A thermo-mechanical damage constitutive model for deep rock considering brittleness-ductility transition characteristics

This paper developed a statistical damage constitutive model for deep rock by considering the effects of external load and thermal treatment temperature based on the distortion energy.The model parameters were determined through the extremum features of stress−strain curve.Subsequently,the model predictions were compared with experimental results of marble samples.It is found that when the treatment temperature rises,the coupling damage evolution curve shows an S-shape and the slope of ascending branch gradually decreases during the coupling damage evolution process.At a constant temperature,confining pressure can suppress the expansion of micro-fractures.As the confining pressure increases the rock exhibits ductility characteristics,and the shape of coupling damage curve changes from an S-shape into a quasi-parabolic shape.This model can well characterize the influence of high temperature on the mechanical properties of deep rock and its brittleness-ductility transition characteristics under confining pressure.Also,it is suitable for sandstone and granite,especially in predicting the pre-peak stage and peak stress of stress−strain curve under the coupling action of confining pressure and high temperature.The relevant results can provide a reference for further research on the constitutive relationship of rock-like materials and their engineering applications.

Enhanced creep resistance in Mg-Y-Nd alloy via regulating prior thermo-mechanical treatment

In this study,the tensile creep behavior of a hot-rolled Mg-4Y-3.5Nd alloy subjected to different prior thermo-mechanical treatments was investigated at 220℃.Five groups of samples were prepared using different combinations of the solid solution(S),aging treatment at 220℃ for 30 h(A),and hot compression at 490℃ to a true strain of 0.25(C).The abbreviations for the samples are S,SA,SC,SAC,and SCA.Upon examining the yield strength and creep resistance,it was found that creep resistance could not be directly predicted by the yield strength.The stability of the deformation bands(DBs)induced by prior thermo-mechanical treatment plays an important role in determining the creep resistance.The dislocation of the DBs and demonstrated the best creep resistance in the SAC sample,which were prepared using a solid solution,aging treatment,and subsequent hot compression.However,despite the highest yield strength,frequent dislocation motions destroyed the stability of the DBs and deteriorated the creep resistance of the SCA sample,which were prepared using a solid solution,hot compression,and subsequent aging treatment.Among the thermo-mechanical treatments used in this study,the application of aging treatment was important to obtain the resultant creep resistance.When the aging treatment was performed prior to hot compression,the creep resistance could be further enhanced based only on hot compression.Accordingly,the sequence from the strongest to the weakest creep resistance was SAC>SC>S>SCA>SA.

Physical and Thermo-Mechanical Properties of Composite Materials Based on Raw Earth and Crushed Palm Leaf Fibers (Borassus aethiopum)

The objective of this study is to seek solutions to reduce the impact of buildings on climate change and to promote the use of local bio-sourced or geo-sourced materials for sustainable construction. Different samples of raw earth from 3 sites were taken in the commune of Mlomp. Geotechnical tests showed that the raw earth samples from sites 2 and 3 have more clay fraction while site 1 contains more sand. The fact of integrating fibers from crushed palm leaves (Borassus aethiopum) (2%, 4% and 6%) into the 3 raw earth samples reduced the mechanical resistance to compression and traction of the 3 raw earths. The experimental results of thermal tests on samples of earth mixtures with crushed Palma leaf fibers show a decrease in thermal conductivity as well as thermal effusivity as the percentages increase (2%, 4% and 6%) of fibers in raw earth for the 3 sites. This shows that this renewable composite material can help improve the thermal insulation of building envelopes.

Co/Co_(7)Fe_(3)heterostructures with controllable alloying degree on carbon spheres as bifunctional electrocatalyst forrechargeable zinc-air batteries

