Mathematical modeling and simulations of stress mitigation by coating polycrystalline particles in lithium-ion batteries

A chemo-mechanical model is developed to investigate the effects on the stress development of the coating of polycrystalline Ni-rich LiNixMnyCo_(z)O_(2)(x≥0.8)(NMC)particles with poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)(PEDOT).The simulation results show that the coating of primary NMC particles significantly reduces the stress generation by efficiently accommodating the volume change associated with the lithium diffusion,and the coating layer plays roles both as a cushion against the volume change and a channel for the lithium transport,promoting the lithium distribution across the secondary particles more homogeneously.Besides,the lower stiffness,higher ionic conductivity,and larger thickness of the coating layer improve the stress mitigation.This paper provides a mathematical framework for calculating the chemo-mechanical responses of anisotropic electrode materials and fundamental insights into how the coating of NMC active particles mitigates stress levels.

Numerical simulations of earthquake rupture induced by pressure perturbation

The subsurface fluid injection can cause pressure increase within faults,leading to earthquake occurrences.However,the factors controlling earthquake rupture due to pressure perturbation remain poorly understood.To resolve this problem,we simulate the physical processes of earthquake nucleation and rupture on strike-slip faults perturbated by pressure migration based on the slip-weakening law.Multiple kinds of factors,including background stress,fluid injection rates,the area of the pressurized region,fault geometry,and fault friction coefficients,are considered in our simulations.Our simulation results reveal that the ratio of shear stress to normal stress rather than their absolute values controls the rupture behavior.With the large stress ratios,high injection rates,and large pressurized areas,earthquakes are prone to propagate as runaway ruptures.Additionally,faults with large aspect ratios of length to width are also favorable for causing runaway ruptures.In contrast,the factors of fault strike,dip angles and friction coefficients have minor influence on rupture behavior.

Optimizing design of lattice materials based on finite element simulation

The optimized design of simple cross-truss and column lattice structures was carried out by the SolidWorks simulation module.The effective density of the structure was calculated according to the weight reduction requirements proposed by the project.Then,the vari-ation curve between the maximum bearing stress of the unit structure and the structural variables was obtained by simulation.Meanwhile,the mathematical equation between the maximum bearing stress and the structural variables could be obtained through MATLAB fitting.The results indicated that with the decrease in the number of cells,the compressive strength of the prepared column lattice increased(400 to 4 cells,compressive strength 29 MPa to 160 MPa).However,the yield strength increased with the number of cells.The compression strength of the simple cross-truss lattice samples indicated an increase trend with the decrease of the pillar size(an increase of the number of units),reaching 91 MPa(pillar diameter 0.52 mm,number of units 25).While the yield strength increased with the increasing of the number of units.In addition,the additive manufacturing processes of simple cubic lattice and simple cross-pillar lattice were investigated using selective laser melting.The compression performance obtained from the experiment is compared with the simulation results,which are in good agreement.The results of this paper can provide an important reference for optimizing design of lattice materials.

Assessing cutter-rock interaction during TBM tunnelling in granite:Large-scale standing rotary cutting tests and 3D DEM simulations

The widespread utilisation of tunnel boring machines(TBMs)in underground construction engineering requires a detailed investigation of the cutter-rock interaction.In this paper,we conduct a series of largescale standing rotary cutting tests on granite in conjunction with high-fidelity numerical simulations based on a particle-type discrete element method(DEM)to explore the effects of key cutting parameters on the TBM cutter performance and the distribution of cutter-rock contact stresses.The assessment results of cutter performance obtained from the cutting tests and numerical simulations reveal similar dependencies on the key cutting parameters.More specifically,the normal and rolling forces exhibit a positive correlation with penetration but are slightly influenced by the cutting radius.In contrast,the side force decreases as the cutting radius increases.Additionally,the side force shows a positive relationship with the penetration for smaller cutting radii but tends to become negative as the cutting radius increases.The cutter's relative effectiveness in rock breaking is significantly impacted by the penetration but shows little dependency on the cutting radius.Consequently,an optimal penetration is identified,leading to a low boreability index and specific energy.A combined Hertz-Weibull function is developed to fit the cutter-rock contact stress distribution obtained in DEM simulations,whereby an improved CSM(Colorado School of Mines)model is proposed by replacing the original monotonic cutting force distribution with this combined Hertz-Weibull model.The proposed model outperforms the original CSM model as demonstrated by a comparison of the estimated cutting forces with those from the tests/simulations.The findings from this work that advance our understanding of TBM cutter performance have important implications for improving the efficiency and reliability of TBM tunnelling in granite.

