A hardening load transfer function for rock bolts and its calibration using distributed fiber optic sensing

Confinement of rock bolts by the surrounding rock formation has long been recognized as a positive contributor to the pull-out behavior,yet only a few experimental works and analytical models have been reported,most of which are based on the global rock bolt response evaluated in pull-out tests.This paper presents a laboratory experimental setup aiming to capture the rock formation effect,while using distributed fiber optic sensing to quantify the effect of the confinement and the reinforcement pull-out behavior on a more local level.It is shown that the behavior along the sample itself varies,with certain points exhibiting stress drops with crack formation.Some edge effects related to the kinematic freedom of the grout to dilate are also observed.Regardless,it was found that the mid-level response is quite similar to the average response along the sample.The ability to characterize the variation of the response along the sample is one of the many advantages high-resolution fiber optic sensing allows in such investigations.The paper also offers a plasticity-based hardening load transfer function,representing a"slice"of the anchor.The paper describes in detail the development of the model and the calibration/determination of its parameters.The suggested model captures well the coupled behavior in which the pull-out process leads to an increase in the confining stress due to dilative behavior.

Effect of aging treatment on the precipitation transformation and age hardening of Mg-Gd-Y-Zn-Zr alloy

In this study, the precipitation transformation and age hardening of solution-treated Mg-9Gd-4Y-2Zn-0.5Zr(wt.%) alloy were investigated at different aging treatment parameters. The precipitation sequences of the alloy aged at 200℃, 250℃ and 300℃ are β’’(DO19) → β’(BCO) → β(FCC), β’’(DO19) → β’(BCO) → β_(1)(FCC) → β(FCC) and β(FCC), respectively. The streaks sequences of the alloy aged at 200℃, 250℃ and 300℃ are SF, SF → 14H-LPSO and SF → 14H-LPSO, respectively. For the alloy aged at 200℃ and 250℃, the increase in hardness with increasing aging time is contributed from the increase in precipitate volume fraction and the transformation from β’’ to β’ phase with basal → prismatic and spherical → spindle-like precipitate changes. The decrease in hardness after the peak-aging stage is attributed to the appearance of micro-sized β precipitates. Because of the smaller size of precipitates and the triangular arrangement of β’ precipitate, the hardness of the alloy aged at 200℃ is higher than that aged at 250℃. For the alloy aged at 300℃, the appearance of only micro-sized β precipitate and its coarsening with increasing aging time leads to the lowest hardness and an overall decrease in hardness with the aging time.

Microstructure,Texture Evolution,and Strain Hardening Behaviour of As-extruded Mg-Zn and Mg-Y Alloys under Compression

Microstructure,texture evolution and strain hardening behaviour of the Mg-1Y and Mg-1Zn(wt%)alloys were investigated under room temperature compression.Microstructural characterization was performed by optical microscopy,scanning electron microscopy,electron back scattered diffraction and transmission electron microscopy.The experimental results show that Mg-1Zn alloy exhibits conventional three-stage strain hardening curves,while Mg-1Y alloy exhibits novel six-stage strain hardening curves.For Mg-1Y alloy,rare earth texture leads to weak tensile twinning activity in compression and consequently results in a moderate evolution to<0001>texture.Moreover,inefficient tensile twinning activity and weak slip-twinning interaction give rise to excellent ductility and high hardening capacity but low strain hardening rate.For Mg-1Zn alloy,basal texture leads to pronounced tensile twinning activity in compression and consequently results in rapid evolution to<0001>texture.The intense tensile twinning activity and strong slip-twinning interaction lead to high strain hardening rate but poor ductility and low hardening capacity.

