A thermo-mechanical damage constitutive model for deep rock considering brittleness-ductility transition characteristics

This paper developed a statistical damage constitutive model for deep rock by considering the effects of external load and thermal treatment temperature based on the distortion energy.The model parameters were determined through the extremum features of stress−strain curve.Subsequently,the model predictions were compared with experimental results of marble samples.It is found that when the treatment temperature rises,the coupling damage evolution curve shows an S-shape and the slope of ascending branch gradually decreases during the coupling damage evolution process.At a constant temperature,confining pressure can suppress the expansion of micro-fractures.As the confining pressure increases the rock exhibits ductility characteristics,and the shape of coupling damage curve changes from an S-shape into a quasi-parabolic shape.This model can well characterize the influence of high temperature on the mechanical properties of deep rock and its brittleness-ductility transition characteristics under confining pressure.Also,it is suitable for sandstone and granite,especially in predicting the pre-peak stage and peak stress of stress−strain curve under the coupling action of confining pressure and high temperature.The relevant results can provide a reference for further research on the constitutive relationship of rock-like materials and their engineering applications.

Physical and Thermo-Mechanical Properties of Composite Materials Based on Raw Earth and Crushed Palm Leaf Fibers (Borassus aethiopum)

The objective of this study is to seek solutions to reduce the impact of buildings on climate change and to promote the use of local bio-sourced or geo-sourced materials for sustainable construction. Different samples of raw earth from 3 sites were taken in the commune of Mlomp. Geotechnical tests showed that the raw earth samples from sites 2 and 3 have more clay fraction while site 1 contains more sand. The fact of integrating fibers from crushed palm leaves (Borassus aethiopum) (2%, 4% and 6%) into the 3 raw earth samples reduced the mechanical resistance to compression and traction of the 3 raw earths. The experimental results of thermal tests on samples of earth mixtures with crushed Palma leaf fibers show a decrease in thermal conductivity as well as thermal effusivity as the percentages increase (2%, 4% and 6%) of fibers in raw earth for the 3 sites. This shows that this renewable composite material can help improve the thermal insulation of building envelopes.

Shear behavior of intact granite under thermo-mechanical coupling and three-dimensional morphology of shear-formed fractures

The shear failure of intact rock under thermo-mechanical(TM)coupling conditions is common,such as in enhanced geothermal mining and deep mine construction.Under the effect of a continuous engineering disturbance,shear-formed fractures are prone to secondary instability,posing a severe threat to deep engineering.Although numerous studies regarding three-dimensional(3D)morphologies of fracture surfaces have been conducted,the understanding of shear-formed fractures under TM coupling conditions is limited.In this study,direct shear tests of intact granite under various TM coupling conditions were conducted,followed by 3D laser scanning tests of shear-formed fractures.Test results demonstrated that the peak shear strength of intact granite is positively correlated with the normal stress,whereas it is negatively correlated with the temperature.The internal friction angle and cohesion of intact granite significantly decrease with an increase in the temperature.The anisotropy,roughness value,and height of the asperities on the fracture surfaces are reduced as the normal stress increases,whereas their variation trends are the opposite as the temperature increases.The macroscopic failure mode of intact granite under TM coupling conditions is dominated by mixed tensileeshear and shear failures.As the normal stress increases,intragranular fractures are developed ranging from a local to a global distribution,and the macroscopic failure mode of intact granite changes from mixed tensileeshear to shear failure.Finally,3D morphological characteristics of the asperities on the shear-formed fracture surfaces were analyzed,and a quadrangular pyramid conceptual model representing these asperities was proposed and sufficiently verified.

Topology Optimization of Stiffener Layout Design for Box Type Load-Bearing Component under Thermo-Mechanical Coupling

The structure optimization design under thermo-mechanical coupling is a difficult problem in the topology optimization field.An adaptive growth algorithm has become a more effective approach for structural topology optimization.This paper proposed a topology optimization method by an adaptive growth algorithm for the stiffener layout design of box type load-bearing components under thermo-mechanical coupling.Based on the stiffness diffusion theory,both the load stiffness matrix and the heat conduction stiffness matrix of the stiffener are spread at the same time to make sure the stiffener grows freely and obtain an optimal stiffener layout design.Meanwhile,the objectives of optimization are the minimization of strain energy and thermal compliance of the whole structure,and thermo-mechanical coupling is considered.Numerical studies for square shells clearly show the effectiveness of the proposed method for stiffener layout optimization under thermo-mechanical coupling.Finally,the method is applied to optimize the stiffener layout of box type load-bearing component of themachining center.The optimization results show that both the structural deformation and temperature of the load-bearing component with the growth stiffener layout,which are optimized by the adaptive growth algorithm,are less than the stiffener layout of shape‘#’stiffener layout.It provides a new solution approach for stiffener layout optimization design of box type load-bearing components under thermo-mechanical coupling.

