Dynamic response of a torsional micromirror to electrostatic force and mechanical shock

In this paper dynamic characteristics of a capacitive torsional micromirror under electrostatic forces and mechanical shocks have been investigated. A 2DOF model considering the torsion and bending stiffness of the micromirror structure has been presented. A set of nonlinear equations have been derived and solved by Runge–Kutta method. The Static pull-in voltage has been calculated by frequency analyzing method, and the dynamic pull-in voltage of the micromirror imposed to a step DC voltage has been derived for different damping ratios. It has been shown that by increasing the damping ratio the dynamic pull-in voltage converges to static one. The effects of linear and torsional shock forces on the mechanical behavior of the electrostatically deflected and undeflected micromirror have been studied. The results have shown that the combined effect of a shock load and an electrostatic actuation makes the instability threshold much lower than the threshold predicted, considering the effect of shock force or electrostatic actuation alone. It has been shown that the torsional shock force has negligible influence on dynamic response of the micromirror in comparison with the linear one. The results have been calculated for linear shocks with different durations, amplitudes, and input times.     

Electron back-scattered diffraction and nanoindentation analysis of nanostructured Al tubes processed by multipass tubular-channel angular pressing

Microstructural evolution and mechanical properties of nanostructured 1060 aluminum alloy tubes processed by tubular-channel angular pressing (TCAP) process were investigated using electron back-scattered diffraction (EBSD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and nanoindentation analyzes. EBSD scans revealed a homogeneous ultrafine grained microstructure after the third passes of the TCAP process. Apart from that the mean grain sizes of the TCAP processed tubes were refined to 566 nm, 500 nm and 480 nm respectively after the first, second and third passes. The results showed that after the three TCAP passes, the grain boundaries with a high angle comprised 78% of all the boundaries. This is in comparison to the first pass processed sample that includes approximately 20% HAGBs. The TEM inspection afforded an appreciation of the role of very low-angle misorientation boundaries in the process of refining microstructure. Nanoindentation results showed that hardness was the smallest form of an unprocessed sample while the largest form of the processed sample after the three passes of TCAP indicated the highest resistant of the material. In addition, the module of elasticity of the TCAP processed samples was greater from that of the unprocessed sample.     

Increasing ethylene production as a high value hydrocarbon in Fischer-Tropsch (FT) reactor: A concept reactor for combining FT with oxidative coupling of methane

The paper proposes a concept configuration of reactors for coupling OCM and FTS, and presents systematic simulation results. FTS section is a combination of fixed bed and membrane fluidized bed reactor, and feed of the FT reactor is supplied by OCM. The reactor configuration is compared with the consecutive reactors of OCM and one fixed bed FT reactor. Effects of CH₄/O₂ ratio, percent of N₂ in the feed, contact time, and input temperature on the yield of ethylene and valuable hydrocarbons are studied. The results show that compared with one FTS reactor configuration, the dual FTS reactor configuration is more effective and thus gives much higher product yields. Furthermore, a main decrease is observed in the formation of CO₂ and CH₄.     

Synthesis of lanthanum hydroxide and lanthanum oxide nanoparticles by sonochemical method

In this work lanthanum hydroxide nanoparticles were synthesized by sonochemical method. La₂O₃ nanoparticles were obtained after calcination of the La(OH)₃ nanoparticles precursor in air at 600 °C for 2 h. The effect of some parameters such as concentration of precursors, pulse time of sonication, time of sonication, and addition of PEG as surfactant on the morphology and the particle size were studied. The as-prepared products were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectrum (XPS) and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectra.     

Electromechanical Behavior of Microbeams with Piezoelectric and Electrostatic Actuation

In this paper we present an analysis of a novel microelectromechanical (MEM) cantilever switch that incorporates piezoelectric layers bonded to the microbeam. We have developed a model of a microbeam that can be actuated by applying voltage to the electrostatic areas and piezoelectric layers. The nonlinear governing equations have been derived and linearized using a step-by-step linearization method and the linear system of equations has been solved by means of the generalized differential quadrature method. The results for a simple micro cantilever MEM switch are in good agreement with other simulation results and demonstrate the feasibility of the concept and the effectiveness of the proposed numerical methods. The numerical results show that the proposed model can be actuated electrostatically and piezoelectrically in three different types of actuation sequences, and we show that, as expected, the switching voltages can be reduced due to the high equivalent piezoelectric coefficient.     