Tribological behavior of ZK60Gd alloy reinforced by SiC particles after precipitation hardening

In this research, the effect of precipitation hardening on the tribological behavior of the ZK60Gd/SiC composite was studied. For this purpose, ZK60Gd alloy containing with 5 and 10 wt% SiC were produced with stir casting method. The microstructure characterization of the samples showed the wide distributions of Mg_(7)Zn_(3) and Gd(Mg_(0.5)Zn_(0.5)) precipitates were formed during casting. The results of hardness measurement after precipitation hardening at different temperatures showed that the hardness peck was obtained at 175 ℃. The wear tests with different loads(10, 40, 60, 90, and 120 N) and velocities(0.1, 0.3, 0.6, and 0.9 m/s) were performed on the as-cast and heat treated sample at 125, 175, and 225 for 12 h. Between the different precipitation hardening conditions, the precipitation hardened samples at 175 ℃ had the highest hardness values and least wear rate. The sample containing 10% reinforcement had the least wear rate between the unreinforced alloy and the composites. The results showed that abrasive, adhesive, delamination, MML, and fatigue wear mechanisms were the dominant wear mechanisms for the composite samples. In contrast, the dominant wear mechanism for the unreinforced samples was abrasive, adhesive,delamination, MML, and plastic deformation.

Hardening effects of sheared precipitates on {1121} twinning in magnesium alloys

The interactions between a plate-like precipitate and two twin boundaries(TBs)({1012},{1121}) in magnesium alloys are studied using molecular dynamics(MD) simulations. The precipitate is not sheared by {1012} TB, but sheared by {1121} TB. Shearing on the(110) plane is the predominant deformation mode in the sheared precipitate. Then, the blocking effects of precipitates with different sizes are studied for {1121} twinning. All the precipitates show a blocking effect on {1121} twinning although they are sheared, while the blocking effects of precipitates with different sizes are different. The blocking effect increases significantly with the increasing precipitate length(in-plane size along TB) and thickness, whereas changes weakly as the precipitate width changes. Based on the revealed interaction mechanisms, a critical twin shear is calculated theoretically by the Eshelby solutions to determine which TB is able to shear the precipitate. In addition, an analytical hardening model of sheared precipitates is proposed by analyzing the force equilibrium during TB-precipitate interactions. This model indicates that the blocking effect depends solely on the area fraction of the precipitate cross-section, and shows good agreement with the current MD simulations. Finally, the blocking effects of plate-like precipitates on the {1012} twinning(non-sheared precipitate), {1121} twinning(sheared precipitate) and basal dislocations(non-sheared precipitate) are compared together. Results show that the blocking effect on {1121} twinning is stronger than that on {1012} twinning, while the effect on basal dislocations is weakest. The precipitate-TB interaction mechanisms and precipitation hardening models revealed in this work are of great significance for improving the mechanical property of magnesium alloys by designing microstructure.

Mg-3Al-1Zn alloy deformed along different strain paths: Role of latent hardening

The mechanical properties of magnesium alloy AZ31 were investigated experimentally with visco-plastic self-consistent modeling. Tension,compression and plane strain compression(PSC) tests were performed along 3 directions of a hot rolled plate, and the material parameters input in the model were fitted with the uniaxial stress-strain curves. The critical resolved shear stress(CRSS) for tension twinning was modeled with a modified Voce hardening law first decreasing, and then increasing with strain, that could reproduce better the flow stress for twin-predominant deformation. Such CRSS evolution may better model twin nucleation, propagation and growth. Firstly simulations were carried out assuming latent hardening coefficients for slip by other slip systems equal to self-hardening. Then different heterogeneous latent hardening were used, whose values were based on dislocation dynamics simulations from the literature. This study shows that equal self and latent hardening can reproduce the stress strain curves and plastic anisotropy as well as heterogeneous mode on mode latent hardening.Discrepancies between simulations and experimental results from PSC are explained by an under-estimation of twinning for some PSC strain paths.

