Catheter-Assisted Interlaminar Approach for Cervical Epidural Steroid Injection in Patient with Cervical Stenosis Caused by Ossification of Posterior Longitudinal Ligament: A Case Report

We present the case of a 64-year-old man with cervical ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament (OPLL) experiencing chronic neck pain and radiculopathy for 6 months. A catheter-assisted interlaminar Cervical Epidural Steroid Injection (CESI) was performed under fluoroscopic guidance, targeting the affected C2-C6 levels. Significant improvement was observed after this procedure, with decreased pain scores (visual analogue scale (VAS) 8 to 2) and improved mobility. This technique not only enhances the effectiveness of CESI but also reduces the likelihood of complications such as stroke or epidural hematoma and thus provides an alternative treatment option for patients with multiple stenotic levels who are unsuitable for surgery or are unresponsive to conservative therapy such as medication or physical therapy.

Analysis of interlaminar stress and nonlinear dynamic response for composite laminated plates with interfacial damage

By considering the effect of interfacial damage and using the variation principle, three-dimensional nonlinear dynamic governing equations of the laminated plates with interfacial damage are derived based on the general sixdegrees-of-freedom plate theory towards the accurate stress analysis. The solutions of interlaminar stress and nonlinear dynamic response for a simply supported laminated plate with interfacial damage are obtained by using the finite difference method, and the results are validated by comparison with the solution of nonlinear finite element method. In numerical calculations, the effects of interfacial damage on the stress in the interface and the nonlinear dynamic response of laminated plates are discussed.

Assembling of low-dimensional aggregates with interlaminar electromagnetic synergy network for high-efficient microwave absorption

Considering the risk of a sudden degeneration caused by the oxidation of MXenes in dielectric and microwave absorption properties,to enhance the oxidation resistance of multilayer MXenes can make them more applicable as microwave absorbers than those with few-layer.However,there remains disadvantage in optimizing the poor impedance matching and inherent aggregation of multilayer MXenes via rational assembling.In the present study,a facile self-assembly process is conducted to obtain 2D MXenes/1D MnO_(2)/0D NiCo_(2)S_(4) assembled lowdimensional aggregate with hierarchical structure and interlaminar electromagnetic synergy network.In addition to bridging adjacent MXenes lamellas for the enhancement of internal electron transport,high-density MnO2 can also combine with NiCo2S4 to form an electromagnetic synergy network between lamellas,thus improving microwave attenuation.Though the modulation of components and assembled structures,it is achievable to effectively adjust and optimize the performance in impedance matching and microwave absorption.Given the thickness of 2.17 mm,the optimal reflection loss of59.23 dB,and the effective absorption bandwidth of 5.8 GHz are achieved.Moreover,the RCS simulations is performed to demonstrate its excellent performance.Thus,the present work contributes a facile method to the development of multi-layer MXenes based-MAs via interlaminar electromagnetic network design.

Influence of voids on interlaminar shear strength of carbon/epoxy fabric laminates

The effects of voids(void content,void shape and size)on the interlaminar shear strength of[(±45)_(4)/(0,90)/(±45)_(2)]_(S) and [(±45)/0_(4)/(0,90)/0_(2)]_(S) composite laminates were investigated.Specimens with void contents in the range of 0.2%-8.0%for [(±45)_(4)/(0,90)/(±45)_(2)]_(S) and 0.2%-6.1%for[(±45)/0_(4)/(0,90)/0_(2)]_(S) were fabricated from carbon/epoxy fabric through varying autoclave pressures.The characteristics of the voids were studied by using optical image analysis to explain the interlaminar shear strength results.The influences of voids on the interlaminar shear strength of the two stacking sequences were compared in terms of the void content and size and shape of the void.The effect of voids on the initiation and propagation of interlaminar failure of both stacking sequence composites was found.