Exploring efficient and nonprecious metal electrocatalysts of oxygen reduction reaction(ORR)and oxygen evolution reaction(OER)is crucial for developing rechargeable zinc-air batteries(ZABs).Herein,an alloying-degree control strategy was employed to fabricate nitrogen-doped carbon sphere(NCS)decorated with dual-phase Co/Co_(7)Fe_(3)heterojunctions(CoFe@NCS).The phase composition of materials has been adjusted by controlling the alloying degree.The optimal CoFe_(0.08)@NCS electrocatalyst displays a half-wave potential of 0.80 V for ORR and an overpotential of 283 mV at 10 mA·cm^(-2)for OER in an alkaline electrolyte.The intriguing bifunctional electrocatalytic activity and durability is attributed to the hierarchically porous structure and interfacial electron coupling of highly-active Co_(7)Fe_(3)alloy and metallic Co species.When the CoFe_(0.08)@NCS material is used as air-cathode catalyst of rechargeable liquid-state zinc-air battery(ZAB),the device shows a high peak power-density(157 mW·cm^(-2))and maintains a stable voltage gap over 150 h,outperforming those of the benchmark(Pt/C+RuO_(2))-based device.In particular,the as-fabricated solid-state flexible ZAB delivers a reliable compatibility under different bending conditions.Our work provides a promising strategy to develop metal/alloy-based electrocatalysts for the application in renewable energy conversion technologies.

Effect of thermo-mechanical treatment process on microstructure and mechanical properties of 2A97 Al-Li alloy

2A97 Al-Li alloy was processed by thermo-mechanical treatment at different pre-stretch deformations of 0, 3% and 6%. The microstrucatre observation results reveal that some δ＇ and T1 precipitates are found in a（Al） matrix of 2A97 alloy processed by the heat treatment with no pre-stretch deformation. When the pre-stretch deformation is 3% and 6%, respectively, amounts of tiny T1 and a few of S＇ precipitates precipitates are observed in the microstructures of 2A97 alloy. The tensile test results show that the tensile properties of 2A97 alloys are improved via thermo-mechanical treatment. When the pre-stretch deformation is from 0, 3% to 6%, the ultimate tensile strength values of the 2A97 alloys increase gradually from 447.7, 516.5 to 534.3 MPa, and the elongations decrease from 17.6%, 12.8% to 10.2%, respectively. Moreover, with increasing pre-stretch deformation amount from 0 to 6%, the in-plane anisotropy value of 2A97 alloys becomes more obvious.

Effects of T9I6 thermo-mechanical process on microstructure, mechanical properties and ballistic resistance of 2519A aluminum alloy

The effects of T916 thermo-mechanical process on microstructures, mechanical properties and ballistic resistance of 2519A aluminum alloy were investigated by optical microscopy （OM）, transmission electron microscopy （TEM）, tensile tests and ballistic resistance test. After T916 treatment, the yield strength, tensile strength and elongation rate of 2519A aluminum alloy reach 501 MPa, 540 MPa and 14%, respectively. And the ballistic limit velocity of 2519A-T916 alloy （30 mm in thickness） is 715 rn/s. The microstructure varies near the sidewalls of crater. The interrupted ageing contributes to these excellent properties of the alloy. During T916 process, the precipitation of Guinier Preston （GP） zone is finer and denser during the interrupted ageing, thus resulting in well precipitated strengthening phase.

Mechanical properties of Mg-6Gd-1Y-0.5Zr alloy processed by low temperature thermo-mechanical treatment

An as-solution treated Mg-6Gd-1Y-0.4Zr alloy was processed by low temperature thermo-mechanical treatments （LT-TMT）, including cold tension with various strains followed by aging at 200 °C to peak hardness. The results show that the precipitation kinetics of the alloy experienced LT-TMT is greatly accelerated and the aging time to peak hardness is greatly decreased with increasing tensile strain. The tensile yield strength, ultimate tensile strength and elongation at room temperature of the alloy after cold tension with strain of 10% and peak aging at 200 °C are 251 MPa, 296 MPa and 8%, respectively, which are superior to the commercial heat-resistant WE54 alloy, although the latter has a higher rare earth element content.

