Under the compression mode, the direction of force on the magnetorheological elastomer (MRE) is parallel to the direction of electromagnetic force, so the effect of electromagnetic force on its dynamic mechanical properties cannot be ignored. Therefore, this paper focuses on the effect of electromagnetic force on the dynamic mechanical properties of MRE under compression mode. A new type of testing device was designed and processed. Under a different loading frequency, strain amplitude and external magnetic field, dynamic mechanical properties of MRE were tested, respectively. The result shows that the stiffness and energy dissipation capacity of MRE increase with the current and loading frequency. The stiffness of MRE decreases with the increase in the strain amplitude, but the energy dissipation capacity increases. Comparing the force-displacement curve of MRE with or without the effect of the electromagnetic force, it shows that the electromagnetic force has a great effect on the stiffness of MRE and little effect on its energy dissipation capacity. When the electromagnetic force is removed, the stiffness of MRE decreases, and the change rate of stiffness increases with current. The maximum change rate of stiffness is 5.65%.

A novel non-bonded interface technique (NBIT) is used to analyze internal residual strain by combining a pre-split sample of AISI 4340 steel with the circular grid residual strain analysis technique. NBIT is compared with an implicit non-linear finite element (FE) model using LS-DYNA. A split FE model was compared with a quarter FE model to determine the split interface that causes an average difference of 9.0% on the residual von Mises strain field from a 588.6 N indentation. The homogeneous FE quarter model was then compared with the experimental split model using 588.6, 981.0, and 1471.5 N indentation forces. An average displacement difference of 3.92 µm was found when comparing the experimental split and FE homogeneous samples from a 588.6 N indentation. The internal residual major and minor principal strains from the split experimental sample and homogeneous FE model were compared for each indentation force. The minor principal strain results show the 588.6, 981.0, and 1471.5 N indentation forces resulted in a difference between the experimental split and homogeneous FE model of 28.5%, 34.8%, and 26.0%, respectively. The difference between the comparisons was explained by the inability of the FE model to simulate local non-homogeneous material properties such as grain composition and orientation whereas NBIT does. NBIT can be used for micro- or macro-scale residual strain analysis as the spatial resolution is highly adjustable.

The additive manufacturing (AM) process is unique in that it can facilitate anisotropy because of the layer-by-layer deposition technique intrinsic to this process. In order to develop a component for a desired application, it is necessary to understand the mechanics that facilitate this material behavior. This study investigates how build orientation affects the mechanical performance of as-built direct metal laser sintered (DMLS) stainless steel (SS) GP1 (also referred to as 17-4PH) through strain-controlled monotonic tension and completely reversed low-cycle fatigue (LCF) testing. The anisotropic behavior of DMLS SS GP1 is assessed for samples built along the horizontal plane. Fracture surfaces were found to exhibit ductile responses that were consistent with the σ – ε curves. Constitutive models (i.e., Ramberg–Osgood, Hahn) based upon linear elasticity and nonlinear plasticity are presented and used to simulate the monotonic discontinuous stress–strain yielding response of this material, which are found to be in agreement with the experimental data. A collection of low-cycle fatigue tests reveals initial strain hardening to stabilization, followed by softening to fracture. Tensile and fatigue material constants determined from experimental findings are also presented in this study. Plasticity effects on the life of varying build orientations are explored.

An optically transparent woven glass fiber-reinforced polyester composite has been fabricated. This composite has been used as an interlayer in the fabrication of a laminated glass-composite window panel for application in blast-resistant windows. The transparency of the glass fiber-reinforced composite was achieved by matching the refractive index of the polyester matrix with that of glass fibers. Various chemical additives have been investigated for their effectiveness in modifying the refractive index of the polyester matrix. The composite interlayer's mechanical properties under both quasi-static and dynamic loading conditions have been characterized in this study. The window panels were tested under various blast loading conditions. The panels perform well under U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) specified C, D, and E blast loading levels.