The Interlaminar Stress of Laminated Composite under Uniform Axial Deformation

The interlaminar stresses are analyzed by combining the first shear theory with the layerwise theory method. And the plate subjected to a uniform axial strain is studied by the simplified displacement field. Using the simplified displacement field, the equations of finite element method is developed by the principle of virtual work. And the amount of calculation is reduced by using the linear element. Then, some numerical examples are given to verify the accuracy of the method and analyze the distribution of interlaminar stresses along y-axis and z-axis. The shapes of the stresses’ curves in the vicinity of the free edge are very different from the interior area. Moreover, the influence of the ply angle on the interlaminar stresses is analyzed for the plate [θ/-θ]s. It can be found that the shapes of the stresses along z-axis are similar when the angle is different, while the values of the interlaminar stresses are changed apparently with the ply angle.

Interlaminar Fracture Toughness of Epoxy Glass Fiber Fly Ash Laminate Composite

Epoxy glass fiber laminate composite (PMCs) are finding ever increasing applications in aerospace and automobile industries due to its high strength to weight ratio and resistance to aqueous environment. Additions of particulate reinforcements in the polymer matrix are reported to improve the Interlaminar Shear Strength and Interlaminar Fracture Toughness of the composites. In the present investigation, epoxy glass fiber laminate composites were processed using hand layup and vacuum bagging technique. The particulate reinforcement precipitator fly ash (25 - 45 μm) was added in the epoxy matrix by mechanical mixing up to 10 wt%. The effects of fly ash reinforcement on the mechanical properties and Interlaminar Fracture Toughness were studied before and after exposure to aqueous fog in a salt fog chamber at 45°C. In unexposed condition Mode I interlaminar fracture toughness of epoxy glass fiber laminate composite improved by the addition of fly ash reinforcement 10% (By weight) by 49.43% and when it was subjected to aqueous fog for 10 days the interlaminar fracture toughness improved 58.42%. Exposure to aqueous fog for 10 days causes plasticization of resin matrix and weakening of fiber/matrix interface results in improvement in interlaminar fracture toughness. The fracture surfaces were analyzed using scanning electron microscopy.

Improvement of Interlaminar Fracture Properties of Out of Autoclave Manufactured Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymers Using Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes

The present study aims to the development of Out of Autoclave (OoA) Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymers (CFRPs) with increased interlaminar fracture toughness by using MWCNTs. The introduction of MWCNTs into the structure of CFRPs has been succeeded by using carbon nanotube-enriched sizing agent for the pretreatment of the fiber preform using an in-house developed methodology that can be easily scaled up. The positive effect of the proposed methodology on the interlaminar fracture toughness of the CFRP laminate was assessed by the increase of Mode I and Mode II interlaminar fracture toughness of the composites. Different wt% MWCNTs concentrations were used (namely 0.5%, 1%, 1.5% and 2.5%). It was found that the nanomodified composites exhibit a significant increase of the interlaminar critical strain energy release rate GIC and GIIC of the order of 103% and 62% respectively, in the case of 1.5 wt% MWCNTs weight content. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) of the fracture surfaces of CFRP samples revealed the contribution and the associated synergistic mechanisms of MWCNTs to the increase of the crack propagation resistance in the case of nano-modified CFRPs compared to the reference material.

Effects of Carbon Nanotubes by Electrophoretic Deposition on Interlaminar Properties of Two Dimensional Carbon/carbon Composites

Carbon nanotubes（CNTs） were deposited uniformly on carbon cloth by electrophoretic deposition（EPD）. Thereafter, CNT-doped clothes were stacked and densified by pyrocarbon via chemical vapor infiltration to fabricate two-dimensional（2 D） carbon/carbon（C/C） composites. Effects of EPD CNTs on interlaminar shear performance and mode Ⅱ interlaminar fracture toughness（GⅡc） of 2 D C/C composites were investigated. Results showed that EPD CNTs were uniformly covered on carbon fibers, acting as a porous coating. Such a CNT coating can obviously enhance the interlaminar shear strength and GⅡc of 2 D C/C composites. With increaing EPD CNTs, the interlaminar shear strength and GⅡc of 2 D C/C composites increase greatly and then decrease, both of which run up to their maximum values, i e, 13.6 MPa and 436.0 J·m-2, when the content of EPD CNTs is 0.54 wt%, 2.27 and 1.45 times of the baseline. Such improvements in interlaminar performance of 2 D C/C composites are mainly beneficial from their increased cohesion of interlaminar matrix, which is caused not only by the direct reinforcing effect of EPD CNT network but also by the capacity of EPD CNTs to refine pyrocarbon matrix and induce multilayered microstructures that greatly increase the crack propagation resistance through ＂crack-blocking and-deflecting mechanisms＂.