Thermo-mechanical coupled particle model for rock

A thermo-mechanical coupled particle model for simulation of thermally-induced rock damage based on the particle simulation method was proposed.The simulation results of three verification examples,for which the analytical solutions are available,demonstrate the correctness and usefulness of the thermo-mechanical coupled particle model.This model is applied to simulating an application example with two cases：one is temperature-independent elastic modulus and strength,while the other is temperature-dependent elastic modulus and strength.The related simulation results demonstrate that microscopic crack initiation and propagation process with consideration of temperature-independent and temperature-dependent elastic modulus and strength are different and therefore,the corresponding macroscopic failure patterns of rock are also different.On the contrary,considering the temperature-dependent elastic modulus and strength has no or little effect on the heating conduction behavior.Numerical results,which are obtained by using the proposed model with temperature-dependent elastic modulus and strength,agree well with the experimental results.This also reveals that the rock subjected to heating experiences much more cracking than the rock subjected to cooling.

Ultrasonic Welding of Magnesium–Titanium Dissimilar Metals:A Study on Thermo-mechanical Analyses of Welding Process by Experimentation and Finite Element Method

Ultrasonic welding is an effective ways to achieve a non-reactive/immiscible heterogeneous metal connection, such as the connection of magnesium alloy and titanium alloy. But the thermal mechanism of magnesium alloy/titanium alloy ultrasonic welding has not been defined clearly. In this paper, the experimental and the finite element analysis were adopted to study the thermal mechanism during welding. Through the test, the temperature variation law during the welding process is obtained, and the accuracy of the finite element model is verified. The microscopic analysis indicates that at the welding time of 0.5 s, the magnesium alloy in the center of the solder joint is partially melted and generates the liquid phase. Through the finite element analysis, the friction coefficient of the magnesium–titanium ultrasonic welding interface can be considered as an average constant value of 0.28. The maximum temperature at the interface can exceed 600 ℃ to reach the melting point temperature of the magnesium alloy. The plastic deformation begins after 0.35 s and occurs at the magnesium side at the center of the interface.

EVOLUTION OF MICROSTRUCTURES AND HARDNESS DURING CONTINUOUS THERMO-MECHANICAL PROCESSING OF 6201 ALUMINUM ALLOY

Continuous thermo-mechanical processing (CTMP) of 6201 aluminum alloy was simulated on Gleeble-1500. The deformed specimens were analyzed by the observation of TEM and the measurement of hardness. It was shown that rapid solid solution and aging treatment can be effectively combined in one procedure by the strain induced during CTMP. The deformation temperature is ranging from 540* C to 300* C, the hardness increases directly before the 6th pass followed by a slight drop, the amount of precipitates increases with the holding time after deformation. Uniformly distributed and stabilized Mg2Si precipitates, as well as dislocation substructure can be observed on deformed specimens which have been subsequently held at 300℃ for 60 seconds.

Effect of low temperature thermo-mechanical treatment on microstructures and mechanical properties of TC4 alloy

The effects of low temperature thermo-mechanical treatment （LTTMT） on microstructures and mechanical properties of Ti-6Al-4V （TC4） alloy were studied by optical microscopy （OM）, tensile test, scanning electron microscopy （SEM） and transmission electron microscopy （TEM）. The experimental results confirm that the strength of TC4 alloy can be improved obviously by LTTMT processing, which combines strain strengthening with aging strengthening. The effect of LTTMT on the alloy depends on the microstructure of the refined and dispersed a＋fl phase on the basis of high dislocation density by pre-deformation below recrystallization temperature. The tensile strength decreases with the increase of pre-deformation reduction. The optimal processing parameters of LTTMT for TC4 alloy are as follows： solution treatment at 900 ℃ for 15 min, pre-deformation in the range of 600-700 ℃ with a reduction of 35%, finally aging at 540 ℃ for 4 h followed by air-cooling.

Effect of thermo-mechanical processing on microstructure and electrochemical behavior of Ti-Nb-Zr-V new metastable β titanium biomedical alloy

The influence of thermo-mechanical processing (TMP) on the microstructure and the electrochemical behavior of new metastableβ alloy Ti?20.6Nb?13.6Zr?0.5V (TNZV) was investigated. The TMP included hot working in belowβ transus, solution heat treatments at the same temperature and different cooling rates in addition to aging. Depending upon the TMP conditions, a wide range of microstructures with varying spatial distributions and morphologies of equiaxed/elongatedα andβ phases were attained, allowing for a wide range of electrochemical properties to be achieved. The corrosion behavior of the studied alloy was evaluated in a Ringer’s solution at 37 °C via open circuit potential?time and potentiodynamic polarization measurements.

