Molecular dynamics simulation of polyethylene under cyclic loading: Effect of loading condition and chain length

Two nano-blocks of polyethylene (PE) are made and subjected to cyclic deformation with various loading conditions, i.e., strain vs. stress control, zero lateral strain vs. zero lateral stress, and different load amplitude by using the coarse grained molecular dynamics simulation. The one block is filled with 1000 random coil chains of [-CH₂-]³⁰⁰ (long chain), while the other 10 000 chains of [-CH₂-]³⁰ (short chain). The random coil chains are freely grown and relaxed in a simulation box of , then compressed to and relaxed to obtain a stress-free equilibrium. Under the zero lateral stress condition, σ^′=0, the long-chain block shows a leaf-like hysteresis curve both in the stress- and strain-controlled cyclic loading. The area of the hysteresis loop increases as the maximum load is changed to , and , respectively. The “Mullin's effect” is also observed, i.e., the stress-strain curve depicts lower path in the 2nd or later loading, although the target is never a rubber with filler. Under the zero lateral strain condition, ε^′=0, the long-chain block shows little hysteresis with the stress amplitude of 100 MPa, while it shows rapid or unstable elongation around at ε=0.35 in the simulation of ε_max=0.5 and . The short-chain block also shows unstable elongation under the ε^′=0 condition even with the stress amplitude of 100 MPa, noting that it has an upper yield point of at ε=0.35 and lower one around at ε=1.6. On the other hand, the short-chain block is stretched without remarkable stress increase up to the strain around 1.0, under the lateral condition of σ^′=0. Then the block shows “strain hardening” and comes up to the external stress of 100 MPa. It is worth noting that the block shows a leaf-like hysteresis in the 2nd or later cycle; the stress goes back to zero around ε=1.0 in the unloading process and rises up immediately when the load is reversed, as same as the long-chain block.     

Activation of the SiC surface for vapor phase lubrication by Fe chemical vapor deposition from Fe(CO)5

The feasibility is demonstrated of a new approach to the vapor phase lubrication of ceramics using organophosphorus compounds. The surface of SiC is shown to be unreactive for the decomposition of trimethylphosphite, (CH₃O)₃P, a simple model for organophosphorus vapor phase lubricants such as tricresylphosphate. In order to activate the surface of SiC it has been exposed to Fe(CO)₅ at a temperature of 600 K. Chemical vapor deposition serves as a means of depositing Fe on the SiC surface. The Fe-modified SiC surface is then shown to induce the decomposition of adsorbed (CH₃O)₃P. The mechanism of (CH₃O)₃P decomposition is similar to that observed on Fe(110) surfaces modified by the presence of oxygen. It is initiated by P–O bond cleavage to produce adsorbed methoxy groups, CH₃O_(ad), which then decompose by -hydride elimination resulting in H₂, CO, H₂CO, and CH₃OH desorption. It is suggested that chemical vapor deposition of metals using high vapor pressure metal-containing compounds such as Fe(CO)₅ can serve as a mechanism for continuous, in situ activation of ceramic surfaces for vapor phase lubrication in high temperature engines.     

Investigation of wear mechanism of SiC particulate-reinforced Al-20Si-3Cu-1Mg aluminium matrix composites under dry sliding and water lubrication

Unreinforced Al-20Si-3Cu-1Mg (ASCM) aluminium alloy and SiC particle reinforced Al-20Si-3Cu-1Mg (ASCM-SiC) aluminium matrix composites were fabricated by powder metallurgy (). The samples were slid against 4Cr13 stainless steel in a reciprocal friction tester under a load of 25 N to 175 N and sliding velocity of 0.3 to 1.2 m s⁻¹ at ambient conditions. The results show that SiC particulate-reinforced aluminium matrix composites possess good wear resistance at dry sliding and less wear resistance under water lubrication. Ploughing wear is the dominant wear mechanism at dry sliding and tribochemical wear is dominant under water lubrication. SEM, AES and XPS were used to examine the wear morphology and surface chemistry.     

Effects of grain size on the wear of recycled AZ91 Mg

Magnesium alloy AZ91 chips have been recycled using mechanical milling to yield samples with fine grain sizes. Together with cast samples of the same alloy, the wear behavior of these materials was studied through pin-on-disc sliding, with speeds varying from 1 to , under a normal load of 10 N. Despite the differences in grain size (0.6–) and mechanical properties, the various specimens did not differ significantly in their wear performance. Scanning electron microscopy observed abrasive wear to be dominant under low-speed sliding, and a transition to the formation of a protective mechanically mixed layer (MML) as sliding speed increased.     

Transverse and longitudinal vibrations of a frame structure due to a moving trolley and the hoisted object using moving finite element

This paper aims at presenting a technique to replace the moving load by an equivalent moving finite element so that both the transverse and the longitudinal inertial effects due to the moving mass may easily be taken into account simultaneously. Where the mass, damping and stiffness matrices of the moving finite element are determined by the transverse () inertia force, Coriolis force and centrifugal force of the moving mass, respectively. From the numerical examples illustrated, it has been found that, in addition to the conventional transverse () responses, the inertial effects of the moving load also affect the longitudinal () responses of the portal-frame structure significantly.     

Effects of oil inlet pressure and inlet position of axially grooved infinitely long journal bearings. Part II: Nonlinear instability analysis

This paper extends the analysis of Part I to investigate the influence of oil inlet pressure and its position on the dynamic characteristics of axially grooved journal bearings. Using the dynamic fluid force derived in Part I, the equations of motion are solved for the locus of the journal center. A trial-and-error method is used to identify the instability threshold speed for a given Sommerfeld number S. The effects of oil inlet pressure (in the range of ) and inlet position (in the range of 0Θ_i90°) on the instability threshold speed of a rotor-bearing system are investigated and discussed. It is shown that the instability threshold speed with oil inlet position Θ_i=0 decreases on increasing the oil inlet pressure from 0 to 1.0 while the influence of oil inlet position on the instability threshold speed depends on the steady state eccentricity ratio ε.     

Effects of oil inlet pressure and inlet position of axially grooved infinitely long journal bearings. Part I: Analytical solutions and static performance

This paper presents analytical expressions for the dynamic pressure and dynamic fluid force in axially grooved long journal bearings with consideration of oil inlet pressure and inlet position. The effects of oil inlet pressure (in the range of , where the dimensionless oil inlet pressure ) and oil inlet position (in the range of 0Θ_i90°) on the static oil film configuration, pressure distribution, and steady state journal position in axially grooved journal bearings are discussed. In this paper, Reynolds–Floberg–Jakobsson boundary conditions are assumed to account for the appropriate starting position of the cavitation, the reformation of oil film at the end of caviation, and the effect of oil inlet pressure and inlet position.