Direct Assessment of Interlaminar Stresses in Composite Multilayered Plates Using a Layer-Wise Mixed Finite Element Model

An accurate determination of intedaminar transversal stresses in composite multilayered plates, especially near free-edge, is of great importance in the study of inter-ply damage modes, mainly in the initiation and growth of delamination. In this paper, interlaminar stresses are determined by layer-wise mixed finite element model. Each layer is analyzed as an isolated one where the displacement continuity is ensured by means of Lagrange multipliers （which represent the statics variables）. This procedure allows the authors to work with any single plate model, obtaining the interlaminar stresses directly without loss of precision. The FSDT （first shear deformation theory） with transverse normal strain effects included is assumed in each layer, but Lagrange polynomials are used to describe the kinematic instead of Taylor＇s polynomial functions of the thickness coordinates, as is common. This expansion allows the authors to pose the interlaminar displacements compatibility simpler than the second one. The in-plane domain of the plate is discretized by four-node quadrilateral elements, both to the field of displacement and to the Lagrange multipliers. The mixed interpolation of tensorial components technique is applied to avoid the shear-locking in the finite element model. Several examples were carried out and the results have been satisfactorily compared with those available in the literature.

Technical Nuances of Minimal Invasive Interlaminar Decompression in Lumbar Spinal Stenosis: The Role of Minimal Invasive Bilateral Approach

We report a series of patients operated for one or multilevel lumbar spinal stenosis (with and without spondylolisthesis) using the minimal invasive bilateral interlaminar decompression. We discuss our results, comparing this procedure (from a technical point of view) with the muscle-preserving interlaminar decompression (MILD) and the unilateral approach for bilateral decompression (ULBD). Clinical and outcome data of 62 consecutive patients were reviewed, using the Visual Analogue Scale for both low back pain (LBP) and legs pain and the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) for the degree of disability. Mean age was 68.88 ± 9.54 years and mean follow-up (FU) was 16.38 ± 11.12 months. A statistically significant improvement of LBP, legs pain and ODI was globally observed. At latest FU, patients with multilevel lumbar spinal stenosis significantly improved all scores and patients with spondylolisthesis significantly decreased their disability. No major complications occurred. Two cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) collections were treated conservatively. No wound infection occurred. No progression of spondylolisthesis was observed. No reoperation was needed. Although efficacious in patients with lumbar spinal stenosis, MILD and ULBD can have both some limitations. MILD has been found to decrease lumbar function in multilevel decompression (increasing sagittal translation and lumbar lordosis probably due to the removal of half of the spinous processes) and ULBD shows some disadvantages due to the difficulty of manipulating instruments through a small portal and the inadequate decompression due to a minimal exposure. The minimal invasive bilateral interlaminar decompression (in this technique, the access is bilateral but the supraspinous and interspinous ligaments and the spinous processes are preserved) allows wide access (bilateral exposure) with minimal invasiveness and very low morbidity in patients with lumbar spinal stenosis at one or more levels.

An interlaminar damage shell model for typical composite structures

Using the plate/shell elements in commercial software,accurate analysis of interlaminar initial damage in typical composite structures is still a challenging issue.To propose an accurate and efficient model for analysis of interlaminar initial damage,the following work is carried out:(A)A higher-order theory is firstly proposed by introducing the local Legendre polynomials,and then a novel shell element containing initial damage prediction is developed,which can directly predict transverse shear stresses without any postprocessing methods.Unknown variables at each node are independent of number of layers,so the proposed model is more efficient than the 3D-FEM.(B)Compression experiment is carried out to verify the capability of the proposed model.The results obtained from the proposed model are in good agreement with experimental data.(C)Several examples have been analyzed to further assess the capability of the proposed model by comparing to the 3D-FEM results.Moreover,accuracy and efficiency have been evaluated in different damage criterion by comparing with the selected models.The numerical results show that the proposed model can well predict the initial interlaminar damage as well as other damage.Finally,the model is implemented with UEL subroutine,so that the present approach can be readily utilized to analyze the initial damage in typical composite structures.

