Monocrystal elastic constants in the ultrasonic study of welds

For studying welds ultrasonically, the importance of knowing the material's single-crystal elastic constants, the C_ijs, is explained. Where these constants are not known, some guidelines are given for estimating them from polycrystalline elastic constants such as Young's modulus and the shear modulus.The important case of [001] fibre texture is considered. Being transversely isotropic, this case exhibits five macroscopic elastic constants, which are related to the three cubic elastic constants: C₁₁, C₁₂, C₄₄. From these five constants the angular variations of Young's modulus, the torsional modulus, and the sound velocities can be computed. For the same [001] fibre texture, results are given for a standard well-characterized material — copper, where the C_ijs are well known.     

A note on stability of some parametrically excited structural elastic systems

An analogue simulation study for the stability investigations of nonlinear parametrically excited structural systems, exhibiting hard and soft spring characteristics is undertaken as a feasible alternative to current asymptotic and other analytic methods. It is shown that this technique locates the position of an unstable limit cycle, identifying the point of change of equilibrium states, which is ordinarily obscured in using the other existing schemes.     

Explicit models for elastic and piezoelastic surface waves

^** Email: julius.kaplunov{at}brunel.ac.uk Explicit models for the Rayleigh and Bleustein–Gulyaevsurface waves are extracted from the original 2D formulationswithin the general framework of linear elasticity and electroelasticity.The derivations are based on perturbing in slow time the self-similarsolutions for homogeneous surface wave. Both the proposed modelsinvolve hyperbolic equations on the surface along with ellipticequations over the interior, emphasizing the dual nature ofa surface wave. Comparisons with exact solutions are presented,including that for the plane Lamb problem.     

Structures and antifouling properties of low surface energy non-toxic antifouling coatings modified by nano-SiO_2 powder

Antifouling coatings are used to improve the speed and energy efficiency of ships by preventing or- ganisms, such as barnacles and weed, building up on the underwater hull and helping the ships movement through the water. Typically, marine coatings are tributyltin self-polishing copolymer paints containing toxic molecules called biocides. They have been the most successful in combating bio- fouling on ships, but their widespread use has caused severe pollution in the marine ecosystem. The low surface energy marine coating is an entirely non-toxic alternative, which reduces the adhesion strength of marine organisms, facilitating their hydrodynamic removal at high speeds. In this paper, the novel low surface energy non-toxic marine antifouling coatings were prepared with modified acrylic resin, nano-SiO2, and other pigments. The effects of nano-SiO2 on the surface structure and elastic modulus of coating films have been studied, and the seawater test has been carried out in the Dalian Bay. The results showed that micro-nano layered structures on the coating films and the lowest surface energy and elastic modulus could be obtained when an appropriate mass ratio of resin, nano-SiO2, and other pigments in coatings approached. The seawater exposure test has shown that the lower the sur- face energy and elastic modulus of coatings are, the less the marine biofouling adheres on the coating films.     

Aging effect on the mechanical properties of hybrid gels

Sol-gel derived unsupported films and thin rods have been obtained from co-hydrolysis of triethoxysilane and methyldiethoxysilane. The materials are flexible, dense and transparent. Films and rods have been aged for different periods of time in air at room temperature. The elastic modulus has been measured by means of tensile or flexural tests. Measurements showed an increase of elastic modulus with aging time and showed different values for films and rods. The observed evolution of mechanical properties has been related to a corresponding structural modification as highlighted mainly by MAS-NMR studies. Analyses pointed out the crucial role of condensation processes and showed that the stiffness increase arises from the formation of relatively few bonds which link and constrain pre-existing mobile network regions.     

Determination of crack growth kinetics in non-reinforced semi-crystalline thermoplastics using the linear elastic fracture mechanics (LEFM) approach

The aim of this study was to find a satisfactory method to characterize the fatigue crack growth behavior of non-reinforced, semi-crystalline thermoplastic polymers using linear elastic fracture mechanics (LEFM). For this, crack growth curves (crack length versus cycle number) as well as crack growth kinetics curves (crack growth rate da/dN versus amplitude stress intensity factor ΔK) had to be generated. As methods suggested by ISO 15850 and ASTM E 647-11 failed to provide satisfactory results for the crack growth curves, a more advanced method was searched for and finally found in the literature. Regarding the crack growth kinetics curve, the idea of the calculation was based on methods recommended in ISO 15850 and ASTM E 647-11. However, these methods had to be considerably modified and improved in order to get accurate results with little scatter. The whole methodology was developed and verified with fatigue crack growth tests on two semi-crystalline thermoplastics (polyoxymethylene POM and polyetheretherketone PEEK).     