Self-propagating exothermic reaction bonding (SERB) technique with Al/Ni multilayer film is fascinating in the viewpoint of lots of outstanding features, such as atmosphere-independent exothermic reaction and its self-propagation. The reactively bonded solder joints with high bonded strength are required for practical use in semiconductor devices. We have investigated the fracture strength of rectangular-solid specimens with reactively bonded solder joint (Sn–3.5Ag solder/reacted NiAl/Sn–3.5Ag solder) sandwiched by single crystal silicon (SCS). In this paper, the influence of bonding atmosphere on the fracture behavior is discussed by means of four-point bending testing and fracture surface observation. The fracture strength increases with increasing pressure load during bonding. The strength of the vacuum-bonded specimens is found to be higher than that of the air-bonded specimens. The fracture surface observation results suggest that Al oxide and intermetallic compounds (IMCs) formed at the reacted NiAl layer and the SnAg solder layer, respectively, would have affected the strength of the Al/Ni SERB joints.

Accurate prediction of the formability in multistage forming process is very challenging due to the dynamic shift of limiting strain during the different stages depending on the tooling geometry and selection of the process parameters. Hence, in the present work, a mathematical framework is proposed for the estimation of stress based and polar effective plastic strain-forming limit diagram (σ- and PEPS-FLD) using the Barlat-89 anisotropic plasticity theory in conjunction with three different hardening laws such as Hollomon, Swift, and modified Voce equation. Two-stage stretch forming setup had been designed and fabricated to first prestrain in an in-plane stretch forming setup, and, subsequently, limiting dome height (LDH) testing was carried out on the prestrained blanks in the second stage to evaluate the formability. The finite element (FE) analysis of these two-stage forming process was carried out in ls-dyna for automotive grade dual-phase (DP) and interstitial-free (IF) steels, and the σ-FLD and PEPS-FLD were used as damage model to predict failure. The predicted forming behaviors, such as LDH, thinning development, and the load progression, were validated with the experimental results. It was found that the LDH in the second stage decreased with increase in the prestrain amount, and both the σ-FLD and PEPS-FLD could be able to predict the formability considering the deformation histories in the present multistage forming process with complex strain path.

The corrosion behavior of 9Cr ferritic–martensitic heat-resistant steel was investigated in water and chloride environment at room temperature (RT). The results of linear polarization, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), and potentiodynamics (PD) polarization tests on long-term exposure show that 9Cr ferritic–martensitic steel has weaker corrosion resistance and greater pitting corrosion tendency in higher chloride concentrations. Corresponding scanning electron microscopy (SEM) observation displays that higher concentration chloride promotes the pitting initiation. During long-term exposure, pitting susceptibility decreases, the average pit size increases, and the density declines in higher chloride concentrations. Pits in the grains and along the grain boundaries are observed by optical microscope (OM), and it indicates that inclusions in grains and carbide particles at grain boundaries are the sites susceptible to pitting initiation.

Sensitivity to experimental errors determines the reliability and usefulness of any experimental investigation. Thus, it is important to understand how various test techniques are affected by expected experimental errors. Here, a semi-analytical method based on the concept of condition number is explored for systematic investigation of the sensitivity of spherical indentation to experimental errors. The method is employed to investigate the reliability of various possible spherical indentation protocols, providing a ranking of the selected data reduction protocols from least to most sensitive to experimental errors. Explicit Monte Carlo sensitivity analysis is employed to provide further insight of selected protocol, supporting the ranking. The results suggest that the proposed method for estimating the sensitivity to experimental errors is a useful tool. Moreover, in the case of spherical indentation, the experimental errors must be very small to give reliable material properties.

Full size creep test specimens, i.e., conventional uniaxial creep test specimen and Bridgman notch specimens are usually used to determine the full set of material constants for any creep model. However, in many situations, sufficient material is not available for theses specimens to be manufactured from it. Therefore, small creep test specimens have been introduced and used to determine (i) creep constants and (ii) the remaining life time for engineering components. Two commonly used small creep specimen types, i.e., the impression and the small ring creep tests, are used in this paper to determine the steady state creep constants. However, these specimen types are limited for use in determining the secondary creep properties, i.e., they are unable to determine the full set of material creep constants for creep damage models. In this paper the recently developed small two-bar creep test specimen and the newly developed small notched specimen test are described and used to determine a full set of material constants for Kachanov and Liu-Murakami creep damage models. The small notched specimen manufacturing, loading and testing procedures are described in this paper. P91 steel at 600 °C and (Bar-257) P91 steel at 650 °C have been used to compare the material constants obtained from the small two-bar and the small notched creep test specimens with those obtained from the conventional uniaxial creep test specimens and Bridgman notch specimens. The results show remarkably good agreement between the two sets of results.