Improving interlaminar fracture toughness of flax fiber/epoxy composites with chopped flax yarn interleaving

In this research, unidirectional flax fabrics reinforced epoxy laminates were intedeaved with randomly oriented chopped flax yarns at various yarn lengths and contents. Mode I interlaminar fracture toughness of the laminates was evaluated via Double Cantilever Beam （DCB） tests. The results showed that Mode I interlaminar fracture toughness increased with the introduction of the chopped yarns. With moderate yarn length and content, the best toughening effect （31% improvement in Mode I inter- laminar fracture toughness） was achieved. It was observed with the aid of Scanning Electronic Microscopy （SEM） that the in- troduction of the chopped yarns resulted in more tortuous in-plane crack propagation paths as well as the ＂trans-layer＂ phe- nomenon and fiber bridging effect of both the unidirectional yams and the chopped yams. These hindered the growth of the crack and led to more energy dissipation during delamination progress. Excessive yam length or content would induce unstable crack propagation and thus weakened the toughening improvement. No remarkable change was found in the tensile properties and the Charpy impact strength for the interleaved laminates, which indicated that this interleaving method was effective on interlaminar toughening without sacrificing the comprehensive mechanical properties of the laminates.

Phase separation morphology and mode II interlaminar fracture toughness of bismaleimide laminates toughened by thermoplastics with triphenylphosphine oxide group

Toughness improvement of bismaleimide（BMI）resin is very important for its application in composite materials.Blending with

Synergetic Improvement of Interlaminar Fracture Toughness in Carbon Fiber/Epoxy Composites Interleaved with PES/PEK‑C Hybrid Nanofiber Veils

In this study,two types of soluble thermoplastic resins were added to epoxy resin at a fixed weight ratio to prepare a three-phase cast body.The cast was then manufactured into hybrid nanofiber as interleaves for interlaminar toughening of carbon fiber/epoxy resin(CF/EP)composites using a co-solvent method.The results revealed that when the hybrid components reached 15 wt%,Polyethersulfone(PES)and polyaryletherketone cardo(PEK-C)exhibited the best synergistic toughening effect,and the fracture toughness increased by 99.8%and 39.8%,respectively,compared with the reference or the same proportion of the single PES toughened sample.We used PES/PEK-C hybrid nanofibers with an areal density of 19.2 g per square meter(gsm)as composite toughening layers.Apart from the lack of significant influence of PES nanofiber on CF/EP composites,the interlaminar fracture toughness of mode I and mode II layers increased by 88.3%and 46.9%,respectively,compared to the reference sample.Scanning Electron Microscopy of the fracture surface and cross-section micromorphology of the laminate displayed that the thermoplastic microspheres of different sizes contribute differently to crack resistance:PEK-C consumes more energy due to the debonding and extraction of microspheres and resin,whereas the presence of the PES phase can induce more plastic deformation and crack deflection.

A Stoneley wave method to detect interlaminar damage of metal layer composite pipe

The interlaminar defect is a major form of damage in metal layer composite pipes which are widely used in petroleum and chemical industry. In this paper, a Stoneley wave method is presented to detect interlaminar damage in laminated pipe structure. Stoneley wave possesses some good characteristics, such as high energy and large displacement at the interface and non-dispersive in the high-frequency, so the sensitivity of detecting interlaminar damage can be improved and the higher frequency can be used in damage detection compared with Lamb waves. Additionally, as the frequency increases, the wavelength of the Stoneley wave reduces. Thus, its ability to detect small defects at the interface is enhanced. Finite element model of metal layer composite pipe with interlaminar damage is used to simulate wave propagation of Lamb waves and Stoneley wave, respectively. The damage location is calculated by using the Stoneley wave signal obtained from finite element model, and then the results are compared with the actual damage locations. The simulation examples demonstrate that the Stoneley wave method can better identify the interlaminar damage in laminated pipe structure compared with Lamb waves.

Spontaneous Absorption of a Lumbar Epidural Hematoma after Interlaminar Epidural Steroid Injection in a Patient with Spinal Stenosis： Close Observation as a Treatment Strategy

To the Editor： A lumbar epidural block is used to treat patients with a herniated intervertebral disc, spinal stenosis, or lumbosacral radiculopathy. This approach reduces radicular pain by decreasing inflammation of nerve roots through epidural corticosteroid injection. Patients with moderate-to-severe spinal stenosis who taking various anticoagulant agents have more risk for epidural hematoma.