Strengthening the Security of Supervised Networks by Automating Hardening Mechanisms

In recent years, the place occupied by the various manifestations of cyber-crime in companies has been considerable. Indeed, due to the rapid evolution of telecommunications technologies, companies, regardless of their size or sector of activity, are now the target of advanced persistent threats. The Work 2035 study also revealed that cyber crimes (such as critical infrastructure hacks) and massive data breaches are major sources of concern. Thus, it is important for organizations to guarantee a minimum level of security to avoid potential attacks that can cause paralysis of systems, loss of sensitive data, exposure to blackmail, damage to reputation or even a commercial harm. To do this, among other means, hardening is used, the main objective of which is to reduce the attack surface within a company. The execution of the hardening configurations as well as the verification of these are carried out on the servers and network equipment with the aim of reducing the number of openings present by keeping only those which are necessary for proper operation. However, nowadays, in many companies, these tasks are done manually. As a result, the execution and verification of hardening configurations are very often subject to potential errors but also highly consuming human and financial resources. The problem is that it is essential for operators to maintain an optimal level of security while minimizing costs, hence the interest in automating hardening processes and verifying the hardening of servers and network equipment. It is in this logic that we propose within the framework of this work the reinforcement of the security of the information systems (IS) by the automation of the mechanisms of hardening. In our work, we have, on the one hand, set up a hardening procedure in accordance with international security standards for servers, routers and switches and, on the other hand, designed and produced a functional application which makes it possible to: 1) Realise the configuration of the hardening;2) Verify them;3) Correct the non conformities;4) Write and send by mail a verification report for the configurations;5) And finally update the procedures of hardening. Our web application thus created allows in less than fifteen (15) minutes actions that previously took at least five (5) hours of time. This allows supervised network operators to save time and money, but also to improve their security standards in line with international standards.

Achieving High Strength and Tensile Ductility in Pure Nickel by Cryorolling with Subsequent Low-Temperature Short-Time Annealing

Ultra fine-grained pure metals and their alloys have high strength and low ductility.In this study,cryorolling under different strains followed by low-temperature short-time annealing was used to fabricate pure nickel sheets combining high strength with good ductility.The results show that,for different cryorolling strains,the uniform elongation was greatly increased without sacrificing the strength after annealing.A yield strength of 607 MPa and a uniform elongation of 11.7%were obtained after annealing at a small cryorolling strain(ε=0.22),while annealing at a large cryorolling strain(ε=1.6)resulted in a yield strength of 990 MPa and a uniform elongation of 6.4%.X-ray diffraction(XRD),transmission electron microscopy(TEM),scanning electron microscopy(SEM),and electron backscattered diffraction(EBSD)were used to characterize the microstructure of the specimens and showed that the high strength could be attributed to strain hardening during cryorolling,with an additional contribution from grain refinement and the formation of dislocation walls.The high ductility could be attributed to annealing twins and micro-shear bands during stretching,which improved the strain hardening capacity.The results show that the synergistic effect of strength and ductility can be regulated through low-temperature short-time annealing with different cryorolling strains,which provides a new reference for the design of future thermo-mechanical processes.

Effect of Pre-strain on Microstructure and Stamping Performance of High-strength Low-alloy Steel

In this study,pre-strain ranging from 0 to 0.12 was applied through uniaxial tension on high-strength low-alloy(HSLA)specimens with four kinds of grain size.Effect of pre-strain and grain size on me-chanical property was investigated through tensile tests.Microstructures of the pre-strained and tensile tested samples were analyzed,respectively.The 30.8°v-bending and following flattening,as well as Erichson cupping tests,were performed on the pre-strained samples.Results show the elongation ratio of grain and dislocation density increases with pre-strain.Yielding platform is removed when pre-strain is larger than 0.06 while yielding plateau period decreases with pre-strain less than 0.06 due to reduction of pinning effect.The 30.8°v-bending and the following flattening tests are successfully accomplished on all the pre-strained samples with different grain size.Decrease in grain size,along with increase in pre-strain,causes increase in strength and decrease in elongation rate as well as cupping value.Pre-strain causes very slight effect on bending ability,much less than that on mechanical property and cupping test value.Reciprocal impact of the pre-strain and grain size on HSLA steel deformability is inconspicuous.

