Void Formation and Plastic Deformation Mechanism of a Cold-Rolled Dual-Phase Steel During Tension

The void formation and plastic deformation micromechanisms of a cold-rolled DP600 steel during tensile loading were studied by scanning electron microscopy(SEM) and electron backscatter diffraction(EBSD).The SEM observations revealed that the main void nucleation mechanism in the DP600 steel is decohesion at the ferrite-martensite interfaces.The voids were mostly observed between the closely spaced martensite islands situated at the boundaries of relatively finer ferrite grains.The EBSD results indicated a strain gradient developed from the ferrite-martensite and ferrite-ferrite interfaces into the interior of ferrite grains during the tensile deformation,which led to a stress concentration at these interfaces.Moreover,it was demonstrated that local misorientation inside the finer ferrite grains surrounded by martensite islands was higher than that for the coarser ferrite grains,which made the former more prone to void initiation.     

Effect of temperature on mechanical properties of Ti-based metallic glass matrix composite

Systematic mechanical behaviors were investigated in a Ti-based metallic glass matrix (MGM) composite containing the in-situ β-dendrite phase at 100 K–298 K. We found that the yielding strength increased but the plastic strain decreased with a decrease temperature. The sharp ductile to brittle transition occurred at 100 K. The MGM composite exhibits the large work-hardening behavior at 298 K, but all sample display the work-softening behavior below 298 K. The nominal work-hardening parameter was employed to express the dependence of mechanical properties on temperatures including the brittle failure, the work-hardening and work softening behaviors. It may provide a useful way to evaluate the dependence of mechanical properties on temperatures of MGM composite.     

Improved fracture toughness and integrated damage sensing capability by spray coated CNTs on carbon fibre prepreg

The development of a hierarchically engineered micro-nano hybrid composite system is described. A spray coating technique has been utilized as an effective way to deposit carbon nanotubes (CNTs) onto carbon fibre prepregs with good control of network formation and the potential for localization. Compared to more traditional approaches of introducing CNTs into epoxy matrices for enhancing composite properties, this technique has benefits in terms of its simplicity and versatility, as well as the potential for industrial scale-up. The effectiveness of the technique is demonstrated by the extremely low CNT loading (0.047 wt.%) needed to significantly increase the Mode-I fracture toughness of the carbon fibre laminates by about 50%, which is so far the largest reported improvement for such extremely low concentrations of non-functionalized CNTs. In-situ damage sensing has also been presented for the monitoring of structural health of these nano-engineered composite laminates upon loading, and a systematic analysis of sensing signals is performed.     

Mechanical and thermal properties of carbon fiber/polypropylene composite filled with nano-clay

The effect of organoclay on the mechanical and thermal properties of woven carbon fiber (CF)/compatibilized polypropylene (PPc) composites is investigated. Polypropylene–organoclay hybrids nanocomposites were prepared using a maleic anhydride-modified PP oligomer (PP-g-MA) as a compatibilizer. Different weight percentages of Nanomer® I-30E nanoclay were dispersed in PP/PP-g-MA (PPc) using a melt mixing method. The PPc/organoclay nanocomposite was then used to manufacture plain woven CF/PPc nanocomposites using molding compression process. CF/PPc/organoclay composites were characterized by different techniques, namely; dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), fracture toughness and scanning electron microscope. The results revealed that at filler content 3% of organoclay, initiation and propagation interlaminar fracture toughness in mode I were improved significantly by 64% and 67% respectively, which could be explained by SEM at given weight as well; SEM images showed that in front of the tip, fibers pull out during initiation delamination accounting for fracture toughness improvement. Dynamic mechanical analysis showed enhancement in thermomechanical properties. With addition 3 wt.% of organoclay, the glass transition temperature increased by about 6 °C compared to neat CF/PPc composite indicating better heat resistance with addition of organoclay.     

Scaling of fracture response in Over-height Compact Tension tests

An experimental investigation into in-plane scaled Over-height Compact Tension (OCT) [45/90/−45/0]_4s carbon/epoxy laminates was carried out to study the scaling of fracture response. The dimensions of the baseline specimens were scaled up and down by a factor of 2. Interrupted tests were carried out for specimens of each size in which the tests were stopped after certain load drops in order to study the failure mechanisms. X-ray Computed Tomography (CT) scanning was applied after the interrupted tests to examine the damage development and its effect on the fracture response. The test results showed that the scaling of the initial propagation of fracture follows Linear Elastic Fracture Mechanics (LEFM), but the development of the damage process zone differs with specimen sizes. The OCT specimens were found to be not large enough to generate a self-similar damage zone during propagation, and so no conclusions could be drawn regarding the R-curve effect.     

