of silica: In situ diamond anvil cell Raman experiments

Normal silica glass is usually referred to as low density amorphous silica as it can be converted to high density amorphous silica by a hydrostatic pressure (polyamorphic transition). In this work in situ Raman experiments are performed in a diamond anvil cell up to 18 GPa. The pressure effects on the structure of silica after successive compression decompression experiments are analyzed. The mode Grüneisen parameters corresponding to the elastic compression of high density amorphous silica are obtained and compared with those of normal silica. A reorganization of the high density amorphous silica below 3 GPa is evidenced.     

Dense amorphous packing of binary hard sphere mixtures with chemical order: The stability of a solute ordered approximant

Recently, Miracle proposed that the intermediate structure in metallic glasses could be usefully characterized as an ordered face centered cubic packing of solute-centered coordination clusters. In this paper we examine the stability of such solute ordered arrangements in binary hard sphere mixtures subject to density maximization through local particle moves.     

Circular dichroism spectra of langasite family crystals in the range of electronic transitions of structure defects

The absorption and circular dichroism spectra of langasite family crystals are studied. Wide bands in the range of 285–500 nm that are related to the structure lattice defects are found. For all the crystals, these bands are in approximately the same spectral region, have identical structures, and can be attributed to one type of defects formed by cation vacancies and excess oxygen atoms in the optically active positions.     

Specific features of the formation of submicron inclusion in Ti:sapphire

Specific features of the formation of submicron (70–300 nm) inclusions in Ti:sapphire (Al₂O₃:Ti) grown in a carbon-containing medium have been investigated. These inclusions are caused by deviation from the melt stoichiometry and are formed during the melt-crystal phase transition. These defects are submicropores containing excess aluminum and its suboxides; they can be destroyed by thermal loading of a crystal.     

Analysis of thermally induced multistable composites

This paper models the non-linear flexural response of laminates that have piecewise variation of lay-up in the planform, using finite element analysis. Attention is focused on the effects that thermal stresses have on the potential multiple shapes of a composite structure. Unsymmetric laminates may possess more than a single equilibrium configuration, and during the cool-down the solution thus bifurcates at a critical temperature. In static analyses, numerical solutions are often coaxed to converge into one or the other branch of the solution. A methodology to overcome this problem is presented. Such modelling is necessary to allow application of multistable composite within morphing aircraft structures as multistable composites could provide a viable solution for the realisation of shape-adaptable structures.     

Ductile–brittle transitions in the fracture of plastically deforming,adhesively bonded structures. Part II: Numerical studies

To enable the effective and reliable use of structural adhesive bonding in automotive applications, the cohesive properties of a joint need to be determined over a wide range of loading rates. In this paper, a strategy for determining these properties has been described and used to analyze a set of experimental results presented in a companion paper. In the particular system studied, a crack growing in a toughened quasi-static mode could make a catastrophic transition to a brittle mode of fracture. The cohesive parameters for both the toughened and brittle modes of crack growth were determined by comparing numerical predictions from cohesive-zone simulations to the results of experimental tests performed using double-cantilever beam specimens and tensile tests. The cohesive parameters were found to be essentially rate-independent for the toughened mode, but the toughness dropped by a factor of four upon a transition to the brittle mode. The results of wedge tests were used as an independent verification of the cohesive parameters, and to verify that the quasi-static properties remained rate-independent to very high crack velocities corresponding to conditions of low-velocity impact. The effects of friction, and the use of the wedge test to determine cohesive parameters, were also explored.     

Thermal degradation of composites of poly(methyl methacrylate) with alkoxysilane hydrolyzates

Organic-inorganic composites of poly(methyl methacrylate) with alkoxysilane hydrolyzates form transparent films. Their thermal and oxidative thermal degradation were studied by differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetric analysis.