MIXED MODES INTERLAMINAR FRACTURE TOUGHNESS OF CFRP LAMINATES TOUGHENED WITH CNF INTERLAYER

In the present paper, the influence of carbon nanofiber on interlaminar fracture toughness of CFRP investigated using MMB（Mixed Mode Bending） tests. Vapor grown carbon fiber VGCF and VGCF-S, and multi-walled carbon nanotube MWNT-7 has been employed for the toughener of the interlayer on the CFRP laminates. In order to evaluate the fracture toughness and mixed mode ratio of it, double cantilever beam （DCB） tests, end notched fracture （ENF） tests and mixed mode bending （MMB） tests have been carried out. Boundary element analysis was applied to the CFRP model to compute the interlaminar fracture toughness, where extrapolation method was used to determine the fracture toughness and mixed mode ratio. The interlaminar fracture toughness and mixed mode ratio can be extrapolated by stress distribution in the vicinity of the crack tip of the CFRP laminate. It was found that the interlaminar fracture toughness of the CFRP laminates was improved inserting the interlayer made by carbon nanofiber especially in the region where shear mode deformation is dominant.

Selective growth of SiC nanowires in interlaminar matrix for improving in-plane strengths of laminated Carbon/Carbon composites

β-SiC nanowires(SiCNWs) were selectively grown in the interlaminar matrix with a volume fraction of0.65% by applying a pyrocarbon coating on carbon fibers, which realizes the proper reinforcement of C/C composites. The thickness of the pyrocarbon is optimized to 0.5 μm based on the analysis of in-situ fiber strengths with the fracture mirror method. The pyrocarbon coating increased the in-situ fiber strength by^7% and prevent brittle fracture of the composites. Compared with C/C, the interlaminar shear and flexural strength of SiCNW-C/C(10.06 MPa and 162.44 MPa) increase by 158% and 57%. Incorporating SiCNWs changes the crystallite orientations and refines the crystallite size of pyrocarbon matrix. The functions of SiCNWs vary with their loading density. When SiCNWs are sufficient in the matrix, they help reinforcing and improving the critical failure stress of the matrix. When their density decreases to a certain degree, SiCNWs help changing the crystallite orientations of pyrocarbon and toughening the matrix.

Carbon nanotube protected composite laminate subjected to lightning strike:Interlaminar film distribution investigation

A kind of interlaminar film with carbon nanotubes inserted into polyether ketone with cardo was used for lightning strike protection of composite laminates. The distribution of the interlaminar film was investigated by experimental and numerical methods. Artificial lightning strike tests were conducted for 12-film carbon nanotube and traditional surface silver coating protected specimens. Then corresponding finite element models(FEMs) were established to analyze the lightning strike effect and validated by the experimental results. Based on the FEMs, the number, distribution and thickness of interlaminar film were investigated in order to obtain equivalent protection effect with the traditional surface silver coating. The results show that only the first two layers were damaged for the surface silver coating protected specimen, while 5 layers were ablated for the 12-film protected specimen. Lightning strike damage area of the laminate protected with 5-film carbon nanotube is almost the same as that of the laminate protected with 12-film carbon nanotube. Compared with traditional surface silver coating protection, one film protection with thickness of 360 lm can make the laminate to obtain equivalent damage depth, 54.8% smaller damage area and 58% less additional weight. And reparability of the laminate is better than that of the laminate protected with 5 interlaminar films.

INTERLAMINAR STRESSES OF A LAMINATED COMPOSITE LAP JOINT

The energy method has been successfully applied to solving interlaminar stresses of laminated composite lap joint with an adhesive layer of a certain thickness. This method has the merit of reckoning not only the stress component σ_y, in adherents but also the variation of stresses through the thickness of the adhesive layer. Thus we have the possibility to rectify some mistakes that have long frustrated the solution to joint problems. As all the series encountered can be summed, the solutions are, as usual, neat in closed forms. Furthermore, solutions can be confirmed by the load to be taken by the joint.