Effect of thermo-mechanical treatment process on microstructure and mechanical properties of 2A97 Al-Li alloy

2A97 Al-Li alloy was processed by thermo-mechanical treatment at different pre-stretch deformations of 0, 3% and 6%. The microstrucatre observation results reveal that some δ＇ and T1 precipitates are found in a（Al） matrix of 2A97 alloy processed by the heat treatment with no pre-stretch deformation. When the pre-stretch deformation is 3% and 6%, respectively, amounts of tiny T1 and a few of S＇ precipitates precipitates are observed in the microstructures of 2A97 alloy. The tensile test results show that the tensile properties of 2A97 alloys are improved via thermo-mechanical treatment. When the pre-stretch deformation is from 0, 3% to 6%, the ultimate tensile strength values of the 2A97 alloys increase gradually from 447.7, 516.5 to 534.3 MPa, and the elongations decrease from 17.6%, 12.8% to 10.2%, respectively. Moreover, with increasing pre-stretch deformation amount from 0 to 6%, the in-plane anisotropy value of 2A97 alloys becomes more obvious.

Effects of T9I6 thermo-mechanical process on microstructure, mechanical properties and ballistic resistance of 2519A aluminum alloy

The effects of T916 thermo-mechanical process on microstructures, mechanical properties and ballistic resistance of 2519A aluminum alloy were investigated by optical microscopy （OM）, transmission electron microscopy （TEM）, tensile tests and ballistic resistance test. After T916 treatment, the yield strength, tensile strength and elongation rate of 2519A aluminum alloy reach 501 MPa, 540 MPa and 14%, respectively. And the ballistic limit velocity of 2519A-T916 alloy （30 mm in thickness） is 715 rn/s. The microstructure varies near the sidewalls of crater. The interrupted ageing contributes to these excellent properties of the alloy. During T916 process, the precipitation of Guinier Preston （GP） zone is finer and denser during the interrupted ageing, thus resulting in well precipitated strengthening phase.

Mechanical properties of Mg-6Gd-1Y-0.5Zr alloy processed by low temperature thermo-mechanical treatment

An as-solution treated Mg-6Gd-1Y-0.4Zr alloy was processed by low temperature thermo-mechanical treatments （LT-TMT）, including cold tension with various strains followed by aging at 200 °C to peak hardness. The results show that the precipitation kinetics of the alloy experienced LT-TMT is greatly accelerated and the aging time to peak hardness is greatly decreased with increasing tensile strain. The tensile yield strength, ultimate tensile strength and elongation at room temperature of the alloy after cold tension with strain of 10% and peak aging at 200 °C are 251 MPa, 296 MPa and 8%, respectively, which are superior to the commercial heat-resistant WE54 alloy, although the latter has a higher rare earth element content.

Dynamic thermo-mechanical coupled simulation of statistically inhomogeneous materials by statistical second-order two-scale method

In this paper,a statistical second-order twoscale（SSOTS） method is developed to simulate the dynamic thcrmo-mechanical performances of the statistically inhomogeneous materials.For this kind of composite material,the random distribution characteristics of particles,including the shape,size,orientation,spatial location,and volume fractions,are all considered.Firstly,the repre.sentation for the microscopic configuration of the statistically inhomogeneous materials is described.Secondly,the SSOTS formulation for the dynamic thermo-mechanical coupled problem is proposed in a constructive way,including the cell problems,effective thermal and mechanical parameters,homogenized problems,and the SSOTS formulas of the temperatures,displacements,heat flux densities and stresses.And then the algorithm procedure corresponding to the SSOTS method is brought forward.The numerical results obtained by using the SSOTS algorithm are compared with those by classical methods.In addition,the thermo-mechanical coupling effect is studied by comparing the results of coupled case with those of uncoupled case.It demonstrates that the coupling effect on the temperatures,heat flux densities,displacements,and stresses is very distinct.The results show that the SSOTS method is valid to predict the dynamic thermo-mechanical coupled performances of statistically inhomogeneous materials.