Alternatives to quasi-static and dynamic constitutive relationships have been investigated with respect to a previously developed energy-based fatigue lifing method for various load profiles, which states: the total strain energy dissipated during both a quasi-static process and a dynamic process are equivalent and a fundamental material property. Specifically, constitutive relationships developed by Ramberg–Osgood and Halford were modified for application to the existing energy-based framework and were compared to the lifing method originally developed by Stowell. Extensive experimentation performed on Titanium 6Al-4V (Ti-64) combined with experimental data generated for Aluminum (Al) 6061-T6 at various temperatures were utilized in support of this investigation. This effort resulted in considerable improvements to the accuracy of the lifing prediction for materials with an endurance limit through application of a modified-Halford approach. Additionally, the relative equality in predictive accuracy between the modified-Stowell approach the modified-Ramberg–Osgood approach was demonstrated.

Magnetorheological elastomers (MREs) are adaptive composite materials in the sense that their mechanical properties are tailored by the applied magnetic field. In this paper we developed both isotropic and anisotropic silicone-rubber-based MREs. We examined the zero-magnetic-field dynamic stiffness and damping along with the magnetic field induced changes (the magnetorheological (MR) effect) for the viscoelastic properties of the MREs by conducting both compression and shear investigations. While the anisotropic MREs exhibited substantial magnetic-field-dependent viscoelastic properties at a medium magnetic field, the isotropic ones showed a negligible MR effect. The magnetic filler structure and concentration, loading frequency, and dynamic strain amplitude were all confirmed to play significant roles in the dynamic mechanical performance of the MREs.

Ultrasonic additive manufacturing (UAM) has proven useful in the solid-state, low tempe’rature fabrication of layered solid metal structures. It is necessary to optimize the various process variables that affect the quality of bonding between layers through investigation of the mechanical strength of various UAM builds. We investigate the effect of the process parameters tack force, weld force, oscillation amplitude, and weld rate on the ultimate shear strength (USS) and ultimate transverse tensile strength (UTTS) of 3003-H18 aluminum UAM built samples. A multifactorial experiment was designed and an analysis of variance was performed to obtain an optimal set of process parameters for maximizing mechanical strength for the tested factors. The statistical analyses indicate that a relatively high mechanical strength can be achieved with a process window bounded by a 350 N tack force, 1000 N weld force, 26 μm oscillation amplitude, and about 42 mm/s weld rate. Optical analyses of bond characterization did not show a consistent correlation linking linear weld density and bonded area of fractured surfaces to mechanical strength. Therefore, scanning electronmicroscopy (SEM) was conducted on fractured samples showing a good correlation between mechanical strength and area fraction that shows ductile failure.

A finite element method is employed to numerically evaluate the stiffness and energy absorption properties of an architecturally hybrid composite material consisting of unidirectional and random glass fiber layers. An ls-dyna finite element model of a composite hollow square tube is developed in which the position of the random fiber layers varies through the thickness. The assessment of the stiffness and energy absorption is performed via three-point impact and longitudinal crash tests at two speeds, 15.6 m/s (35 mph) and 29.0 m/s (65 mph), and five strain rates, ɛ · = 0.1 s −1 , 1 s −1 , 10 s −1 , 20 s −1 , and 40 s −1 . It is suggested that strategic positioning of the random fiber microstructural architecture into the hybrid composite increases its specific absorption energy and, therefore, enhances its crashworthiness. The simulation data indicate that the composite structure with outer layers of unidirectional lamina followed by random fiber layers is the stiffest due to the considerable superior specific energy absorption of the random fiber micro-architecture. Moreover, it is illustrated that the specific energy absorption increases with the increased ratio of impact contact area over cross-section area. Of all the parameters tested the thickness of the unidirectional laminate on the specific energy absorption does not appear to have a significant effect at the studied thickness ratios.