A Correlation-Based Stochastic Model for Massive MIMO Channel

In this paper,the channel impulse response matrix(CIRM)can be expressed as a sum of couplings between the steering vectors at the base station(BS)and the eigenbases at the mobile station(MS).Nakagami distribution was used to describe the fading of the coupling between the steering vectors and the eigenbases.Extensive measurements were carried out to evaluate the performance of this proposed model.Furthermore,the physical implications of this model were illustrated and the capacities are analyzed.In addition,the azimuthal power spectrum(APS)of several models was analyzed.Finally,the channel hardening effect was simulated and discussed.Results showed that the proposed model provides a better fit to the measured results than the other CBSM,i.e.,Weichselberger model.Moreover,the proposed model can provide better tradeoff between accuracy and complexity in channel synthesis.This CIRM model can be used for massive MIMO design in the future communication system design.

Flow characteristics and hot workability of a typical low-alloy high-strength steel during multi-pass deformation

Heavy components of low-alloy high-strength(LAHS) steels are generally formed by multi-pass forging. It is necessary to explore the flow characteristics and hot workability of LAHS steels during the multi-pass forging process, which is beneficial to the formulation of actual processing parameters. In the study, the multi-pass hot compression experiments of a typical LAHS steel are carried out at a wide range of deformation temperatures and strain rates. It is found that the work hardening rate of the experimental material depends on deformation parameters and deformation passes, which is ascribed to the impacts of static and dynamic softening behaviors. A new model is established to describe the flow characteristics at various deformation passes. Compared to the classical Arrhenius model and modified Zerilli and Armstrong model, the newly proposed model shows higher prediction accuracy with a confidence level of 0.98565. Furthermore, the connection between power dissipation efficiency(PDE) and deformation parameters is revealed by analyzing the microstructures. The PDE cannot be utilized to reflect the efficiency of energy dissipation for microstructure evolution during the entire deformation process, but only to assess the efficiency of energy dissipation for microstructure evolution in a specific deformation parameter state.As a result, an integrated processing map is proposed to better study the hot workability of the LAHS steel, which considers the effects of instability factor(IF), PDE, and distribution and size of grains. The optimized processing parameters for the multi-pass deformation process are the deformation parameters of 1223–1318 K and 0.01–0.08 s^(-1). Complete dynamic recrystallization occurs within the optimized processing parameters with an average grain size of 18.36–42.3 μm. This study will guide the optimization of the forging process of heavy components.

Mechanical behavior of nanorubber reinforced epoxy over a wide strain rate loading

Nanorubber/epoxy composites containing 0,2,6 and 10 wt%nanorubber are subjected to uniaxial compression over a wide range of strain rate from 8×10^(-4) s^(-1) to~2×10^(4) s^(-1).Unexpectedly,their strain rate sensitivity and strain hardening index increase with increasing nanorubber content.Potential mechanisms are proposed based on numerical simulations using a unit cell model.An increase in the strain rate sensitivity with increasing nanorubber content results from the fact that the nanorubber becomes less incompressible at high strain,generating a higher hydro-static pressure.Adiabatic shear localization starts to occur in the epoxy under a strain rate of 22,000 s^(-1) when the strain exceeds 0.35.The presence of nanorubber in the epoxy reduces adiabatic shear localization by preventing it from propagating.

Surface hardening of Fe-based alloy powders by Nd:YAG laser cladding followed by electrospark deposition with WC-Co cemented carbide

This paper presents the results of a study concerned with the surface hardening of Fe-based alloys and WC-8Co cemented carbide by inte- grating laser cladding and the electrospark deposition processes. Specimens of low carbon steel were processed firstly by laser cladding with Fe-based alloy powders and then by electrospark deposition with WC-SCo cemented carbide. It is shown that, for these two treatments, the electrospark coating possesses finer microstructure than the laser coating, and the thickness and surface hardness of the electrospark coating can be substantially increased.

