The combined effects of curing and environmental exposure on fracture properties of woven carbon/epoxy laminates

This paper concerns a study of the combined effects of curing conditions and environmental exposure on the ultimate properties of two commercial woven carbon/epoxy laminates. Curing parameters (heating rate and applied pressure) were varied so as to obtain six different conditions for each material. Moisture saturation was also achieved by exposing some of the cured samples to environmental conditions of 70°C and 95% relative humidity. Four different tests (tensile, impact, Mode I and Mode II interlaminar fracture resistance) were therefore performed, and the results obtained on the different materials before and after moisture saturation compared. Neither curing pressure nor heating rate nor moisture absorption were observed to have any practical effect on tensile and impact properties. On the contrary, one noticeable effect was the interlaminar fracture resistance of the laminates. The results are discussed and interpreted in terms of damage formation and stress intensification mechanisms.     

Failure of Al-Mg-Si alloys in bending

The bendability of two Al-Mg-Si heat-treatable alloys was studied and compared with the performance of a non-heat-treatable Al-Mg alloy. A semi-guided wrap-bend tester consistent with ASTM E290 was used to obtain minimum bend radii and produce consistent bend radii for analysis of fracture mechanisms. Bending failure in these alloys was based on a surface roughening, or orange peel, process where the outer surface grains separated and produced depressions on the surface of the material. These depressions acted as notches that increased local stresses and eventually caused failure. The fracture was intergranular in nature, with a jagged crack progressing through the thickness of the material. Several factors that affect the bendability of AA6xxx alloys are quantified in this study. Critical elements regarding natural aging, artificial aging, deformation, and composition are discussed. A parameter of specific interest is the inclusion of copper in these alloys. Copper was added in an effort to increase the artificial aging response of selected alloys. This is of particular importance in the automotive industry because artificial aging occurs during the painting process, but adequate time and temperature is not provided to fully strengthen the alloys. It is believed by some automotive manufacturers that the inclusion of copper can have a negative effect on formability and bendability.     

Effect of crack-growth mechanism on the prediction of fracture load of adhesive joints

This paper presents observations regarding the cracking behavior of tensile-loaded structural adhesive joints. Experiments showed that fracture occurred by the development and propagation of a damage zone, rather than a single, sharp crack, and that the presence of the adhesive spew fillet did not affect the fracture load of the adhesive joints studied. For joints bonded with the mineral-filled epoxy Cybond 4523GB (American Cyanamid), there was approximately 5 mm of subcritical crack propagation prior to final fracture. Fracture-load predictions based on the initial uncracked geometry made in previous papers were unaffected by this small change in geometry. For joints bonded with the rubber-toughened epoxy Permabond ESP 310, approximately 50 mm of subcritical crack propagation was observed. It was again found that predictions made in previous papers on the basis of the initial geometry gave a good estimate of the final fracture load even though this subcritical crack propagation significantly altered the geometry, and thus the applied energy release rates. The effect of shear deformations of the adherends was also investigated, and it was found that shear deformations could be neglected in engineering calculations for joints subject to remote tensile loading.     

超塑20钢的空洞与断裂行为

本文在获取２０钢超塑性的基础上，对其空洞与断裂行为进行了研究，通过观察空洞的产生和测定空洞的长大，提出了一种超塑材料空洞的形核模型。研究确认，超塑２０钢的断裂由沿晶和穿晶两种断裂类型组成。     

Optimizing the Vacuum Heat-Treatment of Hot-Work Tool Steels by Linear Elastic Fracture Mechanics

Linear elastic fracture mechanics was used to optimize the vacuum heat-treatment procedures for conventional hot-work AISI H11 tool steel. The fracture toughness was determined with non-standard, circumferentially notched and fatigue-precracked tensile-test specimens. The fracture-testing method is sensitive to changes caused by variations in the microstructure resulting from the austenitizing and tempering temperatures as well as the homogeneity of the material itself. The combined tempering diagram- Rockwell-C hardness, Fracture toughness K_Ic, Tempering temperature was used for the choice of the vacuum heat-treatment parameters necessary to obtain the best properties for a given application with respect to the investigated steel.     