The fatigue damage to polymers generally depends on the material properties as well as on the mechanical, thermal, chemical, and other environmental influences. In this article, a methodology for modeling the dependence of the PA66 S-N curves on the material parameters, the material state, and the operating conditions is presented. The core of the presented methodology is a multilayer perceptron neural network combined with an analytical model of the PA66 S-N curve. Such a hybrid approach simultaneously utilizes the good approximation capabilities of the multilayer perceptron and knowledge of the phenomenon under consideration, because the analytical model for the S-N curves was estimated on the basis of the existing experimental data from the literature. The article presents the theoretical background of the applied methodology. The applicability and uncertainty of the presented methodology were assessed for the available data from the literature. The results show that it was possible to approximate the PA66 S-N curves for different input parameters if the space of the input parameters was adequately covered by the corresponding S-N curves.

In this work, three joints of a X11CrMoWVNb9-1-1 (P911) pipe were welded with three filler metals by conventional arc welding. The filler metals varied in creep strength level, so that one overmatched, one undermatched, and one matched the creep strength of the P911 grade pipe base material. The long-term objective of this work was to study the influence of weld metal creep strength on the overall creep behavior of the welded joints and their failure mechanism. Uniaxial creep tests at 600 ° C and stresses ranging from 70 MPa to 150 MPa were performed on the cross-weld samples of all three welds. A total creep testing time of more than 470,000 h was accumulated. The longest running sample achieved a time-to-rupture of more than 45,000 h. Creep testing revealed that the use of undermatching weld metal led to a premature fracture in the weld metal at higher stress levels. Compared with undermatching weld metal, the use of matching and overmatching filler materials increased the time-to-rupture at high stress levels by 75% and 33% at lowest stress levels. At typical component stresses below 100 MPa, all samples failed in the grain-refined heat-affected zone by characteristic type IV failure. For investigations of the failure modes, cross sections of fractured samples were investigated by optical light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and electron backscatter diffraction. The mechanism of weld metal creep failures and type IV creep failures is discussed in detail.

The subject of the presented paper is the modeling of strain-stress relationship, which is the main mechanical property characteristic of the behavior of steel subjected to plastic deformation. The major challenge of the research is the temperature of the deformation, which significantly exceeds the hot rolling temperature range. This paper presents the results of work leading to the development of a rheological model describing the phenomena accompanying the deformation of 18G2A grade steel at temperature 1420 ° C and higher. Such temperature is a characteristic of the central parts of steel strands subjected to latest, very high temperature rolling technologies such as integrated rolling and casting processes. Rheological models have crucial influence on the results of the computer simulation of the mentioned processes. The methodology of yield stress curves development requires high accuracy systems of tension and compression test simulation. Hence, the proposed testing procedure is related to dedicated hybrid finite element method system with variable density, which was developed by the authors. The experimental work has been done using the Gleeble ® 3800 thermomechanical simulator in the Institute for Ferrous Metallurgy in Gliwice, Poland. The testing machine allows the physical deformation of samples while solidification of their central part is still in progress. The essential goal of the simulation was the computer reconstruction of both temperature changes and strain evolution inside a specimen subjected to simultaneous deformation and solidification. In order to verify the predictive ability of the developed rheological model, a number of compression tests using Gleeble ® 3800 simulator have been done, as well. The comparison between the numerical and the experimental results is also a part of the presented paper.

In service, composite structures present the unique challenge of damage detection and repair. Piezoelectric ceramic, such as lead zirconate titanate (PZT), is often used for detecting damage in composites. This paper investigates the effect of embedded PZT crystals on the overall creep behavior of sandwich beams comprising of glass fiber reinforced polymer laminated skins and polymer foam core, which could potentially be used as a damage-detecting smart structure. Uniaxial quasi-static and creep tests were performed on the glass/epoxy laminated composites having several fiber orientations, 0 deg, 45 deg, and 90 deg, to calibrate the elastic and viscoelastic properties of the fibers and matrix. Three-point bending creep tests at elevated temperature ( 80 ° C ) were then carried out for a number of control sandwich beams (no PZT crystal) and conditioned sandwich beams (with PZT crystals embedded in the center of one facesheet). Lateral deflection of the sandwich beams was monitored for more than 60 h. The model presented in this paper is composed by two parts: (a) a simplified micromechanical model of unidirectional fiber reinforced composites used to obtain effective properties and overall creep response of the laminated skins and (b) a finite element method to simulate the overall creep behavior of the sandwich beams with embedded PZT crystals. The simplified micromechanical model is implemented in the material integration points within the laminated skin elements. Fibers are modeled as linear elastic, while a linearized viscoelastic material model is used for the epoxy matrix and foam core. Numerical results on the creep deflection of the smart sandwich beams show good correlations with the experimental creep deflection at 80 ° C , thus proving that this model, although currently based on material properties reported at room temperature, is promising to obtain a reasonable prediction for the creep of a smart sandwich structure at high temperatures.

