Thin-walled and large-sized magnesium alloy die castings for passenger car cockpit:Application,materials,and manufacture

In order to effectively reduce energy consumption and increase range mile,new energy vehicles represented by Tesla have greatly aroused the application of integrated magnesium(Mg)alloy die casting technology in automobiles.Previously,the application of Mg alloys in automobiles,especially in automotive cockpit components,is quite extensive,while it has almost disappeared for a period of time due to its relatively high cost,causing a certain degree of information loss in the application technology of Mg alloy parts in automobiles.The rapid development of automotive technology has led to a higher requirement for the automotive components compared with those traditional one.Therefore,whatever the components themselves,or the Mg alloy materials and die casting process have to face an increasing challenge,needing to be upgraded.In addition,owing to its high integration characteristics,the application of Mg alloy die casting technology in large-sized and thin-walled automotive parts has inherent advantages and needs to be expanded urgently.Indeed,it necessitates exploring advance Mg alloys and new product structures and optimizing die casting processes.This article summarizes and analyzes the development status of thin-walled and large-sized die casting Mg alloy parts in passenger car cockpit and corresponding material selection methods,die casting processes as well as mold design techniques.Furthermore,this work will aid researchers in establishing a comprehensive understanding of the manufacture of thin-walled and large-sized die casting Mg alloy parts in automobile cockpit.It will also assist them in developing new Mg alloys with improved comprehensive performance and new processes to meet the high requirements for die casting automotive components.

Collapse behavior evaluation of hybrid thin-walled member by stacking condition

The recent trend of vehicle design aims at crash safety and environmentally-friendly aspect. For the crash safety aspect, the energy absorbing members should absorb collision energy sufficiently but for the environmentally-friendly aspect, the vehicle structure must be light weight in order to improve the fuel efficiency and reduce the tail gas emission. Therefore, the light weight of vehicle must be achieved in a securing safety status of crash. An aluminum or carbon fiber reinforced plastics (CFRP) is representative one of the light-weight materials. Based on the respective collapse behavior of aluminum and CFRP member, the collapse behavior of hybrid thin-walled member was evaluated. The hybrid members were manufactured by wrapping CFRP prepreg sheets outside the aluminum hollow members in the autoclave. Because the CFRP is an anisotropic material whose mechanical properties, such as strength and elasticity, change with its stacking condition, the effects of the stacking condition on the collapse behavior evaluation of the hybrid thin-walled member were tested. The collapse mode and energy absorption capability of the hybrid thin-walled member were analyzed with the change of the fiber orientation angle and interface number.

Theory of Flexural Shear, Bending and Torsion for a Thin-Walled Beam of Open Section

Aspects of the general Vlasov theory are examined separately as applied to a thin-walled channel section cantilever beam under free-end end loading. In particular, the flexural bending and shear that arise under transverse shear and axial torsional loading are each considered theoretically. These analyses involve the location of the shear centre at which transverse shear forces when applied do not produce torsion. This centre, when taken to be coincident with the centre of twist implies an equivalent reciprocal behaviour. That is, an axial torsion applied concentric with the shear centre will twist but not bend the beam. The respective bending and shear stress conversions are derived for each action applied to three aluminium alloy extruded channel sections mounted as cantilevers with a horizontal principal axis of symmetry. Bending and shear are considered more generally for other thin-walled sections when the transverse loading axes at the shear centre are not parallel to the section = s centroidal axes of principal second moments of area. The fixing at one end of the cantilever modifies the St Venant free angular twist and the free warping displacement. It is shown from the Wagner-Kappus torsion theory how the end constrained warping generates an axial stress distribution that varies with the length and across the cross-section for an axial torsion applied to the shear centre. It should be mentioned here for wider applications and validation of the Vlasov theory that attendant papers are to consider in detail bending and torsional loadings applied to other axes through each of the centroid and the web centre. Therein, both bending and twisting arise from transverse shear and axial torsion applied to each position being displaced from the shear centre. Here, the influence of the axis position upon the net axial and shear stress distributions is to be established. That is, the net axial stress from axial torsional loading is identified with the sum of axial stress due to bending and axial stress arising from constrained warping displacements at the fixing. The net shear stress distribution overlays the distributions from axial torsion and that from flexural shear under transverse loading. Both arise when transverse forces are displaced from the shear centre.