Nesting effect on the mode II fracture toughness of woven laminates

The mode II fracture toughness is evaluated for carbon fibre T700-epoxy reinforced woven laminates using the end notch flexure set-up. The analysed woven composites have a different tow size (3K/12K). Three different nesting/shifting configurations are applied to the plies at the fracture surface. Corrected Beam Theory with effective crack length method (CBTE) and Beam Theory including Bending rotations effects method (BTBE) are evaluated for obtaining mode II fracture toughness. During data post-processing, the importance of the bending angle of rotation and the test configuration is observed to be important. The results show that crack propagation under mode II is more stable if the matrix is evenly distributed on the surface. The nesting does not significantly affect mode II fracture toughness values, although a greater presence of matrix on the delaminated area increases its value.     

Enhancement of fracture toughness of hierarchical carbon fiber composites via improved adhesion between carbon nanotubes and carbon fibers

Hierarchical +1 composites consisting of carbon fibers with carbon nanotubes (CNTs) grown onto them and an epoxy matrix were processed, and the mode I fracture toughness of these composites was evaluated. The mode I fracture toughness of the initial batches of the hierarchical composites was lower than that of the baseline samples without CNTs. Hence, efforts to enhance the adhesion between carbon fibers and CNTs were made, resulting in enhanced adhesion. The enhanced adhesion was confirmed by Scotch tape tests and mode I fracture toughness tests followed by fractographic studies. The mode I fracture toughness of the hierarchical composites with enhanced adhesion was 51% and 89% higher than those of the baseline samples and hierarchical composites with poor adhesion, respectively. Moreover, fractographic studies of the fracture surfaces of the hierarchical composites with enhanced adhesion showed that CNTs were still attached to carbon fibers even after the mechanical tests.     

Application of meso- and fracture mechanics to material affected by a network of thermal fatigue cracks

Within the concept of physical mesomechanics of materials and fracture mechanics the peculiarities of deformation and failure of heat resistant 25Cr1Mo1V steel with a network of thermal fatigue cracks are investigated. The basic regularities and typical characteristic stages of deformation process in specimens of 25CrMo1V steel damaged volumetrically by a network of cracks under localization of plastic strain are found and described numerically.     

Vacuum brazing of TiAl-based intermetallics with Ti–Zr–Cu–Ni–Co amorphous alloy as filler metal

An amorphous Ti41.7–Zr26.7–Cu14.7–Ni13.8–Co3.1 (wt%) ribbon fabricated by melt spinning was used as filler to vacuum braze Ti–48Al–2Nb–2Cr (at%) intermetallics. The influences of brazing temperature and time on the microstructure and strength of the joints were investigated. It is found that intermetallic phases of Ti₃Al and γ-Ti₂Cu/Ti₂Ni form in the brazed joints. The tensile strength of the joint first increases and then decreases with the increase of the brazing temperature in the range of 900–1050 °C and the brazing time varying from 3 to 15 min. The maximum tensile strength at room temperature is 316 MPa when the joint is brazed at 950 °C for 5 min. Cleavage facets are widely observed on all of the fracture surfaces of the brazed joints. The fracture path varies with the brazing condition and cracks prefer to initiate at locations with relatively high content of γ-Ti₂Cu/Ti₂Ni phases and propagate through them.     

Shear testing of thick adhesive layers using the ENF-specimen

An existing experimental method to determine cohesive laws for adhesive layers loaded in shear is further developed. The method is based on differentiation of the energy release rate (ERR) with respect to the adhesive shear deformation at the crack tip. The test geometry used is an ENF-specimen for which the adherends are assumed to deform linearly elastic. The original method is expanded to account for situations where the thickness of the adhesive layer is not negligible as compared to the adherend thickness. To this end, a novel mathematical expression for the energy release rate (ERR) is derived. No assumptions on the form of the cohesive law are made; it is implicitly included in the derivation. The expression for the ERR contains the applied load and the shear deformation of the adhesive layer at the initial position of the crack tip, in addition to geometrical properties and the elastic modulus of the adherend material. Numerical simulations are performed to verify the accuracy of the mathematical expression for the ERR. Preliminary results from experiments performed on an epoxy adhesive are presented. The cohesive law of the adhesive layer is extracted by using a blunted crack tip. Verifying simulations confirm that the local pre-fracture behavior is accurately captured.