An extended micromechanical-based plastic damage model for understanding water effects on quasi-brittle rocks

Water effects on the mechanical properties of rocks have been extensively investigated through experiments and numerical models.However,few studies have established a comprehensive link between the microscopic mechanisms of water-related micro-crack and the constitutive behaviors of rocks.In this work,we shall propose an extended micromechanical-based plastic damage model for understanding weakening effect induced by the presence of water between micro-crack’s surfaces on quasi-brittle rocks,based on the Mori-Tanaka homogenization and irreversible thermodynamics framework.Regarding the physical mechanism,water strengthens micro-crack propagation,which induces damage evolution during the pre-and post-stage,and weakens the elastic effective properties of rock matrix.After proposing a special calibration procedure for the determination of model parameters based on the laboratory compression tests,the proposed micromechanical-based model is verified by comparing the model predictions to the experimental results.The model effectively captures the mechanical behaviors of quasibrittle rocks subjected to the weakening effects of water.

Shear behavior and off-fault damage of saw-cut smooth and tension-induced rough joints in granite

The damage of rock joints or fractures upon shear includes the surface damage occurring at the contact asperities and the damage beneath the shear surface within the host rock.The latter is commonly known as off-fault damage and has been much less investigated than the surface damage.The main contribution of this study is to compare the results of direct shear tests conducted on saw-cut planar joints and tension-induced rough granite joints under normal stresses ranging from 1 MPa to 50 MPa.The shear-induced off-fault damages are quantified and compared with the optical microscope observation.Our results clearly show that the planar joints slip stably under all the normal stresses except under 50 MPa,where some local fractures and regular stick-slip occur towards the end of the test.Both post-peak stress drop and stick-slip occur for all the rough joints.The residual shear strength envelopes for the rough joints and the peak shear strength envelope for the planar joints almost overlap.The root mean square(RMS)of asperity height for the rough joints decreases while it increases for the planar joint after shear,and a larger normal stress usually leads to a more significant decrease or increase in RMS.Besides,the extent of off-fault damage(or damage zone)increases with normal stress for both planar and rough joints,and it is restricted to a very thin layer with limited micro-cracks beneath the planar joint surface.In comparison,the thickness of the damage zone for the rough joints is about an order of magnitude larger than that of the planar joints,and the coalesced micro-cracks are generally inclined to the shear direction with acute angles.The findings obtained in this study contribute to a better understanding on the frictional behavior and damage characteristics of rock joints or fractures with different roughness.

Micro-crack detection of nonlinear Lamb wave propagation in three-dimensional plates with mixed-frequency excitation

We propose a nonlinear ultrasonic technique by using the mixed-frequency signals excited Lamb waves to conduct micro-crack detection in thin plate structures.Simulation models of three-dimensional(3D)aluminum plates and composite laminates are established by ABAQUS software,where the aluminum plate contains buried crack and composite laminates comprises cohesive element whose thickness is zero to simulate delamination damage.The interactions between the S0 mode Lamb wave and the buried micro-cracks of various dimensions are simulated by using the finite element method.Fourier frequency spectrum analysis is applied to the received time domain signal and fundamental frequency amplitudes,and sum and difference frequencies are extracted and simulated.Simulation results indicate that nonlinear Lamb waves have different sensitivities to various crack sizes.There is a positive correlation among crack length,height,and sum and difference frequency amplitudes for an aluminum plate,with both amplitudes decreasing as crack thickness increased,i.e.,nonlinear effect weakens as the micro-crack becomes thicker.The amplitudes of sum and difference frequency are positively correlated with the length and width of the zero-thickness cohesive element in the composite laminates.Furthermore,amplitude ratio change is investigated and it can be used as an effective tool to detect inner defects in thin 3D plates.