Nonlinear electrostatic behavior for two elastic parallel fixed–fixed and cantilever microbeams

In this paper, the electrostatic pull-in behavior of two elastic parallel fixed–fixed and cantilever microbeams in microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) are investigated. The nonlinear electrostatic equations are considered due to some important effects including: residual stresses, fringing field and axial stresses. Various residual stresses in two elastic parallel fixed–fixed models are considered. Step by step linearization method is used to solve the equations. The numerical results reveal that the step by step linearization method is highly efficient, and it is the easiest one to calculate the pull-in voltage. In the proposed models, the pull-in voltages are considerably decreased when compared to the pull-in voltages of simple fixed–fixed and cantilever models.     

A non-local fractional stress–strain gradient theory

International Journal of Mechanics and Materials in Design - A generalized non-local stress–strain gradient theory is presented using fractional calculus. The proposed theory includes as a...     

Mobile device location data reveal human mobility response to state-level stay-at-home orders during the COVID-19 pandemic in the USA

One approach to delaying the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) is to reduce human travel by imposing travel restriction policies. Understanding the actual human mobility response to such policies remains a challenge owing to the lack of an observed and large-scale dataset describing human mobility during the pandemic. This study uses an integrated dataset, consisting of anonymized and privacy-protected location data from over 150 million monthly active samples in the USA, COVID-19 case data and census population information, to uncover mobility changes during COVID-19 and under the stay-at-home state orders in the USA. The study successfully quantifies human mobility responses with three important metrics: daily average number of trips per person; daily average person-miles travelled; and daily percentage of residents staying at home. The data analytics reveal a spontaneous mobility reduction that occurred regardless of government actions and a ‘floor’ phenomenon, where human mobility reached a lower bound and stopped decreasing soon after each state announced the stay-at-home order. A set of longitudinal models is then developed and confirms that the states'' stay-at-home policies have only led to about a 5% reduction in average daily human mobility. Lessons learned from the data analytics and longitudinal models offer valuable insights for government actions in preparation for another COVID-19 surge or another virus outbreak in the future.     

Stability analysis of a capacitive micro-resonator with embedded pre-strained SMA wires

This paper presents a study on the effects of the SMA wires’ characteristics on tuning the stability of a capacitive micro-resonator. In the proposed model, pre-strained SMA wires have been embedded in a double clamped resonant microbeam which is actuated electrostatically. The governing equations of the system have been introduced and then an eigen-value problem has been adopted to investigate stability. Galerkin-based numerical methods have been used to solve the governing equation of motion for obtaining the motion trajectories of the beam. The effects of the number of SMA wires, their diameter, pre-strain and temperature on the pull-in instability and frequency response of the resonator have been shown. Critical values of recovery stress and SMA temperature for avoiding instability, with and without applying DC voltage have been obtained. The results have shown that by changing each of the SMA parameters, one can reach a needed magnitude of recovery stress as well as transmitted longitudinal force to the host beam, and consequently control and tune the stability and resonance frequency of the micro-resonator.

     

A comparative analysis of efficiency and reliability of capacitive micro-switches with initially curved electrodes

Enhancement of both efficiency and reliability of MEMS structures has always been an interesting and even essential issue for research community. This paper provides a comparative investigation in this field focusing on the role of initially curved electrodes of capacitive micro-switches. Four models have been introduced by appliance of curved microbeams as either upper or lower electrodes of a capacitive MEMS switch, as well as the conventional base model with straight both electrodes. By introducing a mathematical model and appropriate numerical procedure, the contact area between two electrodes, which has direct effect on the reliability has been estimated using Hertz relation for all models. The electromechanical coupling factor which is related to the efficiency of the switch has been calculated considering the stored mechanical and electrical energy of the system. The results have shown that by appliance of an initial curvature to the both electrodes, the estimated contact area can increase up to 279% compared to the conventional switches. Also, a switch with straight moveable electrode and curved substrate exhibits an increase in coupling factor up to 24% compared to the base model, while increasing the pull-in voltage of the switch.