纤粒复合型油井水泥石增韧剂的性能及机理研究

针对国内油田油气井因后续施工(射孔、压裂、酸化等)造成水泥环脆裂的问题,根据断裂力学原理和复合材料理论设计配方,选用GX(1.0%的特种无机富硅纤维 2.5%的有机弹性颗粒)作为油井水泥石增韧材料;并对掺有GX的油井水泥浆的工程性能、物理性能、与其他外加剂的配伍性以及水泥石的微观结构进行考察,结合性能评价试验,分析了GX在水泥石中的增韧作用机理。结果表明,GX可以显著提高油井水泥石的韧性和弹性,并且与其他外加剂配伍性良好。     

应用地应力模拟技术研究断块区剩余油分布

应力场数值模拟不仅能够重塑出不同阶段地应力场，而且还可以定量一半定量地预测破裂的发生、裂缝的方向和密度，进一步探讨时间和空间上油气运移的规律，为油田勘探、开发提供必要的依据。本文以大庆萨北开发区北二西断层区为研究对象，通过应力场数值模拟研究了流体运移势场与剩余油分布的关系、流体运移与构造应力的关系、裂缝形成与剩余油分布的关系，确定了剩余油分布的有利区域，为油田注采系统的设计、部署和油田开发及措施调整提供了依据。     

Simulation of cup-cone fracture using the cohesive model

The cohesive model is used for the prediction of the crack path during stable crack extension in ductile materials. The problem of crack-path deviation is investigated by means of simulation of crack propagation in a round tensile bar. The respective phenomenon is known as cup-cone fracture. It is shown that the model is able to predict the failure mechanism, which consists of normal fracture in the center and combined normal/shear fracture in the so-called “shear lips” at the specimen’s rim. The damage evolution and crack path predicted by the model are presented. The effect of the normal and shear failure parameters on the crack-deflection point and several aspects of the finite element mesh are discussed.     

Brittle detachment of a stiffener bonded to an elastic plate

The diffusion of contact stresses between an elastic bar, bonded to an elastic half-plane and loaded longitudinally, requires the integration of a singular integral equation. The solution of this equation is not available in closed form, but only by a series expansion of the contact tangential force mutually transmitted between the stiffener and the plate. Since forty years it has been realized that the expansion of the solution in terms of Chebyshev polynomials is its most convenient method of representation. The procedure can also be extended to treat the brittle detachments of the tips of the stiffener when, according to Griffith's criterion of fracture, a balance can be virtually established between the increase of strain energy due to a propagation of cracks and the surface energy created.     

Thermomechanical fatigue—damage mechanisms and mechanism-based life prediction methods

An existing extensive database on the isothermal and thermomechanical fatigue behaviour of high-temperature titanium alloy EVII 834 and dispersoid-strengthened aluminum alloy X8019 in SiC particle-reinforced as well as unreinv conditions was used to evaluate both the adaptability of fracture mechanics approaches to TMF and the resulting predictive capabilities of determining material life by crack propagation consideration. Selection of the correct microstructural concepts was emphasised and these concepts were, then adjusted by using data from independent experiments in order to avoid any sort of fitting. It is shown that the cyclic /-integral (δJ_eff concept) is suitable to predict the cyclic lifetime for conditions where the total crack propagation rate is approximately identical to pure fatigue crack growth velocity. In the case that crack propagation is strongly affected by creep, the creep-fatigue damage parameter δ_CF introduced by Riedel can be successfully applied. If environmental effects are very pronounced, the accelerating influence of corrosion on fatigue crack propagation can no longer implicitly be taken into account in the fatigue crack growth law. Instead, a linear combination of the crack growth rate contributions from plain fatigue (determined in vacuum) and from environmental attack is assumed and found to yield a satisfactory prediction, if the relevant corrosion process is taken into account.