Modeling and Experimental Analysis of Roughness Effect on Ultrasonic Nondestructive Evaluation of Micro-crack

A high-precision evaluation of ultrasonic detection sensitivity for a micro-crack can be restricted by a corroded rough surface when the surface microtopography is of the same order of magnitude as the crack depth.In this study,a back-surface micro-crack is considered as a research target.A roughness-modified ultrasonic testing model for micro-cracks is established based on a multi-Gaussian beam model and the principle of phase-screen approximation.The echo signals of micro-cracks and noises corresponding to different rough front surfaces and rough back surfaces are obtained based on a reference reflector signal acquired from a two-dimensional simulation model.Further compari-son between the analytical and numerical models shows that the responses of micro-cracks under the effects of dif-ferent corroded rough surfaces can be accurately predicted.The numerical and analytical results show that the echo signal amplitude of the micro-crack decreases significantly with an increase in roughness,whereas the noise ampli-tude slightly increases.Moreover,the effect of the rough front surface on the echo signal of the micro-crack is greater than that of the rough back surface.When the root-mean-square(RMS)height of the surface microtopography is less than 15μm,the two rough surfaces have less influence on the echo signals detected by a focused transducer with a frequency of 5 MHz and diameter of 6 mm.A method for predicting and evaluating the detection accuracy of micro-cracks under different rough surfaces is proposed by combining the theoretical model and a finite element simulation.Then,a series of rough surface samples containing different micro-cracks are fabricated to experimentally validate the evaluation method.

Image Preprocessing Methods to Identify Micro-cracks of Road Pavement

Standards of highway conservation and maintenance are improved gradually following the improvement of requirements of road service. Before obvious damage such as obvious cracking (block,transverse, longitudinal ) and rutting emerge, inconspicuous distress (micro-cracks, polishing, pockmarked) is generated previously. These inconspicuous distresses may provide basis and criteria for pavement preventive maintenance. Currently most of preventive conservation measures are determined by experienced experts in maintenance and repair of road after site visits. Thus method is difficult in operation, and has a certain amount of instability as it is based on experience and personal knowledge. In this paper, camera and laser were used for automated high-speed acquisition images. Methods to preprocess pavement image are compared. The pretreatment method suitable for analyze micro-cracks picture is elected, an effective way to remove shadow is also proposed.

Experimental and numerical investigation on the dynamic shear failure mechanism of sandstone using short beam compression specimen

In this study,a novel testing method is proposed to characterize the dynamic shear property and failure mechanism of rocks by introducing the short beam compression(SBC)specimen into the split Hopkinson pressure bar(SHPB)system.Firstly,the stress distribution of SBC specimen is comprehensively analyzed by finite element method(FEM),and the results show that the optimal notch separation ratio of SBC specimen is C/H?0.2 to achieve successful dynamic simple-shear tests.Then,dynamic shear tests are conducted on sandstone using the SBC-SHPB method.Via careful pulse shaping technique,the dynamic force balance is guaranteed for SBC specimens,and the testing results show that the dynamic shear strength of sandstone is significantly rate-dependent.Combining the results of dynamic compression and tension tests,the failure envelopes of sandstone under different loading rates are obtained in the principle stress plane.It is found that the failure envelope of sandstone constantly expands outwards with increasing loading rate.Moreover,the energy partition of SBC specimen is quantified by virtue of high-speed digital image correlation(DIC)technique.The results show that the kinetic energy portion is non-negligible,and the shear fracture energy increases with increasing loading rate.In addition,the microscopic shear cracking mechanism of SBC specimen is analyzed by the thin section observation:the intra-granular(TG)fracture of minerals dominates the dynamic shear failure of sandstone,and the portion of TG fracture increases with increasing loading rate.This study provides a convenient and reliable method to investigate the dynamic shear property and failure mechanism of rocks.

Influence of grain size on strength of polymineralic crystalline rock: New insights from DEM grain-based modeling