Simulation of extrusion process of complicated aluminium profile and die trial

The arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian（ALE） adaptive remeshing technology and the HyperXtrude software of transient finite element simulations were used on analogue simulation of aluminium extrusion processing.The field distributions of strain rate,stress,temperature and velocity of metal flow were obtained.The results are basically consistent with the experiment,which indicates that this method may successfully predict the defects in the actual extrusion process.

Finite element analysis and simulation for cold precision forging of a helical gear

To investigate the effects of billet geometry on the cold precision forging process of a helical gear, six different billet geometries were designed utilizing the relief-hole principle. And the influences of the billet geometry on the forming load and the deformation uniformity were analyzed by three-dimensional （3D） finite element method （FEM） under the commercial software DEFORM 3D. The billet geometry was optimized to meet lower forming load and better deformation uniformity requirement. Deformation mechanism was studied through the distribution of flow velocity field and effective strain field. The forging experiments of the helical gear were successfully performed using lead material as a model material under the same process conditions used in the FE simulations. The results show that the forming load decreases as the diameter of relief-hole do increases, but the effect of do on the deformation uniformity is very complicated. The forming load is lower and the deformation is more uniform when do is 10 mm.

Discrete element simulation of mechanical characteristic of conditioned sands in earth pressure balance shield tunneling

The discrete element method (DEM) was used to simulate the flow characteristic and strength characteristic of the conditioned sands in the earth pressure balance (EPB) tunneling. In the laboratory the conditioned sands were reproduced and the slump test and the direct shear test of the conditioned sands were implemented. A DEM equivalent model that can simulate the macro mechanical characteristic of the conditioned sands was proposed,and the corresponding numerical models of the slump test and the shear test were established. By selecting proper DEM model parameters,the errors of the slump values between the simulation results and the test results are in the range of 10.3%-14.3%,and the error of the curves between the shear displacement and the shear stress calculated with the DEM simulation is 4.68%-16.5% compared with that of the laboratory direct shear test. This illustrates that the proposed DEM equivalent model can approximately simulate the mechanical characteristics of the conditioned sands,which provides the basis for further simulation of the interaction between the conditioned soil and the chamber pressure system of the EPB machine.

Numerical simulation of freezing effect and tool change of shield machine with a frozen cutterhead

A shield machine with freezing function is proposed in order to realize tool change operation at atmospheric pressure. Furthermore, the transformation project of freezing cutterhead and tool change maintenance method are put forward. Taking the shield construction of Huanxi Power Tunnel as an example, a numerical analysis of the freezing cutter head of the project was carried out. The results show that when the brine temperature is-25 °C, after 30 d of freezing, the thickness of the frozen wall can reach 0.67 m and the average temperature drops to-9.9 °C. When the brine temperature is-30 °C, after 50 d of freezing, the thickness of the frozen wall can reach 1.01 m and the average temperature drops to-12.4 °C. If the thickness of the frozen wall is 0.5 m and the average temperature is-10 °C, as the design index of the frozen wall, the brine temperature should be lower than-28 °C to meet the excavation requirements in 30 d. Analyzing the frozen wall stress under 0.5 m thickness and-10 °C average temperature condition, the tensile safety factor and compressive safety factor are both greater than 2 at the most dangerous position, which can meet the tool change requirements for shield construction.

Simulation of large-scale numerical substructure in real-time dynamic hybrid testing

A solution scheme is proposed in this paper for an existing RTDHT system to simulate large-scale finite element （FE） numerical substructures. The analysis of the FE numerical substructure is split into response analysis and signal generation tasks, and executed in two different target computers in real-time. One target computer implements the response analysis task, wherein a large time-step is used to solve the FE substructure, and another target computer implements the signal generation task, wherein an interpolation program is used to generate control signals in a small time-step to meet the input demand of the controller. By using this strategy, the scale of the FE numerical substructure simulation may be increased significantly. The proposed scheme is initially verified by two FE numerical substructure models with 98 and 1240 degrees of freedom （DOFs）. Thereafter, RTDHTs of a single frame-foundation structure are implemented where the foundation, considered as the numerical substructure, is simulated by the FE model with 1240 DOFs. Good agreements between the results of the RTDHT and those from the FE analysis in ABAQUS are obtained.