Thermo-mechanical coupled particle model for rock

A thermo-mechanical coupled particle model for simulation of thermally-induced rock damage based on the particle simulation method was proposed.The simulation results of three verification examples,for which the analytical solutions are available,demonstrate the correctness and usefulness of the thermo-mechanical coupled particle model.This model is applied to simulating an application example with two cases：one is temperature-independent elastic modulus and strength,while the other is temperature-dependent elastic modulus and strength.The related simulation results demonstrate that microscopic crack initiation and propagation process with consideration of temperature-independent and temperature-dependent elastic modulus and strength are different and therefore,the corresponding macroscopic failure patterns of rock are also different.On the contrary,considering the temperature-dependent elastic modulus and strength has no or little effect on the heating conduction behavior.Numerical results,which are obtained by using the proposed model with temperature-dependent elastic modulus and strength,agree well with the experimental results.This also reveals that the rock subjected to heating experiences much more cracking than the rock subjected to cooling.

NUMERICAL SIMULATION OF THE THERMO-MECHANICAL PROCESS FOR BEAM BLANK CONTINUOUS CASTING

The aim of this study was to simulate the solidification process of beam blank continuous casting, and then find the reasons for the typical defects of the beam blank. A two-dimensional transient coupled finite element model has been developed to compute the temperature and stress profile in beam blank continuous casting. The enthalpy method was used in the heat conduction equation. The thermo-mechanical property in the mushy zone was taken into consideration in this calculation. It is shown that at the mold exit the thickness of the shell had its maximum value at the flange tip and its minimum value at the fillet. The temperature had a great fluctuation on the surface of the beam blank in the secondary cooling zone. At the unbending point, the surface temperature of the web was in the brittleness temperature range under the present condition. To ensure the quality, it is necessary to weaken the intensity of secondary cooling. At the mold exit the equivalent stress and strain have higher values at the flange tip and at the web. From the spray 1 to the unbending point, the maximum values of stress and strain gradually moved to the internal section of the flange tip and the web. However, whenever, there were bigger stress and strain values near the flange tip and the web than in the other parts, it must be very easy to generate cracks at those positions. Now, online verification of this simulation has been developed, which has proved to be very useful and efficient to instruct the practical production of beam blank continuous casting.

Multi-objective Topology Optimization of Thermo-mechanical Compliant Mechanisms

The material characteristics of a structure will change with temperature variation,and will induce stress within the structure.Currently,the optimal design for the topology of compliant mechanisms is mainly performed in single physical field.However,when compliant mechanisms work in high temperature environments,their displacement outputs are generated not only by mechanical load,but also by the temperature variation which may become the prominent factor.Therefore,the influence of temperature must be considered in the design.In this paper,a novel optimization method for multi-objective topology of thermo-mechanical compliant mechanisms is presented.First,the thermal field is analyzed with finite-element method,where the thermal strain is taken into account in the constitutive relation,and the equivalent nodal thermal load is derived with the principle of virtual work.Then the thermal load is converted into physical loads in elastic field,and the control equation of the thermo-mechanical compliant mechanism is obtained.Second,the mathematical model of the multi-objective topology optimization is built by incorporating both the flexibility and stiffness.Meanwhile,the coupling sensitivity function and the sensitivity analysis equations of thermal steady-state response are derived.Finally,optimality criteria algorithm is employed to obtain numerical solution of the multi-objective topology optimization.Numerical examples show that the compliant mechanisms have better performance and are more applicable if the temperature effect is taken into account in the design process.The presented modeling and analysis methods provide a new idea and an effective approach to topology optimization of compliant mechanisms in electrothermic coupling field and multiphysics fields.