Grain size effect on rock strength is a topic of great interest in geotechnical engineering.A consensus obtained from earlier laboratory tests is that rock strength generally decreases with the increase of grain size for both silicate and carbonate rocks;however,some recent numerical results conflict with such laboratory test results.To address this intriguing issue,the effect of grain size on strength of polymineralic crystalline rock with low porosity is investigated numerically using the grain-based modeling(GBM)approach in discrete element method(DEM)by interpreting micro-cracking process in response to loading.In agreement with some previous DEM simulation results,the simulated rock strength is found to increase with increasing grain size for both homogeneous and heterogeneous models,even when the number of assembled disks in one mineral grain changes.The mechanism of strength increase with increasing grain size is mainly associated with the number of assembled smooth-joint contacts along grain interfaces and the generation of grain boundary cracks in response to loading.The grain interfaces significantly weaken the integrity of the rock model,which is similar to effects of inherent defects in real rock.As the grain size increases,fewer grain interfaces are built in the model and the rock strength becomes much higher.Hence,by solely changing the mineral grain size in a model,the mechanism of grain size effect as observed in laboratory tests cannot be replicated.To address this issue,a method of degradation of grain boundary strength parameters is used to mimic the possible mechanism of grain size effect.The simulated strength using the method becomes comparable with those obtained from laboratory tests when the heterogeneity in the rock is considered.Degradation of grain boundary parameters with increasing grain size provides a plausible explanation for the grain size effect on rock strength.

Performance Evaluation of MWCNTs Reinforced Cement Mortar Composites using Natural and Commercial Surfactants

An efficient and promising approach for effectively dispersing multi-walled carbon nanotubes(MWCNTs)in cementitious composites has been investigated.The naturally occurring organic extracts from species of indigenously known‘Keekar’trees scattered along tropical and sub-tropical regions;is found as an exceptional replacement to the non-natural commercial surfactants.In the initial phase of investigation,ideal surfactant’s content required for efficient dispersion of MWCNTs in solution was determined using ultra-violet spectroscopy.The experimental investigations were then extended to five different cement composite formulations containing 0.0,0.025,0.05,0.08 and 0.10%MWCNTs by weight of cement.It was observed that the natural surfactant produced efficient dispersion at much reduced cost(approx.14%)compared with the commercial alternate.The estimated weight efficiency factor f was found 6.5 times higher for the proposed sustainable replacement to the conventional along with remarkable increase of 23%in modulus of rupture on 0.08 wt%addition of MWCNTs.Besides strength enhancement,the dispersed MWCNTs also improved the first crack and ultimate fracture toughness by 51.5%and 35.9%,respectively.The field emission scanning electron microscopy of the cryofractured samples revealed efficient dispersion of MWCNTs in the matrix leading to the phenomenon of effective crack bridging and crack branching in the composite matrix.Furthermore,the proposed scheme significantly reduced the early age volumetric shrinkage by 39%.

Macro and micro mechanics behavior of granite after heat treatment by cluster model in particle flow code

In this paper, a cluster model in particle flow code was used to simulate granite specimens after heat treatment under uniaxial compression. The results demonstrated that micro-cracks are randomly distributed in the specimen when the temperature is below 300?C, and have partial coalescence when the temperature is up to 450?C, then form macro-cracks when the temperature is above 600?C. There is more inter-granular cracking than intra-granular cracking, and their ratio increases with increasing temperature.The micro-cracks are almost constant when the temperature decreases from 900?C to room temperature, except for quartz α–β phase transition temperature(573?C). The fracture evolution process is obviously affected by these cracks, especially at 600–900?C. Elevated temperature leads to easily developed displacement between the grains, and the capacity to store strain energy becomes weaker, corresponding to the plasticity of granite after heat treatment.

Mechanical Behavior of Polyurethane Polymer Materials under Triaxial Cyclic Loading:A Particle Flow Code Approach

Polyurethane polymer grouting materials were studied with conventional triaxial tests via the particle flow code in two dimensions（PFC^（2D）） method, and the simulation results agreed with the experimental data. The particle flow code method can simulate the mechanical properties of the polymer. The triaxial cyclic loading tests of the polymer material under different confining pressures were carried out via PFC^（2D） to analyze its mechanical performance. The PFC^（2D） simulation results show that the value of the elastic modulus of the polymer decreases slowly at first and fluctuated within a narrow range near the value of the peak strength; the cumulative plastic strain increases slowly at first and then increases rapidly; the peak strength and elastic modulus of polymer increase with the confining pressure; the PFC^（2D） method can be used to quantitatively evaluate the damage behavior of the polymer material and estimate the fatigue life of the materials under fatigue load based on the number and the location of micro-cracks. Thus, the PFC^（2D） method is an effective tool to study polymers.