Effect of Rapid Cold Hardening on the Cold Tolerance of the Larvae of the Rice Stem Borer,Chilo suppressalis(Walker)

The effects of rapid cold hardening （RCH） on the cold tolerance of the last instar larvae of Chilo suppressalis （Walker） were evaluated for the first time. The discriminating temperature, induction, detection, duration and extent of RCH of the larvae in the laboratory were tested, and the supercooling points （SCPs） and the contents of water and lipid of the larvae after RCH treatment were determined, respectively. The results showed that the discriminating temperature of the larvae was about -21℃. Mean survival rates of the larvae which exposed to either 0 or 5℃ for 2 and 4 h before exposure to the discriminating temperature for 2 h were significantly higher than those of the control groups （P 〈 0.05）. Moreover, the highest survival rate appeared in the larvae after 0℃ for 4 h treatment. The protection against low temperature gained by RCH at 0℃ for 4 h was rapidly lost on return to 28℃. Mean survival rates of RCH larvae were significantly higher than those of non-acclimated （NACC） larvae and acclimation （ACC） larvae when they were exposed to the discriminating temperature for 2 or 4 h （P〈 0.05）. Moreover, the rates of NACC, ACC, RCH and ACC ＋ RCH larvae from 2 to 6 h to the discriminating temperature resulted in a significant decline. The values of SCPs and the contents of lipid of the larvae which exposed to either 0 or 5℃ for 2 and 4 h showed no significant difference at 0.05 level compared to those of the control groups. But the contents of water in the larvae were obviously decreased. Therefore, it could be concluded that RCH could enhance cold tolerance and affect partly physiological and biochemical components of the larvae of C. suppressalis, but the underlying mechanisms needs to be further explored.

Microstructure refinement and work hardening in a machined surface layer induced by turning Inconel 718 super alloy

The microstructural changes in the machined surface layer of Ni-based super alloys essentially determine the final performance of the structural components of aerospace engines in which these alloys are used.In this work,multiscale metallurgical observations using scanning electron microscopy,electron-backscatter diffraction microscopy,and transmission electron microscopy were conducted to quantitatively characterize the microstructure of the machined subsurface.Next,to elucidate the factors that affect the formation of the refinement microstructure,the distributions of the deformation parameters(strain,strain rate,and temperature) in the machined subsurface were analyzed.A dislocation–twin interaction dynamic recrystallization mechanism for grain refinement during machining of Inconel 718 is proposed.Furthermore,microhardness evolution induced by grain refinement in the machined surface is evaluated.The results suggest that the gradient microstructure and the work hardening can be optimized by controlling the cutting parameters during turning of Inconel 718.

Hot Compression Behavior of As-Cast Precipitation-Hardening Stainless Steel

High temperature deformation characteristics of a semiaustenitic grade of precipitation-hardening stain- less steels were investigated by conducting hot compression tests at temperatures of 900--1 100 ℃ and strain rates of 0. 001--1 s^-1. Flow behavior of this alloy was investigated and it was realized that dynamic recrystallization （DRX） was responsible for flow softening. The correlation between critical strain for initiation of DRX and de- formation parameters including temperature and strain rate, and therefore, Zener-Hollomon parameter （Z） was studied. Metallographic observation was performed to determine the as-deformed microstructure. Microstructural observation shows that recrystallized grain size increases with increasing the temperature and decreasing the strain rate. The activation energy required for DRX of the investigated steel was determined using correlations of flow stress versus temperature and strain rate. The calculated value of activation energy, 460 kJ/mol, is in accordance with other studies on stainless steels. The relationship between peak strain and Z parameter is proposed.

PRECIPITATION HARDENING IN B2-ORDERED NiAl BY Ni_(2)AlTi COMPOUND

Microstructural variations and correlated hardness changes in B2-ordered NiAl containing fine precipitation of Ni2AlTi have been investigated by means of transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and hardness tests. The amount of age hardening is not large as compared to the large microstructural variations during aging. TEM observations have revealed that the L21-type Ni2AlTi precipitates keep a lattice coherency with the NiAl matrix at the beginning of aging. By longer periods of aging Ni2AlTi precipitates lose their coherency and change their morphology to the globular ones surrounded by misfit dislocations. The temperature dependence of the yield strength of precipitate-containing B2-ordered NiAl was investigated by compression tests over the temperature range of 873-1273 K. The fine precipitation of Ni2AlTi was found to enhance greatly the yield strength and the high-temperature strength is comparable with that of superalloy Mar-M200.

