Engineering Mechanics Commons^™

Kolsky Bar Experiment For High-Rate Large Deformations Of Polycarbonate, Jason Gerald Vogeler

Department of Engineering Mechanics: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Polycarbonate (PC) is a tough, transparent engineering thermoplastic. Its impact strength and ability undergo large plastic deformations without shatter make PC an ideal protective material for impact-resilient eyewear, aircraft windows and transparent armor. A good understanding of the response of this material to large deformations at high strain rates is critical for its utilization in these applications. To this end, a striker-less Kolsky bar device is employed in this work for the needed material characterization. The apparatus allow impulsive torsion and/or compression loadings with pulse durations sufficiently long for the plastic flow behavior to develop fully. Three new testing techniques …

Complementarities Of Probabilistic And Evidence Approaches: An Uncertainty Assessment For Selection Of Composite Material, Stella B. Bondi, Resit Unal, Patrick T. Hester, Trina M. Chytka

Engineering Technology Faculty Publications

A complimentary probabilistic and evidence theory approach is utilized to enhance uncertainty assessments in the area of critical safety characteristics for conceptual design. This research provides additional exploration into the failure modes necessary to utilize Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP) and various composites to their fullest potential and to minimize uncertainty by comparing probability and evidence theories. This combined approach has been applied to a selection of composite material that could provide uncertainty assessment design for a space transportation system. Uncertainty estimates presented are bounded by belief and plausibility functions. The results may provide additional information to the decision makers in …

A Resistance Based Structural Health Monitoring System For Composite Structure Applications, Dennis N. Boettcher

Master's Theses

This research effort explored the possibility of using interwoven conductive and nonconductive fibers in a composite laminate for structural health monitoring (SHM). Traditional SHM systems utilize fiber optics, piezoelectrics, or detect defects by nondestructive test methods by use of sonar graphs or x-rays. However, these approaches are often expensive, time consuming and complicated.

The primary objective of this research was to apply a resistance based method of structural health monitoring to a composite structure to determine structural integrity and presence of defects.

The conductive properties of fiber such as carbon, copper, or constantan - a copper-nickel alloy - can be …

Finite Element Modeling Of Ballistic Impact On A Glass Fiber Composite Armor, Dan M. Davis

Master's Theses

Finite Element Modeling of Ballistic Impact on a Glass Fiber Composite Armor

Dan Davis

Experiments measuring the ballistic performance of a commercially available fiberglass armor plate were used to guide the development of constitutive laws for a finite element model of the impact. The test samples are commercially available armor panels, made from E-glass fiber reinforced polyester rated to NIJ level III. Quasi-static tensile tests were used to establish material properties of the test panels. These properties were then used to create models in the explicit finite element code LSDYNA.

Ballistic impact testing of the panels was conducted using a …

Finite Element Analysis Of The Contact Deformation Of Piezoelectric Materials, Ming Liu

Theses and Dissertations--Chemical and Materials Engineering

Piezoelectric materials in the forms of both bulk and thin-film have been widely used as actuators and sensors due to their electromechanical coupling. The characterization of piezoelectric materials plays an important role in determining device performance and reliability. Instrumented indentation is a promising method for probing mechanical as well as electrical properties of piezoelectric materials.

The use of instrumented indentation to characterize the properties of piezoelectric materials requires analytical relations. Finite element methods are used to analyze the indentation of piezoelectric materials under different mechanical and electrical boundary conditions.

For indentation of a piezoelectric half space, a three-dimensional finite element …

Characterisation, Modelling And Simulation Of Flexible Polyurethane Foam, Conor Briody, Barry Duignan, Stephen Jerrams

Conference Papers

Flexible polyurethane foam is an open-celled polymeric material that exhibits strain rate and temperature effects. It has found various applications in areas including the packaging, medical, sports, aerospace and aeronautical industries. Polyurethane foam is ubiquitous in seating applications and finds particular use in specialised wheelchair seating where customised seating solutions are required which can provide proper comfort and support without the risk of developing pressure ulcers. Proper seating design is critical for users if this problem is to be avoided, but a lack of quantitative knowledge of this material’s behaviour has limited its effectiveness. The objectives of the work presented …

Multiscale Transformation Field Analysis Of Progressive Damage In Fibrous Laminates, Yehia Bahei-El-Din, Ritesh Khire, Prabhat Hajela

Centre for Advanced Materials

As part of an ongoing effort to model uncertainty propagation across multiple scales in fibrous laminates, this paper presents a deterministic transformation field analysis for modeling damage progression under membrane forces and bending moments. In this approach, equivalent eigenstresses are computed in the phases and/or plies such that their respective stress components that satisfy the underlying failure criteria are reduced to zero. Superposition of the solutions found for the undamaged laminate under applied loads and under the eigenstress field provide the entire response. Failure criteria are based on stress averages in the fiber and matrix. Damage mechanisms considered are frictional …