FEM and EFG Quasi-Static Explicit Buckling Analysis for Thin-Walled Members

The quasi-static explicit finite element method (FEM) and element free Galerkin (EFG) method are applied to trace the post-buckling equilibrium path of thin-walled members in this paper. The factors that primarily control the explicit buckling solutions, such as the computation time, loading function and dynamic relaxation, are investigated and suggested for the buckling analysis of thin-walled members. Three examples of different buckling modes, namely snap-through, overall and local buckling, are studied based on the implicit FEM, quasi-static explicit FEM and EFG method via the commercial software LS-DYNA. The convergence rate and accuracy of the explicit methods are compared with the conventional implicit arc-length method. It is drawn that EFG quasi-static explicit buckling analysis presents the same accurate results as implicit finite element solution, but is without convergence problem and of less-consumption of computing time than FEM.

A nonlinear explicit dynamic GBT formulation for modeling impact response of thin-walled steel members

A nonlinear explicit dynamic finite element formulation based on the generalized beam theory(GBT)is proposed and developed to simulate the dynamic responses of prismatic thin-walled steel members under transverse impulsive loads.Considering the rate strengthening and thermal softening effects on member impact behavior,a modified Cowper-Symonds model for constructional steels is utilized.The element displacement field is built upon the superposition of GBT cross-section deformation modes,so arbitrary deformations such as cross-section distortions,local buckling and warping shear can all be involved by the proposed model.The amplitude function of each cross-section deformation mode is approximated by the cubic non-uniform B-spline basis functions.The Kirchhoff s thin-plate assumption is utilized in the construction of the bending related displacements.The Green-Lagrange strain tensor and the second Piola-Kirchhoff(PK2)stress tensor are employed to measure deformations and stresses at any material point,where stresses are assumed to be in plane-stress state.In order to verify the effectiveness of the proposed GBT model,three numerical cases involving impulsive loading of the thin-walled parts are given.The GBT results are compared with those of the Ls-Dyna shell finite element.It is shown that the proposed model and the shell finite element analysis has equivalent accuracy in displacement and stress.Moreover,the proposed model is much more computationally efficient and structurally clearer than the shell finite elements.

Crosstalk among canonical Wnt and Hippo pathway members in skeletal muscle and at the neuromuscular junction

Skeletal muscles are essential for locomotion,posture,and metabolic regulation.To understand physiological processes,exercise adaptation,and muscle-related disorders,it is critical to understand the molecular pathways that underlie skeletal muscle function.The process of muscle contra ction,orchestrated by a complex interplay of molecular events,is at the core of skeletal muscle function.Muscle contraction is initiated by an action potential and neuromuscular transmission requiring a neuromuscular junction.Within muscle fibers,calcium ions play a critical role in mediating the interaction between actin and myosin filaments that generate force.Regulation of calcium release from the sarcoplasmic reticulum plays a key role in excitation-contraction coupling.The development and growth of skeletal muscle are regulated by a network of molecular pathways collectively known as myogenesis.Myogenic regulators coordinate the diffe rentiation of myoblasts into mature muscle fibers.Signaling pathways regulate muscle protein synthesis and hypertrophy in response to mechanical stimuli and nutrient availability.Seve ral muscle-related diseases,including congenital myasthenic disorders,sarcopenia,muscular dystrophies,and metabolic myopathies,are underpinned by dys regulated molecular pathways in skeletal muscle.Therapeutic interventions aimed at preserving muscle mass and function,enhancing regeneration,and improving metabolic health hold promise by targeting specific molecular pathways.Other molecular signaling pathways in skeletal muscle include the canonical Wnt signaling pathway,a critical regulator of myogenesis,muscle regeneration,and metabolic function,and the Hippo signaling pathway.In recent years,more details have been uncovered about the role of these two pathways during myogenesis and in developing and adult skeletal muscle fibers,and at the neuromuscular junction.In fact,research in the last few years now suggests that these two signaling pathways are interconnected and that they jointly control physiological and pathophysiological processes in muscle fibers.In this review,we will summarize and discuss the data on these two pathways,focusing on their concerted action next to their contribution to skeletal muscle biology.However,an in-depth discussion of the noncanonical Wnt pathway,the fibro/a dipogenic precursors,or the mechanosensory aspects of these pathways is not the focus of this review.

Free torsion of thin-walled structural members of open-and closed-sections

Free torsion of thin-walled structures of open- and closed-sections is a classical elastic mechanics problem, which, in literature, is often solved by the method of membrane analogy. The method of membrane analogy, however, can be only applied to structures of a single material. If the structure consists of both open- and closed-sections, the method of membrane analogy is difficult to be applied. In this paper, a new method is presented for solving the free torsion of thin-walled structures of open- and/or closed- sections with multiple materials. By utilizing a simple statically indeterminate concept, torsional equations are derived based on the equilibrium and compatibility conditions. The method presented here not only is very simple and easy to understand but also can be applied to thin-walled structures of combined open- and closed-sections with multiple materials.