Load Bearing Capacity and Safety Analysis for Strain-hardening Austenitic Stainless Steel Pressure Vessels

By increasing the yield strengths of austenitic stainless steels for pressure vessels with strain hardening techniques,the elastic load bearing capacity of austenitic stainless steel pressure vessels can be significantly improved.Two kinds of strain hardening methods are often used for austenitic stainless steel pressure vessels：Avesta model for ambient temperature applications and Ardeform model for cryogenic temperature applications.Both methods are obtained from conventional design rules based on the linear elastic theory,and only consider the hardening effect from materials.Consequently this limits the applications of strain hardening techniques for austenitic stainless steel pressure vessels because of safety concerns.This paper investigates the effect of strain hardening on the load bearing capacity of austenitic stainless steel pressure vessels under large deformation,based on the elastic-plastic theory.Firstly,to understand the effect of strain hardening on material behavior,the plastic instability loads of a round tensile bar specimen are derived under two different loading paths and validated by experiments.Secondly,to investigate the effect of strain hardening on pressure vessels strength, the plastic instability pressure under strain hardening is derived and further validated by finite element simulations.Further,the safety margin of pressure vessels after strain hardening is analyzed by comparing the safety factor values calculated from bursting tests,finite element analyses,and standards.The researching results show that the load bearing capacity of pressure vessels at ambient temperature is independent of the loading history when the effects of both material strain hardening and structural deformation are considered.Finite element simulations and bursting tests results show that the minimum safety factor of austenitic stainless steel pressure vessels with 5% strain hardening is close to the recommended value for common pressure vessels specified in the European pressure vessel standard.The proposed study also shows that in the strain hardening design of austenitic stainless steel pressure vessels,the calculation for plastic instability pressure could use theoretical formula or finite element analyses based on geometrical dimensions and material property parameters before strain hardening,but a 5%strain should be employed as a design limit.The proposed research can be used for the strain hardening design of austenitic stainless steel pressure vessels safely.

EFFECTS OF HIGH-DENSITY CURRENT PULSES ON WORK HARDENING BEHAVIORS OF AUSTENITE STAINLESS STEEL IN WIRE-DRAWING DEFORMATION

The influence of high-density pulsing current on the work-hardening behaviour of H0Cr17Ni6Mn3 and 1Cr18Ni9 stainless steels in wire-drawing deformation processes has been studied. It was found that the drawing stress and the work-hardening rate of wires were significantly reduced by applying current pulses in drawing process. The work-hardening behavior of the multi-courses drawing deformation can be well described by Hollomon formula σ=κΕn. With the application of current pulses in drawing deformation, the work-hardening exponents of H0Cr17Ni6Mn3 steel wires and 1Cr18Ni9 stainless steel wires were reduced by 33% and 45%, respectively, and their work-hardening coefficients were reduced by 41% and 47%, respectively. It was also found that the work-hardening coefficient of wires was reduced with the increment of the frequency of current pulses, while the work-hardening exponents of both steels were insensitive to the pulsing frequency.

Potential Use of Strain Hardening ECC in Permanent Formwork with Small Scale Flexural Beams

Utilizing pre-cast ECC panels as participating permanent formwork of concrete members, and the validity of using ECC to disperse the single crack in concrete into multiple ones in ECC were studied. In the process, totally two kinds of ECC with different tensile properties, 7 series of flat panels with different top surface figures and 3 U-shape panels with different inner surface forms were investigated. To evaluate the performance of the permanent formworks, small ECC-concrete composite beams were cast and tested mechanically. The 4-point bending test results show that the use of pre-cast ECC panels as permanent formwork can significantly improve the load capacity and toughness of a concrete member, effectively dispersing single widely opened crack in concrete into multiple ones in ECC. Most permanent formworks show perfect bond with the concrete cast on them, while the ones with partially debonded zone achieve the best mechanical performance. The U-shape permanent formworks show better performances than the flat ones, achieving much betler improvements in both the load capacity and toughness, together with better crack width control.