An analytical investigation of elastic–plastic behaviors of 3D warp and woof auxetic structures

International Journal of Mechanics and Materials in Design - The present paper was conducted to calculate Young's modulus and Negative Poisson's ratio (NPR) of a warp and woof (WAW) 3D...     

Representation of Dynamic Positioning on Hovering Type Autonomous Underwater Vehicle in Precise Welding Operations

This paper proposes dynamic positioning (DP) on a hovering autonomous underwater vehicle (HAUV) to perform accurate underwater processes such as welding operations. High maneuverability, high controllability, and hovering of the robot were the prerequisites of this operation, which increase its accuracy and velocity and reduce costs and human health risks. Other types of thrusters were used in this robot to reduce the number of thrusters and controller''s complexity. Controlling every 6 degrees of freedom to perform this type of operation was done. Furthermore, such a delicate operation required controlling the translational and rotational movements together. There was also a need to control the velocities to travel in a prescribed distance at a reasonable time. The possibility of dynamic positioning for welding and maintaining position at a point was defined for the robot. Then the robot''s performance under a defective state-servo motor failure, thruster malfunction-and the subsequent effects on the performance during the predetermined missions were investigated. Simulation results demonstrated that the HAUV has the capability to perform dynamic positioning operations. In this article, one of the prevalent classic control methods called PID controller was employed for controlling the movements of the robot.     

Laser-assisted friction stir processing of IN738LC nickel-based superalloy: stir zone characteristics

Friction stir processing (FSP) of high softening-temperature materials such as nickel-based superalloys is considered to be difficult. Laser heating of a localised area ahead of the FSP tool was used to provide sufficient plasticity during the FSP of IN738LC nickel-based superalloy. The stir zone (SZ) microstructure of the friction stir processed and laser-assisted friction stir processed were characterised. Laser-assisted friction stir processing (LAFSP) produced a defect-free pass, but FSP resulted in generation of a discontinuity in the SZ. Both lower volume fraction of partially dissolved γ′ precipitates and coarser grain structure of SZ in LAFSP led to more ductility of the SZ material and elimination of the defects.     

Effects of foaming parameters on microstructure and compressive properties of aluminum foams produced by powder metallurgy method

Semi open-cell aluminum foams having channels between individual cells were produced using low cost CaCO₃ foaming agent and applying the powder compact melting process. To this end, the aluminum and CaCO₃ powder mixtures were cold compacted into dense cylindrical precursors for foaming at specific temperatures under air atmosphere. The effects of several parameters including precursor compaction pressure, foaming agent content as well as temperature and time of the foaming process on the cell microstructure, linear expansion, relative density and compressive properties were investigated. A uniform distribution of cells with sizes less than 100 μm, which form semi open-cell structures with relative densities in the range of 55.4%–84.4%, was obtained. The elevation of compaction pressure between 127–318 MPa and blowing agent up to 15% (mass fraction) led to an increase in the linear expansion, compressive strength and densification strain. By varying the foaming temperature from 800 to 1000 °C, all of the investigated parameters increased except compressive strength and relative density. The results indicated the optimal foaming temperature and time as 900 °C and 10–25 min, respectively.     

The ITZ microstructure,thickness, porosity and its relation with compressive and flexural strength of cement mortar; influence of cement fineness and water/cement ratio

A new insight into the interfacial transition zone (ITZ) in cement mortar specimens (CMSs) that is influenced by cement fineness is reported. The importance of cement fineness in ITZ characterizations such as morphology and thickness is elucidated by backscattered electron images and by consequences to the compressive (F_c) and flexural strength (F_f), and porosity at various water/cement ratios. The findings indicate that by increasing the cement fineness the calcium silicate hydrate formation in the ITZ is favored and that this can refine the pore structures and create a denser and more homogeneous microstructure. By increasing cement fineness by about 25% of, the ITZ thickness of CMSs was reduced by about 30% and F_c was increased by 7%–52% and F_f by 19%–40%. These findings illustrate that the influence of ITZ features on the mechanical strength of CMSs is mostly related to the cement fineness and ITZ microstructure.     

Surface characterization and corrosion behavior of a novel gold-imitation copper alloy with high tarnish resistance in salt spray environment

A novel gold-imitation copper alloy (CuZnAlNiSnBRe) was designed and its corrosion behavior in salt spray environment was investigated. The new alloy has better tarnish resistance and corrosion resistance than the current coinage alloy used in China (H7211). A multi-layer film formed on the surface of the new alloy after a period of exposure to salt spray was responsible for the good resistance of the alloy. The corrosion products were a mixture of CuO, Cu₂O, ZnO, Al₂O₃ and Al(OH)₃, with the transition from Cu₂O to CuO occurring during the corrosion process.     

Optimizing the compressive strength of concrete containing micro-silica,nano-silica,and polypropylene fibers using extreme vertices mixture design

Many studies have evaluated the effects of additives such as nano-silica (NS), micro-silica (MS) and polymer fibers on optimizing the mechanical properties of concrete, such as compressive strength. Nowadays, with progress in cement industry provides, it has become possible to produce cement type I with strength classes of 32.5, 42.5, and 52.5 MPa. On the one hand, the microstructure of cement has changed, and modified by NS, MS, and polymers; therefore it is very important to determine the optimal percentage of each additives for those CSCs. In this study, 12 mix designs containing different percentages of MS, NS, and polymer fibers in three cement strength classes(CSCs) (32.5, 42.5, and 52.5 MPa) were designed and constructed based on the mixture method. Results indicated the sensitivity of each CSCs can be different on the NS or MS in compressive strength of concrete. Consequently, strength classes have a significant effect on the amount of MS and NS in mix design of concrete. While, polymer fibers don’t have significant effect in compressive strength considering CSCs.     

A fast,non-iterative and exact histogram matching algorithm

A fast, non-iterative algorithm is presented for transforming an image so as to give it exactly a given target histogram. This is achieved for any original and target histogram combinations and examples of results are given in addition to a comparison with applying the earth mover's distance (EMD) method to this task.     

Measurement of neutron energy spectra from 15 to 150 MeV using stacked liquid scintillators

A multiple liquid scintillator system for measuring the energy spectrum of a neutron beam in the range 15–150 MeV is described. Two or more slabs of NE213 scintillator (13×13×7 cm³) are stacked behind one-another and only events in which a neutron interacts in the upstream scintillator are analysed. The system is designed to minimise the escape of forward recoil protons from the detecting media. Test measurements and Monte Carlo simulations of the detector response to quasi-monoenergetic neutron beams of energies 62.5 and 97.5 MeV are presented.