NUMERICAL SIMULATION OF THE THERMO-MECHANICAL PROCESS FOR BEAM BLANK CONTINUOUS CASTING

The aim of this study was to simulate the solidification process of beam blank continuous casting, and then find the reasons for the typical defects of the beam blank. A two-dimensional transient coupled finite element model has been developed to compute the temperature and stress profile in beam blank continuous casting. The enthalpy method was used in the heat conduction equation. The thermo-mechanical property in the mushy zone was taken into consideration in this calculation. It is shown that at the mold exit the thickness of the shell had its maximum value at the flange tip and its minimum value at the fillet. The temperature had a great fluctuation on the surface of the beam blank in the secondary cooling zone. At the unbending point, the surface temperature of the web was in the brittleness temperature range under the present condition. To ensure the quality, it is necessary to weaken the intensity of secondary cooling. At the mold exit the equivalent stress and strain have higher values at the flange tip and at the web. From the spray 1 to the unbending point, the maximum values of stress and strain gradually moved to the internal section of the flange tip and the web. However, whenever, there were bigger stress and strain values near the flange tip and the web than in the other parts, it must be very easy to generate cracks at those positions. Now, online verification of this simulation has been developed, which has proved to be very useful and efficient to instruct the practical production of beam blank continuous casting.

Review on structural fatigue of NiTi shape memory alloys:Pure mechanical and thermo-mechanical ones

Structural fatigue of NiTi shape memory alloys is a key issue that should be solved in order to promote their engineering applications and utilize their unique shape memory effect and super-elasticity more sufficiently. In this paper, the latest progresses made in experimental and theoretical analyses for the structural fatigue features of NiTi shape memory alloys are reviewed. First, macroscopic experimental observations to the pure mechanical and thermo-mechanical fatigue features of the alloys are summarized; then the state-of-arts in the mechanism analysis of fatigue rupture are addressed; further, advances in the construction of fatigue failure models are provided; finally, summary and future topics are outlined.

INVESTIGATION OF MULTI-STEP THERMO-MECHANICALTREATMENT OF CAN-FORGED TiAl-BASED ALLOY

The effects of a new technology, multi-step thermo-mechanical treatment, on the microstructure, deformation substructure and mechanical properties at ambient and elevated tempemture of can-forged Ti-33 Al-3 Cr-0.5Mo (wt%) Alloy were investigated.The results show that, after multi-step thermo-mechanical treatment of can-forged specimens, homogeneous, fine microstructures can be obtained in the whole TiAl-based alloy specimens. Furthermore, the specimen with homogeneous and fine full lamellae microstructure demonstrutes excellent comprehensive mechanical properties at ambient and elevated temperature.

Multi-objective Topology Optimization of Thermo-mechanical Compliant Mechanisms

The material characteristics of a structure will change with temperature variation,and will induce stress within the structure.Currently,the optimal design for the topology of compliant mechanisms is mainly performed in single physical field.However,when compliant mechanisms work in high temperature environments,their displacement outputs are generated not only by mechanical load,but also by the temperature variation which may become the prominent factor.Therefore,the influence of temperature must be considered in the design.In this paper,a novel optimization method for multi-objective topology of thermo-mechanical compliant mechanisms is presented.First,the thermal field is analyzed with finite-element method,where the thermal strain is taken into account in the constitutive relation,and the equivalent nodal thermal load is derived with the principle of virtual work.Then the thermal load is converted into physical loads in elastic field,and the control equation of the thermo-mechanical compliant mechanism is obtained.Second,the mathematical model of the multi-objective topology optimization is built by incorporating both the flexibility and stiffness.Meanwhile,the coupling sensitivity function and the sensitivity analysis equations of thermal steady-state response are derived.Finally,optimality criteria algorithm is employed to obtain numerical solution of the multi-objective topology optimization.Numerical examples show that the compliant mechanisms have better performance and are more applicable if the temperature effect is taken into account in the design process.The presented modeling and analysis methods provide a new idea and an effective approach to topology optimization of compliant mechanisms in electrothermic coupling field and multiphysics fields.