Effect of low temperature thermo-mechanical treatment on microstructures and mechanical properties of TC4 alloy

The effects of low temperature thermo-mechanical treatment （LTTMT） on microstructures and mechanical properties of Ti-6Al-4V （TC4） alloy were studied by optical microscopy （OM）, tensile test, scanning electron microscopy （SEM） and transmission electron microscopy （TEM）. The experimental results confirm that the strength of TC4 alloy can be improved obviously by LTTMT processing, which combines strain strengthening with aging strengthening. The effect of LTTMT on the alloy depends on the microstructure of the refined and dispersed a＋fl phase on the basis of high dislocation density by pre-deformation below recrystallization temperature. The tensile strength decreases with the increase of pre-deformation reduction. The optimal processing parameters of LTTMT for TC4 alloy are as follows： solution treatment at 900 ℃ for 15 min, pre-deformation in the range of 600-700 ℃ with a reduction of 35%, finally aging at 540 ℃ for 4 h followed by air-cooling.

IMPROVING THE MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF COPPER ALLOYS BY THERMO-MECHANICAL PROCESSING

Systematic physical simulation of thermo-mechanical processing routes has been ap-plied on a Gleeble 1500 simulator to four copper alloys (mass %) Cu-0.57Co-0.32Si,Cu-0.55Cr-0.065P, Cu-0.22Zr-0.035Si and Cu-1.01Ni-0.43Si aimed at clarifying theinfluences of processing conditions on their final properties, strength and electricalconductivity. Flow curves were determined over wide temperature and strain rateranges. Hardness was used as a measure of the strength level achieved. High hard-ness was obtained as using equal amounts (strains 0.5) of cold deformation beforeand after the precipitation annealing stage. The maximum values achieved for theCu-Co-Si, Cu-Cr-P, Cu-Zr-Si and Cu-Ni-Si alloys were 190, 165, 178 and 193 HV5,respectively. A thermo-mechanical schedule involving the hot deformation-ageing-colddeformation stages showed even better results for the Cu-Zr-Si alloy. Consequently,the processing routes were designed based on simulation test results and wires of 5 and2mm in diameters have been successfully processed in the industrial scale.

Study on inhomogeneous cooling behavior of extruded profile with unequal and large thicknesses during quenching using thermo-mechanical coupling model

The interfacial heat transfer coefficient between hot profile surface and cooling water was determined by using inverse heat conduction model combined with end quenching experiment. Then, a Deform-3 D thermo-mechanical coupling model for simulating the on-line water quenching of extruded profile with unequal and large thicknesses was developed. The temperature field, residual stress field and distortion of profile during quenching were investigated systematically. The results show that heat transfer coefficient increases as water flow rate increases. The peak heat transfer coefficient with higher water flow rates appears at lower interface temperatures. The temperature distribution across the cross-section of profile during quenching is severe nonuniform and the maximum temperature difference is 300 ℃ at quenching time of 3.49 s. The temperature difference through the thickness of different parts of profile first increases sharply to a maximum value, and then gradually decreases. The temperature gradient increases obviously with the increase of thickness of parts. After quenching, there exist large residual stresses on the inner side of joints of profile and the two ends of part with thickness of 10 mm. The profile presents a twisting-type distortion across the cross-section under non-uniform cooling and the maximum twisting angle during quenching is 2.78°.

Effect of thermo-mechanical processing on microstructure and electrochemical behavior of Ti-Nb-Zr-V new metastable β titanium biomedical alloy

The influence of thermo-mechanical processing (TMP) on the microstructure and the electrochemical behavior of new metastableβ alloy Ti?20.6Nb?13.6Zr?0.5V (TNZV) was investigated. The TMP included hot working in belowβ transus, solution heat treatments at the same temperature and different cooling rates in addition to aging. Depending upon the TMP conditions, a wide range of microstructures with varying spatial distributions and morphologies of equiaxed/elongatedα andβ phases were attained, allowing for a wide range of electrochemical properties to be achieved. The corrosion behavior of the studied alloy was evaluated in a Ringer’s solution at 37 °C via open circuit potential?time and potentiodynamic polarization measurements.