Plastic characterization of metals by combining nanoindentation test and finite element simulation

Materials with the same elastic modulus E and representative stress and strain （σr,εr） present similar indentation-loading curves, whatever the value of strain hardening exponent n. Based on this definition, a good approach was proposed to extract the plastic properties or constitutive equations of metals from nanoindentation test combining finite element simulation. Firstly, without consideration of strain hardening, the representative stress was determined by varying assumed representative stress over a wide range until a good agreement was reached between the computed and experimental loading curves. Similarly, the corresponding representative strain was determined with different hypothetical values of strain hardening exponent in the range of 0-0.6. Through modulating assumed strain hardening exponent values to make the computed unloading curve coincide with that of the experiment, the real strain hardening exponent was acquired. Once the strain hardening exponent was determined, the initial yield stress ay of metals could be obtained by the power law constitution. The validity of the proposed methodology was verified by three real metals： AISI 304 steel, Fe andA1 alloy.

Numerical simulation analysis for deformation deviation and experimental verification for an antenna thin-wall parts considering riveting assembly with finite element method

In the process of thin-wall parts assembly for an antenna,the parts assembly deformation deviation is occurring due to the riveting assembly.In view of the riveting assembly deformation problems,it can be analyzed through transient and static simulation.In this work,the theoretical deformation model for riveting assembly is established with round head rivet.The simulation analysis for riveting deformation is carried out with the riveting assembly piece including four rivets,which comparing with the measuring points experiment results of riveting test piece through dealing with the experimental data using the point coordinate transform method and the space line fitting method.Simultaneously,the deformation deviation of the overall thin-wall parts assembly structure is analyzed through finite element simulation;and its results are verified by the measuring experiment for riveting assembly with the deformation deviation of some key points on the thin-wall parts.Through the comparison analysis,it is shown that the simulation results agree well with the experimental results,which proves the correctness and effectiveness of the theoretical analysis,simulation results and the given experiment data processing method.Through the study on the riveting assembly for thin-wall parts,it will provide a theoretical foundation for improving thin-wall parts assembly quality of large antenna in future.

Finite Element Numerical Simulation of Ground Subsidence in Liangjia Colliery

Being aimed at the ground subsidence due to underground coal mining,a numerical model of rock was established and an appropriate method of numerical simulation was put forward.Using the measured subsidence data on the ground,the equivalent mechanical parameters of the rock stratums can be back-calculated by the properly treatment of coal excavation area,then the ground subsidence of other coal mining area can be predicted by FFM.It provided reference for the treatment of the buildings on the ground of this colliery.

Prediction of hot tearing susceptibility of direct chill casting of AA6111 alloys via finite element simulations

To predict hot tearing susceptibility(HTS)during solidification and improve the quality of Al alloy castings,constitutive equations for AA6111 alloys were developed using a direct finite element(FE)method.A hot tearing model was established for direct chill(DC)casting of industrial AA6111 alloys via coupling FE model and hot tearing criterion.By applying this model to real manufacture processes,the effects of casting speed,bottom cooling,secondary cooling,and geometric variations on the HTS were revealed.The results show that the HTS of the billet increases as the speed and billet radius increase,while it reduces as the interfacial heat transfer coefficient at the bottom or secondary water-cooling rate increases.This model shows the capabilities of incorporating maximum pore fraction in simulating hot tearing initiation,which will have a significant impact on optimizing casting conditions and chemistry for minimizing HTS and thus controlling the casting quality.

Prediction of crack location and propagation in stretch flanging process of aluminum alloy AA-5052 sheet using FEM simulation

The stretch flanging process is significantly affected by various geometrical,material and process parameters.The punch-die clearance and initial flange length are main parameters which have major effects on the edge crack location and strain distribution along die profile radius in the flange.Non-axisymmetric stretch flanging process of AA-5052 sheet metal blanks was carried out by numerical simulation to predict the deformation behavior of flange,location and propagation of crack in flange and to investigate the effect of punch die clearance,flange length,die and punch profile radius and friction in the stretch flanging process.The experimental investigations were made to validate the simulations results.The results reveal that the crack length increases with the increase in the flange length.It is found that the flange length has a significant effect in circumferential direction as compared with the radial direction.The punch die clearance has the most significant effect in crack propagation in comparison with flange length.The circumferential strain is found to be larger in the case of punch having the profile radius less than the die profile radius,which leads to faster edge crack propagation.A close agreement is found between simulation and experimental results in terms of location of edge crack and forming load.