Modified Sandwich Structures For Improved Impact Resistance Of Wind Turbine Blades, Yehia Bahei-El-Din, Mostafa Shazly, I. El-Habbal, Y. Elbahy

Centre for Advanced Materials

Wind turbine blades are susceptible to damage due to fatigue as well as impact by flying objects and parts broken off failed blades of nearby wind towers. Localized, permanent compression of the foam core and delamination of the fibrous composite face sheets are typical damage modes and can lead to progressive structural failure. Sandwich structures modified by inclusion of flexible polyurethane (PU) layers within the cross section are examined under both impact and dynamic loads. Finite element models of sandwich structures with conventional and modified designs show that sandwich designs modified with PU interlayes exhibit reduced foam core crushing and …

Studies Of Dynamic Crack Propagation And Crack Branching With Peridynamics, Youn Doh Ha, Florin Bobaru

Department of Engineering Mechanics: Faculty Publications

In this paper we discuss the peridynamic analysis of dynamic crack branching in brittle materials and show results of convergence studies under uniform grid refinement (m-convergence) and under decreasing the peridynamic horizon (δ-convergence). Comparisons with experimentally obtained values are made for the crack-tip propagation speed with three different peridynamic horizons.We also analyze the influence of the particular shape of themicro-modulus function and of different materials (Duran 50 glass and soda-lime glass) on the crack propagation behavior. We show that the peridynamic solution for this problem captures all the main features, observed experimentally, of dynamic crack propagation and branching, as well …

Multiscale Modeling Of Impact On Heterogeneous Viscoelastic Solids With Evolving Microcracks, Flavio V. Souza

Department of Engineering Mechanics: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Multiscale computational techniques play a major role in solving problems related to viscoelastic composite materials due to the complexities inherent to these materials. In the present work, a numerical procedure for multiscale modeling of impact on heterogeneous viscoelastic solids containing evolving microcracks is proposed in which the (global scale) homogenized viscoelastic incremental constitutive equations have the same form as the local scale viscoelastic incremental constitutive equations, but the homogenized tangent constitutive tensor and the homogenized incremental history dependent stress tensor depend on the amount of damage accumulated at the local scale. Furthermore, the developed technique allows the computation of the …

Influence Of Van Der Waals Forces On Increasing The Strength And Toughness In Dynamic Fracture Of Nanofibre Networks: A Peridynamic Approach, Florin Bobaru Ph.D.

Department of Engineering Mechanics: Faculty Publications

The peridynamic method is used here to analyse the effect of van der Waals forces on the mechanical behaviour and strength and toughness properties of three-dimensional nanofibre networks under imposed stretch deformation. The peridynamic formulation allows for a natural inclusion of long-range forces (such as van der Waals forces) by considering all interactions as ‘long-range’. We use van der Waals interactions only between different fibres and do not need to model individual atoms. Fracture is introduced at the microstructural (peridynamic bond) level for the microelastic type bonds, while van der Waals bonds can reform at any time. We conduct statistical …

Design And Analysis For Melt Casting Metallic Fuel Pins Incorporating Volatile Actinides, Xiaolong Wu

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Fundamental issues related to the selection of a metallic fuel casting furnace design are presented and discussed including heating mechanisms, casting issues, crucible design, and issues related to the mass transport of americium. The process of evaluating all of these different criteria is undertaken to select a concept that would have the greatest chance of success for casting americium in a metallic fuel rod. Based on this evaluation process, a concept for the casting of metallic fuel pins containing high vapor pressure materials is selected and discussed. The important physics of this concept include mass transport of americium from the …

A Comparison Of Quasi-Static Indentation Testing To Low Velocity Impact Testing, Michael J. Douglas

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

A static test method for modeling low-velocity foreign object impact events to composites would prove to be very beneficial to researchers since much more data can be obtained from a static test than from an impact test. In order to examine if this is feasible, a series of static indentation and low velocity impact tests were carried out and compared. Square specimens of many sizes and thicknesses were utilized to cover the array of types of low velocity impact events. Laminates with a rt/4 stacking sequence were employed since this is by far the most common type of engineering laminate. …

Application Of Vibrational Techniques In Determination Of Dynamic Properties Of Agricultural Products-State Of The Arton Of Vibrational Techniques In Determination Of Dynamic Properties Of Agricultural Products-State Of The Art, Silas Kajuna

Tanzania Journal of Engineering and Technology (TJET)