Development of multi-physics numerical simulation model to investigate thermo-mechanical fatigue crack propagation in an autofrettaged gun barrel

In this research,a detailed multi-physics study has been carried out by numerically simulating a solid fractured gun barrel for 20 thermo-mechanical cycles.The numerical model is based on thermal effects,mechanical stress fields and fatigue crack mechanics.Elastic-plastic material data of modified AISI 4340 at temperatures ranging from 25 to 1200℃and at strain rates of 4,16,32 and 48 s^(-1) was acquired from high-temperature compression tests.This was used as material property data in the simulation model.The boundary conditions applied are kept similar to the working gun barrel during continuous firing.A methodology has been provided to define thermo-mechanically active surface-to-surface type interface between the crack faces for a better approximation of stresses at the crack tip.Comparison of results from non-autofrettaged and autofrettaged simulation models provide useful information about the evolution of strains and stresses in the barrel at different points under combined thermo-mechanical loading cycles in both cases.The effect of thermal fatigue under already induced compressive yield due to autofrettage and the progressive degradation of the accumulated stresses due to thermo-mechanical cyclic loads on the internal surface of the gun barrel(mimicking the continuous firing scenario)has been analyzed.Comparison between energy release rate at tips of varying crack lengths due to cyclic thermo-mechanical loading in the non-autofrettaged and autofrettaged gun has been carried out.

EVOLUTION OF MICROSTRUCTURES AND HARDNESS DURING CONTINUOUS THERMO-MECHANICAL PROCESSING OF 6201 ALUMINUM ALLOY

Continuous thermo-mechanical processing (CTMP) of 6201 aluminum alloy was simulated on Gleeble-1500. The deformed specimens were analyzed by the observation of TEM and the measurement of hardness. It was shown that rapid solid solution and aging treatment can be effectively combined in one procedure by the strain induced during CTMP. The deformation temperature is ranging from 540* C to 300* C, the hardness increases directly before the 6th pass followed by a slight drop, the amount of precipitates increases with the holding time after deformation. Uniformly distributed and stabilized Mg2Si precipitates, as well as dislocation substructure can be observed on deformed specimens which have been subsequently held at 300℃ for 60 seconds.

Coupled thermo-mechanical constitutive damage model for sandstone

Underground rock dynamic disasters are becoming more severe due to the increasing depth of human operations underground.Underground temperature and pressure conditions contribute significantly to these disasters.Therefore,it is important to understand the coupled thermo-mechanical(TM)behaviour of rocks for the long-term safety and maintenance of underground tunnelling and mining.Moreover,investigation of the damage,strength and failure characteristics of rocks under triaxial stress conditions is important to avoid underground rock disasters.In this study,based on Weibull distribution and Lemaitre's strain equivalent principle,a statistical coupled TM constitutive model for sandstone was established under high temperature and pressure conditions.The triaxial test results of sandstone under different temperature and pressure conditions were used to validate the model.The proposed model was in good agreement with the experimental results up to 600℃.The total TM damage was decreased with increasing temperature,while it was increased with increasing confining pressure.The model's parameters can be calculated using conventional laboratory test results.

Ultrasonic Welding of Magnesium–Titanium Dissimilar Metals:A Study on Thermo-mechanical Analyses of Welding Process by Experimentation and Finite Element Method

Ultrasonic welding is an effective ways to achieve a non-reactive/immiscible heterogeneous metal connection, such as the connection of magnesium alloy and titanium alloy. But the thermal mechanism of magnesium alloy/titanium alloy ultrasonic welding has not been defined clearly. In this paper, the experimental and the finite element analysis were adopted to study the thermal mechanism during welding. Through the test, the temperature variation law during the welding process is obtained, and the accuracy of the finite element model is verified. The microscopic analysis indicates that at the welding time of 0.5 s, the magnesium alloy in the center of the solder joint is partially melted and generates the liquid phase. Through the finite element analysis, the friction coefficient of the magnesium–titanium ultrasonic welding interface can be considered as an average constant value of 0.28. The maximum temperature at the interface can exceed 600 ℃ to reach the melting point temperature of the magnesium alloy. The plastic deformation begins after 0.35 s and occurs at the magnesium side at the center of the interface.

DEVELOPMENT OF NEW THERMO-MECHANICAL SIMULATOR

A new multifunction thermo-mechanical simulator was successfully developed. The accuracy of measurement and control is very high through all digital control. More than twenty tests may be fulfilled including tension, compression, torsion, combination large deformation that meets the study of supersteel, etc. Its performance is introduced in the paper, such as designed ideas, machine structure, man-machine interface, control system, etc.