FORMULATION OF STATISTICAL EVOLUTION OF MICROCRACKS IN SOLIDS

The paper presents a principal formulation of statistical evolution of microcracks, occurring in solids, subjected to external loading. In particular, the concept of ideal microcracks is elaborated, in order to describe the fundamental features of damage resulting from nucleation and extension of microcracks. Relevant average damage functions are also discussed.

Creep Damage Characteristics of Soft Rock under Disturbance Loads

This article focuses on the process of rock creep damage and micro-damage evolution properties of gray green mudstone under impacting disturbance load conditions for the first time using the real time computerized tomography （CT） testing technique. The results indicate that axial load comes into limit strength neighborhood, rock micro-crack links into larger crack, creep rate increases in a short time, larger plastic deformation happens; this is called disturbance accelerating creep stage. When rock is within limit strength neighborhood, there occurs creep micro-damage under smaller disturbance load. When disturbance load is larger, rock directly enters into disturbance accelerating creep stage, failure occurs instantaneously. On the basis of experimental research, the CT scanning method was used to describe the creep micro-damage of soft rock, also helpful in the prediction of roadways＇ service life and evaluation of geotechnical engineering stability.

Experimental study on wear failure course of gas-valve/valve-seat in engine

The wear failure course of gas-valve/valve-seat in engine was investigated with a simulating tester. The results show that the failure of the contact conical surface is mainly caused by the elastic and plastic deformation and the fatigue micro-crack and spalling. The creep-deformation and corrosion atmosphere accelerated wear failure course at the high temperature. The wear failure course of the gas-valve/valve-seat in engine follows general wear rules of mechanical elements, but the rate of wear in the sharp wear stage is faster.

The flow behavior in as-extruded AZ31 magnesium alloy under impact loading

As-extruded AZ31 magnesium alloy samples were compressed at ambient temperature and strain rates of 1000-3000 s^(−1).The fracture surfaces of cracked samples,the evolution of microstructures and macrotextures were detected.The received flow curves exhibit an abnormal behavior at strain rates above 1500 s^(−1).A strain constitutive model based on strain equivalent principle was applied to analyze the flow curves of the damaged samples.The results indicate that the abnormal flow behaviors of the fractured samples are related to the increasing area of crack surfaces,and kinetic energy during dynamic crack nucleation and propagation.The initiation of the micro-crack also causes obvious flow softening in the cracked samples.The shapes of flow stresses of the intact samples are affected by twinning.©2018 Published by Elsevier B.V.on behalf of Chongqing University.

Strengthening leaching effect of Carlin-type gold via high-voltage pulsed discharge pretreatment

A high-voltage pulsed discharge(HVPD)pretreatment was used to strengthen the leaching effect of Carlin-type gold ore containing arsenic.Optimal results of the pretreatment experiments were obtained at the following operating conditions:a spherical gap spacing of 20 mm,pulse number of 100,and voltage of 30 kV.The leaching rate of gold was increased by 15.65%via the HVPD pretreatment.The mass fraction of–0.5+0.35 mm and–0.35+0.1 mm was increased by 10.97%and 6.83%compared to the untreated samples,respectively,and the Au grade of–0.1 mm was increased by 22.84%.However,the superiority of the HVPD pretreatment would be weakened by prolonged grinding time.Scanning electron microscopy results indicated that the pretreated products presented as a melting state and then condensation,accompanying by some pore formation.More micro-cracks were generated at the interface of the ore and the original crack were expended via pulsed discharge pretreatment,with the contact area between the leaching reagent and ore increased,the leaching reaction rate enhanced and the leaching effect strengthened.

