Large deflection deformation behavior of a Zr-based bulk metallic glass for compliant spinal fixation application

A novel compliant spinal fixation designed based on the concept of compliant mechanisms can reduce the stress-shielding effect and adjacent segment degeneration(ASD)effectively,but propose higher requirements for the properties of the used materials.Bulk metallic glasses(BMGs),as a kind of young biomaterials,exhibiting excellent comprehensive properties,which are attractive for compliant spinal fixation.Here,according to the practical service condition of the basic elements in compliant spinal fixation,large deflection deformation behaviors of Zr_(61)Ti_(2)Cu_(25)Al_(12)(at.%,ZT1)BMG beam,including elastic,yielding and plastic were investigated systematically.It was shown that the theoretical nonlinear analytical solution curve as the benchmark not only with the capacity to predict the nonlinear load-deflection relation within the elastic deformation regime,but also assists to capture the yielding event roughly,which can be used as a powerful design tool for engineers.To capture the beginning of the yielding event exactly,bending proof strength(σ_(p),0.05%)accompanied with tiny permanent strain of 0.05% was proposed and determined for BMGs in biomedical implant applications,which is of significance for setting the allowable operating limits of the basic flexible elements.By approach of interrupted loading-unloading cycles,plastic deformation driven by the bending moment can be classified into two typical stages:the initial stage which mainly characterized by the nucleation and intense interaction of abundant shear bands when the plastic strain below the critical value,and the second stage which dominated by the progressive propagation of shear bands and coupled with the emergence of shear offsets on tensile side.The plasticity of BMG beam structures depends on the BMG's inherent plastic zone size(rp).When the half beam thickness less than that of the rp,the plastic deformation of BMGs will behave in a stable manner,which can be acted as the margin of safety effectively.

Theoretical Calculation and Analysis of Slip and Deformation for Concrete Sandwich Panels

Slip and deformation of concrete sandwich panels under uniformly distributed loads is concerned. The effect of slip on the deformation of concrete sandwich panels are studied,and the analytical expressions of slip and deformation for concrete sandwich panels is obtained. These formulae can describe the slip distribution and account for its effect on deformation. In order to restrict the bound of formula, the formula of crack moment is obtained. The results of theoretical calculation are compared with those of tests and finite element methods. The comparison shows that the results of theoretical calculation are in accord with those of tests and finite element methods. So the theoretical calculation can be used to calculate slip and deformation of concrete sandwich panels in practical projects.

Shear deformable finite beam elements for composite box beams

The shear deformable thin-walled composite beams with closed cross-sections have been developed for coupled flexural, torsional, and buckling analyses. A theoretical model applicable to the thin-walled laminated composite box beams is presented by taking into account all the structural couplings coming from the material anisotropy and the shear deformation effects. The current composite beam includes the transverse shear and the restrained warping induced shear deformation by using the first-order shear deformation beam theory. Seven governing equations are derived for the coupled axial-flexural-torsional-shearing buckling based on the principle of minimum total potential energy. Based on the present analytical model, three different types of finite composite beam elements, namely, linear, quadratic and cubic elements are developed to analyze the flexural, torsional, and buckling problems. In order to demonstrate the accuracy and superiority of the beam theory and the finite beam elements developed by this study,numerical solutions are presented and compared with the results obtained by other researchers and the detailed threedimensional analysis results using the shell elements of ABAQUS. Especially, the influences of the modulus ratio and the simplified assumptions in stress-strain relations on the deflection, twisting angle, and critical buckling loads of composite box beams are investigated.