Vibration is one of the techniques employed in the determination of dynamic properties of fruits and vegetables. It entails generation of a mechanical or acoustic vibrational signal which is propagated through the flesh of the agricultural material. A transducer is either attached or held close to the specimen to monitor the propagation of the signal through the specimen. The manner in which the signal is transmitted through the material is analyzed, and the dynamic properties of the specimen which relate to its firmness or its internal being are derived. The technique has been around for the past 30 years or …

Effect Of Temperature On Short-Term Creep Rupture Response In Polymer Matrix Pultruded Composites, Robert Harold Munson

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Polymer matrix pultruded composites have increasingly been used in applications where high strength-to-weight ratio and corrosion resistance are needed. Bridge and pier components are a couple of recent applications due the composite's resistance to corrosion from salt water. In applications of this sort, the material will commonly be subjected to sizable static loads while exposed to varying weather conditions. In using pultruded composites for these applications safely, a better understanding of the material's response to ambient conditions is necessary.

In this thesis, rectangular specimens of a polyester matrix glass reinforced pultruded composite sheet are subjected to both static tensile loading …

An Experimental Investigation Of Bolt Preload Relaxation In Pultruded Gfrp Composite Joints, Srinivas Ravi

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Mechanically fastened joints in pultruded composites are necessary for reasons of maintenance, repair, and assembly. Pultruded composites utilize polymers as matrices and therefore are susceptible to time-dependent effects. The positive effects of increasing the clamping force in bolted joints are well known. To maintain a safe operation of the assembly a minimum clamping force must be guaranteed. But since these materials show time-dependent effects, the bolt-preload relaxes over a period of time. The present study is aimed at investigating the bolt preload relaxation. In this study 1/2 in. thick pultruded sheets were first tested under compression in the thickness direction. …

Effects Of Elevated Temperature On The Physical Aging Of A High Temperature Thermoplastic Resin And Composite, Mark Feldman

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Development of a High Speed Civil Transport is considered by the commercial aviation industry to be one of the next big challenges for our national aircraft industry. Critical to the success of this aircraft is the development of advanced polymeric composites for both the primary and secondary structures and the predictive methodology necessary for assessment of long term durability. While polymeric composites offer an excellent strength to weight ratio a key disadvantage is the time dependent properties exhibited by the polymer matrix which can age and ultimately effect the resultant stiffness of a laminate.

Experimental studies were performed to determine …

An Investigation Of Hole Size Effects In A Composite Material During Tensile Fracture, David Floyd Moore

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

An experimental investigation was conducted to evaluate the hole size effects, i.e., the reduction in strength with an increase in hole size at a constant stress concentration factor, for a glass fiber reinforced epoxy crossply laminate during tensile fracture. The characteristic dimension according to the point-stress and average-stress criteria of the two-parameter models proposed by Whitney and Nuismer were determined and compared for a circular hole, optimized circular hole, square hole with radiused corners and square hole with sharp corners. Modified versions of the two-parameter models proposed by Karlak and Pipes, Wetherhold, and Gillespie were also compared. On the basis …

Stress Fields In Composites With A Variable Interphase Under Thermo-Mechanical Loadings, Nianfeng Chen

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

An interphase in a composite material has a important role for the composite performance. It influences directly or indirectly the strength, fatigue performance and effective properties of the composite. Recently, interphase has drawn increasing attention in composite mechanics. To the best of our knowledge, however, no one seems to have considered the effect of the variable material prope1ty in the interphase on the stress field in the composite material. In this research, the stress fields are determined in the continuous fiber composite and the particulate composite by using the four concentric circular cylinders model and the four phase spheres model, …

An Experimental And Analytical Investigation Of The Iosipescu Shear Test For Composite Materials, Barry Stuart Spigel

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Mechanical properties of composite materials under shear loading are difficult to determine. The Iosipescu Shear test, originally proposed for metals, has in recent years been applied to composites. It has the advantages of small specimen size, simple loading and a reasonably uniform shear stress in the test section.

The purpose of this work is to study the validity of the Iosipescu test method for measuring the shear modulus and shear strength of composites. Finite element analyses indicate that optimum specimen geometry and load locations depend upon the degree of orthotropy of the composite. Test results for a quasi-isotropic graphite/epoxy laminate …

Transfer Function Models And Control Of A Flexible Structure Using Piezoelectric Laminates, Joseph A. Colvin

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

The development of piezoelectric polymer films has generated a great deal of excitement in the structural controls community because they are lightweight, durable, distributed in nature and have broad band frequency characteristics. The flurry of research inspired by piezoelectric films has primarily been dedicated to using them as distributed sensors, and to a lesser extent, as distributed actuators.