In this paper, the conceptual, experimental, and computational challenges associated with virtual testing have been discussed and recent advances that address these challenges have been summarized. The promising capability of augmented finite element method based numerical platform for carry out structural level, subply scale, and microscopic single-fiber level analyses with explicit consideration of arbitrary cracking has been demonstrated through a hierarchical simulation-based analysis of a double-notched tension test reported in the literature. The simulation can account for the nonlinear coupling among all major damage modes relevant at different scales. Thus, it offers a complete picture of how microdamage processes interact with each other to eventually form a catastrophic major crack responsible for structural failure. In the exercise of virtual testing, such information is key to guide the design of discovery experiments to inform and calibrate models of the evolution processes. Urgent questions derived from this exercise are: How can we assure that damage models address all important mechanisms, how can we calibrate the material properties embedded in the models, and what constitutes sufficient validation of model predictions? The virtual test definition must include real tests that are designed in such a way as to be rich in the information needed to inform models and must also include model-based analyses of the tests that are required to acquire the information. Model-based analysis of tests must be undertaken and information-rich tests must be defined, taking proper account of the limitations of experimental methods and the stochastic nature of sublaminar and microscopic phenomena.

Ultrasonic additive manufacturing (UAM) is an emerging solid-state fabrication process that can be used for layered creation of solid metal structures. In UAM, ultrasonic energy is used to induce plastic deformation and nascent surface formation at the interface between layers of metal foil, thus creating bonding between the layers. UAM is an inherently stochastic process with a number of unknown facets that can affect the bond quality. In order to take advantage of the unique benefits of UAM, it is necessary to understand the relationship between manufacturing parameters (machine settings) and bond quality by quantifying the mechanical strength of UAM builds. This research identifies the optimum combination of processing parameters, including normal force, oscillation amplitude, weld speed, and number of bilayers for the manufacture of commercially pure, grade 1 titanium + 1100 -O aluminum composites. A multifactorial experiment was designed to study the effect of the above factors on the outcome measures ultimate shear strength and ultimate transverse tensile strength. Generalized linear models were used to study the statistical significance of each factor. For a given factor, the operating levels were selected to cover the full range of machine capabilities. Transverse shear and transverse tensile experiments were conducted to quantify the bond strength of the builds. Optimum levels of each parameter were established based on statistical contrast trend analyses. The results from these analyses indicate that high mechanical strength can be achieved with a process window bounded by a 1500 N normal force, 30 μ m oscillation amplitude, about 42 mm/s weld speed, and two bilayers. The effects of each process parameter on bond strength are discussed and explained.

In this paper, mechanical and tribological properties of a Ti-50.3 at % Ni alloy were investigated. The transformation temperatures of the alloy were determined using differential scanning calorimetry. Three-point bending tests were performed to characterize the pseudoelasticity and shape memory effects. Uni-axial compression tests were also performed at different testing temperatures. The wear tests were conducted using a pin-on-disk tribometer at testing temperatures ranging from 0 ° C to 80 ° C . The wear results showed that with increasing the testing temperature from 0 ° C to 50 ° C , the wear of the alloy was decreased, which could be attributed to the higher pseudoelasticity of the alloy at a testing temperature of 50 ° C . The pseudoelasticity of the alloy decreased at a higher testing temperature of 80 ° C ; however, its wear resistance increased considerably due to higher ultimate strength and work hardening.