Hexagon-Islands Density and Size Distribution on Growing Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes in the Kinetic 5-Vertex Model

A kinetic 5-vertex model is used to investigate hexagon-islands formation on growing single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNT). In the model, carbon atoms adsorption and migration processes on the SWCNT edge are considered. These two dynamic processes are assumed to be mutually independent as well as mutually dependent as far as the whole growth of the nanotube is concerned. Key physical parameters of the model are the growth time t, the diffusion length Γ defined as the ratio of the diffusion rate D to the carbon atomic flux F and the SWCNT chiral angle. The kinetic equation that describes the nanotube edge dynamics is solved using kinetic Monte Carlo simulations with the Bortz, Kalos and Lebowitz update algorithm. The behaviors of islands density and size distribution are investigated within the growth parameters’ space. Our study revealed key mechanisms that enable the formation of a new ring of hexagons at the SWCNT edge. The growth occurs either by pre-existing steps propagation or by hexagon-islands growth and coalescence on terraces located between dislocation steps, depending on values of model parameters. This should offer a road map for edge design in nanotubes production. We also found that in appropriate growth conditions, the islands density follows Gaussian and generalized Wigner distributions whereas their size distribution at a given growth time shows a decreasing exponential trend.

Preparation and modulation of a novel thin-walled carbon foam

By foaming and carbonization processes under atmospheric pressure, a novel thin-walled carbon foam with developed foam structure was successfully prepared from loose medium component(LMC) separated from raw coal by extraction and back-extraction method. The influences of foaming time, carbonization time, and micromolecule content on foam structure were investigated by scanning electron microscope and mercury injection data. Moreover, foaming mechanism of LMC was analyzed and expounded. The results showed that spherical pores and uniform ultrathin pore walls constitute threedimensional foam structure of carbon foam and foam structure is developed with well connectivity.The effects of foaming time, carbonization time, and micromolecule content on foam structure are significant. Especially, average pore diameters of carbon foams prepared from the extracts of LMC are much smaller. With the rise of extraction rate, average pore diameter decreases and pore size distribution is more concentrated on the aperture section of 0–10 μm.

Newly developed vacuum differential pressure casting of thin-walled complicated Al-alloy castings

The newly designed vacuum differential pressure casting (VDPC) unit was introduced, by which the capabilityof the VDPC process to produce thin-walled complicated Al-alloy castings, that are free from oxides, gas pore andshrinkage cavity and thus enhance overall part quality, was studied. Experimental results were compared with those oftraditional gravity pouring and vacuum suction casting. The first series of experiments were focused on investigating thecastability of thin section Al-alloy casting. In the second series of experiments the metallographic evidence, castingstrength and soundness were examined. Finally, case studies of very interesting thin walled complicated casting applicationswere described. The advantages of the described technique have made possible to produce thin walled complicatedAl-alloy casting (up to a section thickness of 1 mm), which is not practical for gravity pouring and vacuum suction casting.

Research of precise pulse plasma arc powder welding technology of thin-walled inner hole parts

The inner hole parts played an oriented or supporting role in engineering machinery and equipment,which are prone to appear surface damages such as wear,strain and corrosion. The precise pulse plasma arc powder welding method is used for surface damage repairing of inner hole parts in this paper. The working principle and process of the technology are illustrated,and the microstructure and property of repairing layer by precise pulse plasma powder welding and CO2 gas shielded welding are tested and observed by microscope,micro hardness tester and X-ray residual stress tester etc. Results showed that the substrate deformation of thin-walled inner hole parts samples by precise pulse plasma powder welding is relatively small. The repair layer and substrate is metallurgical bonding,the transition zones( including fusion zone and heat affected zone) are relatively narrow and the welding quality is good. It showed that the thin-walled inner hole parts can be repaired by this technology and equipment.

Numerical simulation of spinning deformation of thin-walled tube in necking process

The spinning deformation of thin walled tube in necking process is simulated with a dynamic explicit FEM program,LS DYNA3D and the distributions of Cauchy strains and thickness are analyzed through time history to achieve a good understanding of the deformation in necking process by spinning and the numerical simulation results are in good agreement with the test results.

Less and shrunken pollen 1(LSP1) encodes a member of the ABC transporter family required for pollen wall development in rice(Oryza sativa L.)