IMPROVING THE MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF COPPER ALLOYS BY THERMO-MECHANICAL PROCESSING

Systematic physical simulation of thermo-mechanical processing routes has been ap-plied on a Gleeble 1500 simulator to four copper alloys (mass %) Cu-0.57Co-0.32Si,Cu-0.55Cr-0.065P, Cu-0.22Zr-0.035Si and Cu-1.01Ni-0.43Si aimed at clarifying theinfluences of processing conditions on their final properties, strength and electricalconductivity. Flow curves were determined over wide temperature and strain rateranges. Hardness was used as a measure of the strength level achieved. High hard-ness was obtained as using equal amounts (strains 0.5) of cold deformation beforeand after the precipitation annealing stage. The maximum values achieved for theCu-Co-Si, Cu-Cr-P, Cu-Zr-Si and Cu-Ni-Si alloys were 190, 165, 178 and 193 HV5,respectively. A thermo-mechanical schedule involving the hot deformation-ageing-colddeformation stages showed even better results for the Cu-Zr-Si alloy. Consequently,the processing routes were designed based on simulation test results and wires of 5 and2mm in diameters have been successfully processed in the industrial scale.

Study on inhomogeneous cooling behavior of extruded profile with unequal and large thicknesses during quenching using thermo-mechanical coupling model

The interfacial heat transfer coefficient between hot profile surface and cooling water was determined by using inverse heat conduction model combined with end quenching experiment. Then, a Deform-3 D thermo-mechanical coupling model for simulating the on-line water quenching of extruded profile with unequal and large thicknesses was developed. The temperature field, residual stress field and distortion of profile during quenching were investigated systematically. The results show that heat transfer coefficient increases as water flow rate increases. The peak heat transfer coefficient with higher water flow rates appears at lower interface temperatures. The temperature distribution across the cross-section of profile during quenching is severe nonuniform and the maximum temperature difference is 300 ℃ at quenching time of 3.49 s. The temperature difference through the thickness of different parts of profile first increases sharply to a maximum value, and then gradually decreases. The temperature gradient increases obviously with the increase of thickness of parts. After quenching, there exist large residual stresses on the inner side of joints of profile and the two ends of part with thickness of 10 mm. The profile presents a twisting-type distortion across the cross-section under non-uniform cooling and the maximum twisting angle during quenching is 2.78°.

Development of multi-physics numerical simulation model to investigate thermo-mechanical fatigue crack propagation in an autofrettaged gun barrel

In this research,a detailed multi-physics study has been carried out by numerically simulating a solid fractured gun barrel for 20 thermo-mechanical cycles.The numerical model is based on thermal effects,mechanical stress fields and fatigue crack mechanics.Elastic-plastic material data of modified AISI 4340 at temperatures ranging from 25 to 1200℃and at strain rates of 4,16,32 and 48 s^(-1) was acquired from high-temperature compression tests.This was used as material property data in the simulation model.The boundary conditions applied are kept similar to the working gun barrel during continuous firing.A methodology has been provided to define thermo-mechanically active surface-to-surface type interface between the crack faces for a better approximation of stresses at the crack tip.Comparison of results from non-autofrettaged and autofrettaged simulation models provide useful information about the evolution of strains and stresses in the barrel at different points under combined thermo-mechanical loading cycles in both cases.The effect of thermal fatigue under already induced compressive yield due to autofrettage and the progressive degradation of the accumulated stresses due to thermo-mechanical cyclic loads on the internal surface of the gun barrel(mimicking the continuous firing scenario)has been analyzed.Comparison between energy release rate at tips of varying crack lengths due to cyclic thermo-mechanical loading in the non-autofrettaged and autofrettaged gun has been carried out.

DEVELOPMENT OF NEW THERMO-MECHANICAL SIMULATOR

A new multifunction thermo-mechanical simulator was successfully developed. The accuracy of measurement and control is very high through all digital control. More than twenty tests may be fulfilled including tension, compression, torsion, combination large deformation that meets the study of supersteel, etc. Its performance is introduced in the paper, such as designed ideas, machine structure, man-machine interface, control system, etc.