Electrochemical and XPS studies on corrosion behaviours of AISI 304 and AISI 316 stainless steels under plastic deformation in sulphuric acid solution

The corrosion behaviours of austenitic stainless steels were investigated by electrochemical methods under plastic deformation with constant strain in the naturally aerated 0.5 M H₂SO₄ + 0.2 M KCl solution at room temperature. The work addresses the influence of plastic deformation and molybdenum element on the corrosion resistance of austenitic stainless steels in the test solution. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy presents the decreasing charge transfer resistance (R_t) and polarization resistance (R_p) values with the immersion time for AISI 304 stainless steel under constant strain deformation, and the increasing R_t and R_p values with the immersion time for AISI 316 stainless steel. The analysis of the chemical composition of the corrosion products was carried out by XPS. Molybdenum addition in AISI 316 stainless steel affects significantly the corrosion resistance because of its high ability to form Mo (VI) and MoCl₅ insoluble compounds in acid medium. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Ab initio studies on reaction H2C=C(OH)Li+CH3 + (CH3 -)

The possible structures and isomerizations of H₂C=C(OH)Li are studied theoretically by the gradient analytical method at RHF/6-31+G level. According to these results, reactions of H₂C=C(OH)Li with CH₃ ⁺ and CH ₃ ^- are investigated thoroughly. When H₂C=C(OH)Li reacts with CH ₃ ⁺ , H_zC=C(OH)Li firstly changes from structure1 to structure4, and then combines with CH₃ ⁺. In this reaction, the configuration of central carbon is retained. When H₂C=C(OH)Li reacts with CH ₃ ^- , structure1 firstly breaks its C-O bond to give contact ion-pair. Then through transition state16 which is similar to structure2, the attack of CH ₃ ^- from the opposite side of^-OH replaces^-OH group and inverts the configuration of carbenoid carbon atom. All the results show that the ambident reactivity of carbenoid has close relationship with the stability of special structures. Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 29773025).     

Evaluating and monitoring the packing behavior of process-scale chromatography columns

The packing characteristics of process-scale chromatography columns were evaluated using the responses to conductivity-based pulse and step inputs derived from tracer experiments and in-process transitions (i.e. column equilibration and regeneration steps). Characteristics of the measured residence time distributions (RTDs) were quantified by statistical moments and using the equations derived from the Gaussian model. The first and second moments calculated from in-process step transitions for multiple runs were in good agreement with those moments calculated from the pulse-input experiments conducted immediately after column packing. This indicates that most of the time the bed behavior at the time of packing is consistent with that at the time of operation. Due to the significant resistance to protein mass transfer inside the particles, estimated plate heights for protein solutes are expected to be much greater than those observed from the experiments using saltbased tracers. Thus, the column efficiency derived from salt-based experiments can be a useful measure of packing consistency rather than a significant parameter influencing the outcome of protein separations.     

Mechanical Properties of Gel-Derived Materials

The mechanical behaviour of xerogels and aerogels is generally described in terms of brittle and elastic materials, like glasses or ceramics. The main difference compared to silica glass is the order of magnitude of the elastic and rupture moduli which are 10⁴ times lower. However, if this analogy is pertinent when gels are under a tension stress (bending test) they exhibit a more complicated response when the structure is submitted to a compressive stress. The network is linearly elastic under small strains, then exhibits yield followed by densification and plastic hardening. As a consequence of the plastic shrinkage it is possible to densify and stiffen the gel at room temperature. These opposite behaviours (elastic and plastic) are surprisingly related to the same two kinds of gel features: the silanol content and the pore volume. Both elastic modulus and plastic shrinkage depend strongly on the volume fraction of pores and on the condensation reaction between silanols. On the mechanical point of view (rupture modulus and toughness), it is shown that pores and silanols play also an important role. Pores can be considered as flaws in the terms of fracture mechanics and the flaw size, calculated from rupture strength and toughness is related to the pore size distribution. Different kinds of gels structure (fractal or not fractal) have been synthesized by a control of the different steps of transformation such as sintering and plastic compaction. The relationships between structural and the elastic properties are discussed in terms of the percolation theory and fractal structure.