Pollen fertility is an agronomic trait that strongly influences rice yield. Recent studies have revealed that the development of the pollen wall is required for pollen fertility and is regulated by several genes. However, the mechanisms underlying pollen and pollen wall development in rice remain largely unknown. In the present study, a point mutation in a gene on chromosome 1 was identified that resulted in the production of less and shrunken pollen(LSP) and led to defects in pollen wall formation. This gene was named LSP1 and was found to encode a member of the adenosine triphosphate-binding cassette(ABC)transporter G subfamily, OsABCG3. Two other loss-of-function mutants of LSP1/OsABCG3,generated using CRISPR/Cas9 technology, showed the same male sterile phenotype. The LSP1/OsABCG3 gene showed a spatio-temporal expression pattern in the developing anthers, and is an ortholog of the Arabidopsis genes At ABCG1 and At ABCG16, which play an important role in pollen wall development. Mutation of LSP1/OsABCG3 affected the expression of several genes involved in pollen and pollen wall formation. These results suggest that LSP1/OsABCG3 is critical for normal pollen fertility and shed light on the molecular mechanisms underlying rice pollen wall development.

THE ANALYSIS OF THIN WALLED COMPOSITE LAMINATED HELICOPTER ROTOR WITH HIERARCHICAL WARPING FUNCTIONS AND FINITE ELEMENT METHOD

In the present paper, a series of hierarchical warping functions is developed to analyze the static and dynamic problems of thin walled composite laminated helicopter rotors composed of several layers with single closed cell. This method is the development and extension of the traditional constrained warping theory of thin walled metallic beams, which had been proved very successful since 1940s. The warping distribution along the perimeter of each layer is expanded into a series of successively corrective warping functions with the traditional warping function caused by free torsion or free beading as the first term, and is assumed to be piecewise linear along the thickness direction of layers. The governing equations are derived based upon the variational principle of minimum potential energy for static analysis and Rayleigh Quotient for free vibration analysis. Then the hierarchical finite element method. is introduced to form a,. numerical algorithm. Both static and natural vibration problems of sample box beams axe analyzed with the present method to show the main mechanical behavior of the thin walled composite laminated helicopter rotor.

Purification of Single-walled Carbon Nanotubes Grown by a Chemical Vapour Deposition(CVD) Method

A procedure for purification of single walled carbon nanotubes(SWNTs) grown by the chemical vapour deposition(CVD) of carbon monooxide has been developed. Based on the result from TGA/DTA of as prepared sample, the oxidation temperature was determined. The process included sonication, oxidation and acid washing steps. The purity and yield after purification were determined and estimated by TEM. Moreover, for the first time, a loop structure for CVD SWNTs has been observed.

Modelling of adsorption of textile dyes over multi-walled carbon nanotubes:Equilibrium and kinetic

The paper deals with the application of multiwall carbon nanotubes(CNTs) to the adsorption of dyes from wastewater. Textile dyes are dangerous and diffused pollutant in wastewater, and the paper results confirmed the good adsorption ability of CNTs, with respect to classic active carbon, even for different dye types. The effect of surface treatments of CNTs was primarily investigated, revealing that neither the presence of residual catalyst nor common surface treatment(oxidation) affects the CNT's performances. Therefore less expensive nonpurified CNTs were assessed as good and economically convenient alternative for the process. In order to gain in generality in adsorption kinetic modelling, the parameters of the "best fitting" pseudo-second order model have been correlated to the main process variables(the dye initial concentration and the specific mass of CNTs.) setting-up a predictive kinetic model useful design new application of these materials in currently operating industrial operations for adsorption. In addition, isothermal data were used to screen all the relevant adsorption isotherms models and the Temkin model was confirmed as the more effective to accurately fit equilibrium data for any of the considered different dye types.

Natural Frequency of Planetary Transmission with Thin-Walled Ring Gear on Elastic Supports

A lumped parameter-rigid elastic coupled dynamic model of two-stage planetary gears for a hybrid car is established through the inter-stage coupled method,in which the supports of the ring gear of planet set Ⅱ are represented as an elastic foundation with radial and tangential uniform distributed stiffness,and the ring gear of planet set Ⅱ is modeled as an elastic continuum body. The natural frequencies based on the eigenvalue problem of dynamic model of planetary transmission are solved and the associated vibration modes are discussed. The rules are revealed which are the influences of the ring gear elastic supports stiffness and rim thickness on natural frequencies of planetary transmission. The theoretical analysis indicates that the vibration modes of planetary transmission with thin-walled ring gear on elastic supports are classified into seven types: Ⅰ/Ⅱ stage coupled rotational mode,Ⅰ stage translational mode,Ⅰ stage planet mode,Ⅱ stage translational mode,Ⅱ stage degenerate planet mode,Ⅱ stage distinct planet mode and purely ring gear mode. For each vibration mode, its properties are summarized. The numerical solutions show that the elastic supports stiffness and rim thickness of the ring gear of planet set Ⅱ have different influences on natural frequencies.