Active damping of structural vibrations using piezoelectric polymer films as sensors and actuators has primarily been directed toward taking advantage of their distributed nature and employing various types of distributed control theory. This approach does not easily yield insight into the dynamics …

Finite Element Analysis Of Structures With Constrained Viscoelastic Layer Damping, Yung Chen

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

It has been demonstrated that constrained viscoelastic layer damping treatments provide an effective means of passive control for structural vibration. These treatments dissipate vibrational energy by inducing shear strain in a thin layer of viscoelastic material. Our interest is in adding passive damping to a structure as an augmentation to active control. For such applications it is desirable to achieve high damping performance in a given frequency range with a minimum of added weight. Most damping treatments employ spatially continuous constraining layers over the entire viscoelastic layer. Plunkett and Lee have shown that the effectiveness of the damping treatment can …

A Systematic Procedure For The Analysis And Design Of Deployable Space Structures, Praveen Kumar

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

An integrated graph theory and a symmetry-based approach have been developed for the type synthesis of deployable truss structures. Using this systematic approach, a bay of a deployable structure may be looked upon as being built around an axis or a plane of symmetry, including anti-symmetry. By providing a fictitious joint along this axis, the problem of structural design and analysis can be reduced to the study of one plane or face of the given structure. Each face is considered to be an assemblage of structural links connected by joints which form a closed kinematic chain. The conventional graph representation …

Determinations Of Molecular Weight And Molecular Weight Distribution Of High Polymers By The Rheological Properties, Joan Y. Z. Huang

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Several methods are reviewed by which the molecular weight (MW) and molecular weight distribution (MWD) of polymeric material were determined from the rheological properties. A poly (arylene ether) polymer with six different molecular weights was used in this investigation. Experimentally measured MW and MWD were conducted by GPC/LALLS (Gel Permeation Chromatography/Low Angle Laser Light Scattering), and the rheological properties of the melts were measured by a Rheometric System Four rheometer. It was found that qualitative information of the MW and MWD of these polymers could be derived from the viscoelastic properties, with the methods proposed by Zeichner and Pate1, and …

Stability Design Of A Slender Column With Curved Longitudinal Stiffeners, Mark S. Lake

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

This thesis presents the results of a stability design study of a slender column with curved longitudinal stiffeners for large space structure applications. The stiffened column concept is attractive because it allows the buckling load of a slender column to be increased at a fairly low cost in increased mass, and at no change in the column packaged size. Linear stability analyses are performed using a "linked-plate" representation of the stiffeners to determine stiffener local buckling stresses. Results from a set of parametric analyses are used to determine an approximate explicit expression for stiffener local buckling in terms of its …

Structural Self-Shadowing And Its Effects On The Thermal-Structural Behavior Of Orbiting Trusses, Jack Mahaney

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

The determination of structural shadowing is described. The computation of environmental heat loads for slender structural members in earth orbit is described, and two methods for finite element thermal analysis are described . The effects of self-shadowing on the thermal structural behavior of single truss members and two different trusses are presented. In each case the shadowing produces a noticeable effect on the temperature distributions on truss members, and on the deformations of the trusses.

The Use Of Complex Versus Normal Modes In Structural Model Improvement, Chih Lin

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

In the past, normal modes approximation to complex modes was employed by most researchers or users in the process of identification or modification of structural systems. This is true, of course for simple structures with no or proportional damping. For complex structures with nonproportional damping, even level of which is small, it will be shown that applying this approximation is inadequate. Use of complex modes instead of approximated normal modes is justified.

An algorithm is presented that computes a set of normal modes from the corresponding measured complex modes. The computed normal modes are then used in the Berman's technique …

The Significance Of Peel Stresses In Cyclic Debonding, Richard A. Everett Jr.

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

One of the possible failure modes in adhesively bonded joints is cyclic debonding -- progressive separation of the adherends by cyclic failure of the adhesive bond. In this study cyclic debonding in an adhesively bonded crack-lap shear specimen has been investigated by means of a linear elastic finite-element analysis and a series of constant­ amplitude axial fatigue tests. The primary purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that cyclic debonding is due largely to tensile peel stresses in the adhesive.

The results of this study have indicated that not all of the tensile peel stresses in the adhesive …

Studies Of Fracture And Deformed Surfaces Of High Strength Aluminum Alloys By X-Ray Diffraction, Tamma K. Kumar

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

X-ray observations of fatigue fracture and deformed surfaces of 7075-T6 aluminum were conducted in this study. The (111) and (222) diffraction peaks were obtained from the fractured and deformed surfaces. It was observed that in comparison with the base metal, the fracture exhibited line broadening similar to that due to cold working. The broadening is indicative of plastic deformation in the vicinity of the advancing crack tip during the fracture process. Also the different regions of fracture exhibited varying degrees of line broadening. With respect to the fatigue crack, the slow crack growth region showed a greater broadening, and, hence, …