Notch stress analyses of high‐frequency mechanical impact‐improved welds by using ρf = 1 mm and ρf = ρ + 1 mm approaches

This paper presents further assessments of the previously reported round‐robin fatigue data obtained from high‐frequency mechanical impact (HFMI)‐improved longitudinal welds. A detailed statistical analyses of geometry measurements of HFMI‐treated weld toe profiles are presented. The fatigue analyses based on notch stress as defined by the International Institute of Welding are performed using the finite element method. Notch stresses are assessed based on both the fictitious weld toe radius and the addition of measured actual notch radius to the fictitious radius. While no large differences are observed between the results of methods, the former one is found to be more practical and faster to implement from the end‐user point of view.     

Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Al25 − xCr25 + 0.5xFe25Ni25 + 0.5x (x = 19, 17, 15 at%) Multi‐Component Alloys

A series of Al_{25 ? x}Cr_{25 + 0.5x}Fe₂₅Ni_{25 + 0.5x} (x = 19, 17, 15 at%) multi‐component alloys are prepared by arc‐melting and rapid solidification of copper molds. The technique of thermal‐mechanical processing is further applied to the master alloys to improve their mechanical properties. These alloys consist of face‐centered cubic (FCC) and body‐centered cubic (BCC) structure. The volume fraction of the BCC phase increases as Al content increase and Cr and Ni contents decrease, accompanied with a microstructural evolution from dendritic structure to lamella‐like structure. Due to the increase of volume fraction of BCC phase, the master alloys exhibit an increased strength and a declined ductility as Al content increases. The rapid solidified alloys have more BCC phase compared with the master alloys, which enhances the strength and decreases the ductility. After homogenization, hot‐rolling, and annealing at 1000 °C, the Al₈Cr_33.5Fe₂₅Ni_33.5 alloy displays excellent combination of strength (yield strength is ～635 MPa and fracture strength is ～1155 MPa) and ductility (tension strain is ～11%).

     

A frontal Delaunay quad mesh generator using the L ∞ norm

In a recent work, a new indirect method to generate all‐quad meshes has been developed. It takes advantage of a well‐known algorithm of the graph theory, namely the Blossom algorithm, which computes in polynomial time the minimum cost perfect matching in a graph. In this paper, we describe a method that allows to build triangular meshes that are better suited for recombination into quadrangles. This is performed by using the infinity norm to compute distances in the meshing process. The alignment of the elements in the frontal Delaunay procedure is controlled by a cross field defined on the domain. Meshes constructed this way have their points aligned with the cross‐field directions, and their triangles are almost right everywhere. Then, recombination with the Blossom‐based approach yields quadrilateral meshes of excellent quality. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Automatically inf − sup compliant diamond‐mixed finite elements for Kirchhoff plates

We develop a mixed finite‐element approximation scheme for Kirchhoff plate theory based on the reformulation of Kirchhoff plate theory of Ortiz and Morris [1]. In this reformulation the moment‐equilibrium problem for the rotations is in direct analogy to the problem of incompressible two‐dimensional elasticity. This analogy in turn opens the way for the application of diamond approximation schemes (Hauret et al. [2]) to Kirchhoff plate theory. We show that a special class of meshes derived from an arbitrary triangulation of the domain, the diamond meshes, results in the automatic satisfaction of the corresponding inf ? sup condition for Kirchhoff plate theory. The attendant optimal convergence properties of the diamond approximation scheme are demonstrated by means of the several standard benchmark tests. We also provide a reinterpretation of the diamond approximation scheme for Kirchhoff plate theory within the framework of discrete mechanics. In this interpretation, the discrete moment‐equilibrium problem is formally identical to the classical continuous problem, and the two differ only in the choice of differential structures. It also follows that the satisfaction of the inf ? sup condition is a property of the cohomology of a certain discrete transverse differential complex. This close connection between the classical inf ? sup condition and cohomology evinces the important role that the topology of the discretization plays in determining convergence in mixed problems. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Microstructures and corrosion resistance of as‐cast aluminum‐10 wt.% silicon and aluminum‐20 wt.% silicon alloys

The microstructures and corrosion resistance of two as‐cast alloys, aluminum‐10 wt.% silicon hypoeutectic alloy and aluminum‐20 wt.% silicon (weight percent) hypereutectic alloy are investigated by conventional casting, the scanning electron microscope equipped with oxford X‐ray energy dispersive spectroscopy system and transmission electron microscope are applied for analysis. The results show that the microstructures change from the strip‐like into lump shape with the increase of silicon content from 10 % to 20 %. The electrochemical polarization curves prove that the aluminum‐20 wt.% hypereutectic silicon alloy had the better resistance with the corrosion potential of ?1.414 V and corrosion current density of 5.41 ? 10^?5 ampere compared with the aluminum‐10 wt.% silicon hypoeutectic alloy.