Ethane Adsorption in Single Walled Carbon Nanotube by Density Functional Theory

Density functional theory (DFT) is used to calculate adsorption of ethane molecules in single walled carbon nanotubes. A compari-son of DFT calculations and grand canonical ensemble Monte Carlo (GCMC) simulations is made first and the two methods are in good agree-ment. Adsorption isotherms and structures of ethane molecules inside the tubes have been studied by DFT for the nanotubes of diameters 0.954, 2.719 and 4.077 nm at 157 K and ambient temperature, 300 K. By using the grand potential, the positions of phase transitions are exactly lo-cated, and the effect of temperature and tube diameter on phase transitions and adsorption is discussed. We found that lowering temperature and increasing the pore size of several nanometer is preferable for the ethane adsorption when temperature is in the range of 157 K—300 K and op-erating pressure reaches several MPa. Layering transitions and capillary condensations are observed at 157 K in two larger pore diameters, while these phase transitions disappear or the hysteres is loops become very narrow at 300 K.

Weaving 3D highly conductive hierarchically interconnected nanoporous web by threading MOF crystals onto multi walled carbon nanotubes for high performance Li-Se battery

Lithium-selenium(Li-Se)battery has attracted growing attention.Nevertheless,its practical application is still impeded by the shuttle effect of the formed polyselenides.Herein,we report in-situ hydrothermal weaving the three-dimensional(3 D)highly conductive hierarchically interconnected nanoporous web by threading microporous metal organic framework MIL-68(Al)crystals onto multi-walled carbon nanotubes(MWCNTs).Such 3 D hierarchically nanoporous web(3 D MIL-68(Al)@MWCNTs web)with a very high surface area,a large amount of micropores,electrical conductivity and elasticity strongly traps the soluble polyselenides during the electrochemical reaction and significantly facilitates lithium ion diffusion and electron transportation.Molecular dynamic calculation confirmed the strong affinity of MIL-68(Al)for the adsorption of polyselenides,quite suitable for Li-Se battery.Their hexahedral channels(1.56 nm)are more efficient for the confinement of polyselenides and for the diffusion of electrolytes compared to their smaller triangular channels(0.63 nm).All these excellent characteristics of 3 D MIL-68(Al)@MWCNTs web with suitable confinement of a large amount of selenium and the conductive linkage between MIL-68(Al)host by MWCNTs result in a high capacity of 453 m Ah/g at 0.2 C with 99.5%coulombic efficiency after 200 cycles with significantly improved cycle stability and rate performance.The 3 D MIL-68(Al)@MWCNTs web presents a good performance in Li-Se battery in term of the specific capacity and cycling stability and also in terms of rate performance compared with all the metal-organic framework(MOF)based or MOF derived porous carbons used in Li-Se battery.

Supramolecular electrostatic self-assembly of mesoporous thin-walled graphitic carbon nitride microtubes for highly efficient visible-light photocatalytic activities

For efficient solar energy conversion,the morphology engineering of hollow graphitic carbon nitride(gC3 N4)is one of the promising approachs benefiting from abundant exposed active sites and short photocarrier transport distances,but is difficult to control on account of easy structural collapse.Herein,a facile supramolecular electrostatic self-assembly strategy has been developed for the first time to fabricate mesoporous thin-walled g-C3N4 microtubes(mtw-CNT)with shell thickness of ca.13 nm.The morphological control of g-C3N4 enhances specific surface area by 12 times,induces stronger optical absorption,widens bandgap by 0.18 e V,improves photocurrent density by 2.5 times,and prolongs lifetimes of charge carriers from bulk to surface,compared with those of bulk g-C3N4.As a consequence,the transformed g-C3N4 exhibits the optimum photocatalytic H2-production rate of 3.99 mmol·h^-1·g^-1(λ>420 nm)with remarkable apparent quantum efficiency of 8.7%(λ=420±15 nm)and long-term stability.Moreover,mtw-CNT also achieves high photocatalytic CO2-to-CO selectivity of 96%(λ>420 nm),much better than those on the most previously reported porous g-C3N4 photocatalysts prepared by the conventional hard-templating and soft-templating methods.