Numerical simulations on material flow behaviors in whole process of friction stir welding

A finite element model based on solid mechanics was developed with ABAQUS to study the material flow in wholeprocess of friction stir welding （FSW）, with the technique of tracer particles. Simulation results indicate that the flow pattern of thetracer particles around the pin is spiral movement. There are very different flow patterns at the upper and lower parts of the weld. Thematerial on the upper surface has the spiral downward movement that is affected by the shoulder and the lower material has the spiralupward movement that is affected by the pin. The velocity of the material flow on the periphery of the stirring pin is higher than thatat the bottom of the stirring pin. The material can be rotated with a stirring pin a few times, agreeing well with the previousexperimental observation by tungsten tracer particles.

Finite element simulation of food transport through the esophageal body

The peristaltic transport of swallowed material in the esophagus is a neuro-muscular function involving the nerve control, bolus-structure interaction, and structure-mechanics relationship of the tissue. In this study, a finite element model (FEM) was developed to simulate food transport through the esophagus. The FEM consists of three components, i.e., tissue, food bolus and peristaltic wave, as well as the interactions between them. The transport process was simulated as three stages, i.e., the filling of fluid, contraction of circular muscle and traveling of peristaltic wave. It was found that the maximal passive intraluminal pressure due to bolus expansion was in the range of 0.8-10 kPa and it increased with bolus volume and fluid viscosity. It was found that the highest normal and shear stresses were at the inner surface of muscle layer. In addition, the peak pressure required for the fluid flow was predicted to be 1-15 kPa at the bolus tail. The diseases of systemic sclerosis or osteogenesis imperfecta, with the remodeled microstructures and mechanical properties, might induce the malfunction of esophageal transport. In conclusion, the current simulation was demonstrated to be able to capture the main characteristics in the intraluminal pressure and bolus geometry as measured experimentally. Therefore, the finite element model established in this study could be used to further explore the mechanism of esophageal transport in various clinical applications.

Isothermal forging process design for spray-formed FGH95 superalloy turbine disk based on numerical simulation

Based on the experimental data from hot compression tests on Gleeble 1500 thermal simulator, the revised constitutive equations of spray-formed FGH95 superalloy considering the effect of strain on the material constants were established. The average absolute relative error （AARE） was employed to verify the validity of the constitutive equation, and the value of AARE is 3.85 %. Subsequently, the revised constitutive equations were successfully used to simulate and analyze the deformation behavior, stress distribution, forming loads and temperature distribution in both dies and billet during the isothermal forging process of turbine disk of large dimension （about 400 mm in diameter） by the means of finite element method （FEM）. Moreover, the optimum process parameters are 1,120 ℃ of forging temperature and 0.01 s^-1 of strain rate for the spray-formed FGH95 superalloy turbine disk.

RESEARCH ON THE SELECTION OF FRICTION MODELS IN THE FINITE ELEMENT SIMULATION OF WARM EXTRUSION

During the process of finite element simulation of precision warm forging, the selection of friction models has a direct effect on the precision accuracy of finite element simulation results. Among all the factors which influence the selection of friction models, the distribution rule of normal stress at the tool-workpiece interface is a key one. To find out the distribution rule of normal stress at the tool-workpiece interface, this paper has made a systematic research on three typical plastic deformation processes: forward extrusion, backward extrusion, and lateral extrusion by a method of finite element simulation. Then on the base of synthesizing and correcting traditional friction models, a new general friction model which is fit for warm extrusion is developed at last.

Finite element simulation of inertia friction welding of superalloy bars

A thermo-mechanical coupling.finite element model was built to investigate the inertia friction welding of GH4169 bars. The remeshing and map solution techniques were adopted. Ttle whole welding process was investigated by adopting an innovative heat generation model and the flywheel rotational speed measured via the experiment. The simulated evolution of axial shortening shows a good agreement with the experiment. In addition, extensive .strain concentration presents in the interface and flash, and the largest ,strain exists near the flash root. Moreover, an intere.sting thermal reflux phenomenon during the cooling stage was found.

Finite element simulation of aluminum alloy cross valve forming by multi-way loading

Deformation behavior,temperature evolution and coupled effects have a significant influence on forming process and quality of component formed,which are very complex in forming process of aluminum alloy 7075 cross valve under multi-way loading due to the complexity of loading path and the multiplicity of associated processing parameters.A model of the process was developed under DFEORM-3D environment based on the coupled thermo-mechanical finite element method.The comparison between two process models,the conventional isothermal process model and the non-isothermal process model developed in this study,was carried out,and the results indicate that the thermal events play an important role in the aluminum alloy forming process under multi-way loading.The distributions and evolutions of the temperature field and strain filed are obtained by non-isothermal process simulation.The plastic zone and its extension in forming process of cross valve were analyzed.The results may provide guidelines for the determination of multi-way loading forming scheme and loading conditions of the forming cross valve components.