MORPHOLOGICAL EVOLUTION DURING DIFFUSIVE HEALING OF INTERNAL CRACKS WITHIN GRAINS OF α-IRON

Micron-sized internal cracks were introduced into rounded bars of pure iron by low cycle fatigue,and the cracks had irregular penny-shaped morphology with the critical diameter of about 30μm and the thickness of 0.5～1.5μm.The initi- ation and propagation of the cracks were investigated quantitatively as well as their location and geometry.After vacuum annealing of the samples fatigued,the mor- phology in a two-dimensional longitudinal section of cracks within grains had evolved from initially elliptical one into arrays of spherical voids controlled by surface diffu- sion.Furthermore,a typical morphology for a broken crack with a center spherical void surrounded by outer doughnut-like cavities was observed along a perpendicu- lar section of the specimen.Subsequently the spherical voids shrink and diminish gradually dominated by bulk diffusion.A physical model to heal an internal micro- crack was proposed,in particular for the various healing stages controlled by the related dominant diffusion mechanism and their dependencies upon the morphology and geometry of an original micro-crack in materials.

FINITE ELEMENT ANALYSIS OF SUBSTRATE LOCAL PLASTIC DEFORMATION INDUCED BY CRACKED THIN HARD FILM

It has been postulated that, with tensile loading conditions, micro-cracks onthin hard film act as stress concentrators enhancing plastic deformation of the substrate materialin their vicinity. Under favorable conditions the localized plastic flow near the cracks may turninto macroscopic plastic strain thus affects the plasticity behaviors of the substrate. Thisphenomenon is analyzed quantitatively with finite element method with special attention focused onthe analysis and discussion of the effects of plastic work hardening rate, film thickness and crackdepth on maximum plastic strain, critical loading stress and the size of the local plasticdeformation zone. Results show that micro-cracks on thin hard film have unnegligible effects on theplasticity behaviors of the substrate material under tensile loading.

Non-equilibrium statistical theory about microscopic fatigue cracks of metal in magnetic field

This paper develops the non-equilibrium statistical fatigue damage theory to study the statistical behaviour of micro-crack for metals in magnetic field. The one-dimensional homogeneous crack system is chosen for study. To investigate the effect caused by magnetic field on the statistical distribution of micro-crack in the system, the theoretical analysis on microcrack evolution equation, the average length of micro-crack, density distribution function of microcrack and fatigue fracture probability have been performed. The derived results relate the changes of some quantities, such as average length, density distribution function and fatigue fracture probability, to the applied magnetic field, the magnetic and mechanical properties of metals. It gives a theoretical explanation on the change of fatigue damage due to magnetic fields observed by experiments, and presents an analytic approach on studying the fatigue damage of metal in magnetic field.

Calculation of the Stress Intensity Factor in an Inclusion-Containing Matrix

The intent of this paper is to propose an engineering approach to estimate the stress intensity factor of a micro crack emerging from an inclusion in relation with the morphology of the inclusion and its relative stiffness with the matrix. A micromechanical model, based on the FEA (finite element analysis) of the behavior of cracks initiated at micro structural features such as inclusions, has been developed using LEFM (Linear Elastic Fracture Mechanics) to predict the stress intensity factor of a micro crack emerging from an inclusion. Morphology of inclusions has important connotations in the development of the analysis. Stress intensity factor has been estimated from the FEA model for different crack geometries. Metallographic analysis of inclusions has been carried out to evaluate the typical inclusion geometry. It also suggests that micro cracks less than 1?μm behave differently than larger cracks.

Parameters analysis and application of the differential excitation detection technology

A differential excitation probe based on eddy current testing technology was designed. Sheet specimens of Q 235 steel with prefabricated micro-cracks of different widths and of aluminum with prefabricated micro-cracks of different depths were detected through the designed detection system. The characteristics of micro-cracks can be clearly showed after signals processing through the short-time Fourier transform（ STFT）. By changing the parameter and its value in detecting process,the factors including the excitation frequency and amplitude,the lift-off effect and the scanning direction were discussed,respectively. The results showed that the differential excitation probe was insensitive to dimension and surface state of the tested specimen,while it had a high degree of recognition for micro-crack detection. Therefore,when the differential excitation detection technology was used for inspecting micro-crack of turbine blade in aero-engine,and smoothed pseudo Wigner-Ville distribution was used for signal processing,micro-cracks of 0. 3 mm depth and 0. 1 mm width could be identified. The experimental results might be useful for further research on engineering test of turbine blades of aero-engine.