Simulations of instability in dynamic fracture by the cracking particles method

Crack instabilities and the phenomenon of crack speed saturation in a brittle material (PMMA) are studied with a meshfree cracking particle method. We reproduce the experimental observation that the computed terminal crack speeds attained in PMMA specimens are substantially lower than the Rayleigh wave speed; the computed crack speeds agree quite well with the reported experimental results. We also replicate repetitive microcrack branching along with the increased rate of energy dissipation after attainment of a critical crack speed, even in the absence of microstructural defects. We show that the presence of microdefects changes the response only a little. The computations reproduce many of the salient features of experimental observations.     

An Algorithm to compute damage from load in composites

We present a new method to model fracture of concrete based on energy minimisation. The concrete is considered on the mesoscale as composite consisting of cement paste, aggregates and micro pores. In this first step, the alkali-silica reaction is taken into account through damage mechanics though the process is more complex involving thermo-hygro-chemo-mechanical reaction. We use a non-local damage model that ensures the well-posedness of the boundary value problem (BVP). In contrast to existing methods, the interactions between degrees of freedom evolve with the damage evolutions. Numerical results are compared to analytical and experimental results and show good agreement.     

Willingness to share information in a supply chain: A partnership-data-process perspective

To achieve an efficient and effective supply chain, information needs to be shared. Most current information-sharing studies address the benefits gained from shared data, but neglect the effect of willingness to share, in which the benefits of sharing data may be discounted. This study looks into the factors that affect the extent of the willingness of companies to share information from a partnership-data-process perspective. To distinguish the mode of sharing, we differentiate information sharing into template based and proactive. Our results suggest that when partnerships become closer, the willingness to share template-based information increases and consequently the willingness to proactively share additional information.     

Trace-metal contamination in proton exchange membrane fuel cells caused by laser-cutting stains on carbon-coated metallic bipolar plates

Trace-metal contamination poses a threat to performance and stability of proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). In this study the source of origin and degree of metal dissolution from carbon-coated 316L bipolar plates (BPPs) are evaluated after a long-term PEMFC test run under conditions resembling a real-life automotive application. Despite intact carbon-coating, metal dissolution occurs from uncoated oxycarbide stains on the plates’ surface. Which correlates with post-mortem detection of chromium, iron and nickel in the membrane electrode assembly. The rate of cell voltage decrease throughout the high current operations is found to be twice as high in the presence of metal ions. Metal dissolution can be correlated with transients in cell voltage during dynamic current load cycling as a result of temporary global fuel starvation. The observed difference in metal dissolution on the anode and cathode BPP indicates weak galvanic coupling between the bipolar plate(s) and the electrode layer(s).     

High-quality construction of analysis-suitable trivariate NURBS solids by reparameterization methods

High-quality volumetric parameterization of computational domain plays an important role in three-dimensional isogeometric analysis. Reparameterization technique can improve the distribution of isoparametric curves/surfaces without changing the geometry. In this paper, using the reparameterization method, we investigate the high-quality construction of analysis-suitable NURBS volumetric parameterization. Firstly, we introduce the concept of volumetric reparameterization, and propose an optimal Möbius transformation to improve the quality of the isoparametric structure based on a new uniformity metric. Secondly, from given boundary NURBS surfaces, we present a two-stage scheme to construct the analysis-suitable volumetric parameterization: in the first step, uniformity-improved reparameterization is performed on the boundary surfaces to achieve high-quality isoparametric structure without changing the shape; in the second step, from a new variational harmonic metric and the reparameterized boundary surfaces, we construct the optimal inner control points and weights to achieve an analysis-suitable NURBS solid. Several examples with complicated geometry are presented to illustrate the effectiveness of proposed methods.     

Quasi‐static crack propagation in plane and plate structures using set‐valued traction‐separation laws

We introduce a numerical technique to model set‐valued traction‐separation laws in plate bending and also plane crack propagation problems. By using of recent developments in thin (Kirchhoff–Love) shell models and the extended finite element method, a complete and accurate algorithm for the cohesive law is presented and is used to determine the crack path. The cohesive law includes softening and unloading to origin, adhesion and contact. Pure debonding and contact are obtained as particular (degenerate) cases. A smooth root‐finding algorithm (based on the trust‐region method) is adopted. A step‐driven algorithm is described with a smoothed law which can be made arbitrarily close to the exact non‐smooth law. In the examples shown the results were found to be step‐size insensitive and accurate. In addition, the method provides the crack advance law, extracted from the cohesive law and the absence of stress singularity at the tip. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Evaluation of a novel Asymmetric Genetic Algorithm to optimize the structural design of 3D regular and irregular steel frames

We propose a new algorithm, named Asymmetric Genetic Algorithm (AGA), for solving optimization problems of steel frames. The AGA consists of a developed penalty function, which helps to find the best generation of the population. The objective function is to minimize the weight of the whole steel structure under the constraint of ultimate loads defined for structural steel buildings by the American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC). Design variables are the cross-sectional areas of elements (beams and columns) that are selected from the sets of side-flange shape steel sections provided by the AISC. The finite element method (FEM) is utilized for analyzing the behavior of steel frames. A 15-storey three-bay steel planar frame is optimized by AGA in this study, which was previously optimized by algorithms such as Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO), Particle Swarm Optimizer with Passive Congregation (PSOPC), Particle Swarm Ant Colony Optimization (HPSACO), Imperialist Competitive Algorithm (ICA), and Charged System Search (CSS). The results of AGA such as total weight of the structure and number of analyses are compared with the results of these algorithms. AGA performs better in comparison to these algorithms with respect to total weight and number of analyses. In addition, five numerical examples are optimized by AGA, Genetic Algorithm (GA), and optimization modules of SAP2000, and the results of them are compared. The results show that AGA can decrease the time of analyses, the number of analyses, and the total weight of the structure. AGA decreases the total weight of regular and irregular steel frame about 11.1% and 26.4% in comparing with the optimized results of SAP2000, respectively.     

Isogeometric cohesive zone model for thin shell delamination analysis based on Kirchhoff-Love shell model

We present a cohesive zone model for delamination in thin shells and composite structures. The isogeometric (IGA) thin shell model is based on Kirchhoff-Love theory. Non-Uniform Rational B-Splines (NURBS) are used to discretize the exact mid-surface of the shell geometry exploiting their C¹-continuity property which avoids rotational degrees of freedom. The fracture process zone is modeled by interface elements with a cohesive law. Two numerical examples are presented to test and validate the proposed formulation in predicting the delamination behavior of composite structures.     

The effects of mismatch fracture properties in encapsulation-based self-healing concrete using cohesive-zone model

Finite element analysis is developed to simulate the breakage of capsule in capsule-based self-healing concrete. A 2D circular capsule with different core-shell thickness ratios embedded in the mortar matrix is analyzed numerically along with their interfacial transition zone. Zero-thickness cohesive elements are pre-inserted into solid elements to represent potential cracks. This study focuses on the effects of mismatch fracture properties, namely fracture strength and energy, between capsule and mortar matrix into the breakage likelihood of the capsule. The extensive simulations of 2D specimens under uniaxial tension were carried out to investigate the key features on the fracture patterns of the capsule and produce the fracture maps as the results. The developed fracture maps of capsules present a simple but valuable tool to assist the experimentalists in designing appropriate capsule materials for self-healing concrete.