Analysis of the elastic-plastic indentation properties of materials with varying ratio of hardness to Young’s modulus

The elastic-plastic indentation properties of materials with varying ratio of hardness to Young’s modulus(H/E) were analyzed with the finite element method. And the indentation stress fields of materials with varying ratio H/E on the surface were studied by the experiment. The results show that the penetration depth, contact radius, plastic pile-up and the degree of elastic recovery depend strongly on the ratio H/E. Moreover, graphs were established to describe the relationship between the elastic-plastic indentation parameters and H/E. The established graphs can be used to predict the H/E of materials when compared with experimental data.

Phase Morphology, Crystallization Behavior and Mechanical Properties of Poly(L-lactide) Toughened with Biodegradable Polyurethane: Effect of Composition and Hard Segment Ratio

Polyester-based biodegradable polyurethane （PU） with different hard segment ratios was selected to modify the impact toughness of poly（L-lactide） （PLLA）. The influence of blending composition and hard segment ratio of PU on the phase morphology, crystallization behavior and mechanical properties of PLLA/PU blends has been investigated systematically. The results showed that the PU particles were uniformly dispersed in PLLA matrix at a scale from sub- microns to several microns. The glass transition temperature of PU within these blends decreased compared to that of neat PU, but rose slightly with its content and hard segment ratio. The presence of PU retarded the crystallization ability of PLLA, whereas enhanced its elongation at break and impact resistance effectively. As the PU content reaches up to 30 wt%, the phenomenon of brittle-ductile transition occurred, resulting in a rougher fracture surface with the formation of fibril-like structure. Moreover, under the same concentrations, the elongation at break and impact strength of PLLA blends decreased slightly with the increase of hard segment ratio of PU.

Enhanced micro/nano-tribological performance in partially crystallized 60NiTi film

The microstructure,mechanical and micro/nano-tribological properties of the 60NiTi film annealed at different temperature were investigated.The results reveal that annealing as-deposited 60NiTi film at 300,375,and 600℃ for 1 h leads to structural relaxation,partial crystallization and full crystallization,respectively.Compared with the structurally relaxed structure,the partially crystallized structure exhibits increased hardness but decreased elastic modulus.This is because that the elastic modulus is reduced by Voigt model while the hardness is improved by composite effect.Due to the highest hardness and ratio of hardness to elastic modulus(H/E),the partially crystallized 60NiTi film has the lowest penetration depth and residual depth(i.e.,groove depth).Besides,the results also reveal that ductile plowing is the dominant wear mechanism for all the annealed 60NiTi films.Under the condition of the ductile plowing,coefficient of friction and wear resistance are related to penetration depth and residual depth,respectively.Therefore,the partially crystallized 60NiTi film shows the best tribological performance at the micro/nano-scale.The current work not only highlights the important roles of hardness and H/E in improving the micro/nano-tribological properties but also concludes an efficient and simple method for simultaneously increasing hardness and H/E.