Bolted connections where used from the beginning of vehicle construction for joining two or more parts. The reliability of bolted connections is still a major problem. The objective of this research thesis is focused on an advanced monitoring system for bolted connections in vehicle construction. A mechanical “vibrating test bench”, which was developed by the aeronautical engineer Mr. Junkers, is being adapted, to suite the requirements of the automotive industry. It is designed according to DIN 65151 standards. The bolted connection is tightened to a specific torque to achieve the required preload forces and then exposed to an oscillating elastic shear force. The preload force and their loss are measured in relation to the number of load cycles. The ideal locking mechanism would be, if no settling occurs. Realistic in practice is the remaining of a sufficient preload force which doesn’t decry with time. The aim of this thesis is, to gain knowledge that will assist in the future control of the bolt locking procedure. The test bench can be used to verify the clamping capability of a bolted connection. With the dynamic computer-aided test system it will also be possible to test critical bolted joints and their safety, which reduces the probability of costly product recalls, or even severe cases of failure.

Permanent brittle deformation of rocks of the upper crust is often manifested in the growth of fractures, or sliding along fractures, which may subsequently be intruded by magma and other fluids. The brittle deformation structures described here include faults, joints and dykes. Brittle deformation structures along passive continental margins result from continental fragmentation and related uplift, as is seen around the southern African margins in response to Gondwana break-up. In many cases the fragmentation is accompanied by significant magmatic events, for example the Cretaceous mafic dyke swarms that form major components of the South Atlantic Large Igneous Province (LIP) and originated during the break-up of West Gondwana (Africa and South America). The magmatic events accompanying the break-up of Gondwana resulted in crustal extension and the formation of joint systems and dyke swarms that exhibit distinct geometric features that appear to display fractal patterns. This work analyses the relationship between the Henties Bay-Outjo Dyke Swarm (HOD) on the west coast of Namibia, and the Ponta Grossa Dyke Swarm (PG) on the coast of Brazil, both of which formed ca. ~130 Ma, to test for their co-linearity and fractal geometry before and during West Gondwana break-up. This was achieved by reconstructing Gondwana‘s plates that contained the PG and HOD swarms, using ArcGIS and Gplates software. The dyke analyses was complemented with a comparative study of joints of the Table Mountain Group quartzites (TMG, ca. 400 Ma) in the Western Cape Province and Golden Valley Sill (GVS, ca. 180 Ma) in the Eastern Cape Province, to compare their fractal patterns and possible relationship. Mapping of joints was carried out in the field with the use of a compass and GPS. The HOD trend is positioned largely NNE > NE, but a NW dyke trend is also common. The dominant joints in the TMG trend NNW > WSW and the GVS joints trend WNW > NNE and others. The GVS and HOD orientations appear strongly correlated, while TMG shows no simple orientation correlation with GVS and HOD. The lack of correlation is attributed to the TMG‘s formation in different host-rocks with variable anisotropy and/or the presence of different mechanical processes acting at a different time in geological history. All mapped dykes and joints were analysed to test for fractal geometry. The fractal dimension results of about 18605 HOD dykes from microscopic to mega scale (0.1 mm – 100 km) shows fractal patterns that range between Df = 1.1 to 1.9; and the fractal dimension of about 1716 joints in the TMG and about 1026 joints in the GVS at all scales range between ca. Df = 1.6 to 1.9. The similarity of the fractal patterns indicates that joints and dykes may have formed in response to similar tectonic stress events; and similar orientations may indicate that joints pre-dated the dyke intrusions. However, the data also indicate that dykes are not always related to pre-existing joints.

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D.Ing. / The quantification of the surface roughness in order to determine the shear behaviour of rock joints has been performed using many approaches, amongst which the most important are the joint roughness coefficient, statistical methods and the fractal approach. None of these approaches explicitly considers the contribution of grain size to the creation of surface roughness. An investigation has been undertaken to determine whether the grain size may be related to the surface roughness characteristics and also to assess its impact on the shear behaviour of rock joints. The influence of grain size on the shear behaviour of rock joints has been experimentally and numerically studied using a profile measurement approach followed by shear tests in the laboratory. Fresh rock joints in model material made of aggregates of no rite in resin and two natural rock types, namely norite and sandstone, were used for the investigation. A numerical analysis of the study has been performed using the Particle Flow Code PFC20 • Investigation of the model material has resulted in the conceptualisation of grain size parameters. Of the proposed grain size parameters, the average particle size index As has been successfully used to define the particle size distribution of a rock joint for both physical and numerical tests. From the profile measurements, four roughness parameters, n~mely the average inclination angle I, the root mean square of the first derivative Z2, the modified root mean square of the first derivative Z2' and the fractal dimension D, have been computed and a regression analysis conducted. Physical and numerical results have demonstrated that grain size distribution, expressed in terms of average particle size index As shows a good correlation respectively with the root mean square ofthe first derivative Z2, and its modified version Z2'. The root mean square of the first derivative Z2, and the modified root mean square of the first derivative Z2' increase with the average particle size index As. However, no correlation has been found between the grain size parameter and the fractal dimension D or the average inclination angle I. It has also been found that the joint roughness coefficient JRC and the peak friction angle ~P correlate very well with the average particle size index As. The greater the average particle grain size the higher the joint roughness coefficient JRC and the peak friction angle ~p· The type of correlation between JRC and ~P with As depends on the rock type. Exponential shear strength model has been derived where the average particle size index As is related to the peak friction angle via the residual friction angle ~r·

Synovial joints enable frictionless movement between the adjacent bones. Lubricating fluid enclosed within the joint reduce the pressure to allow free movement. Previously synovial joints have been associated with a terrestrial life and have mainly been studied in tetrapods, such as mammals and chicken, under the assumption that the joint did not evolve before animals adapted to a life on land. However, a recent study described the production and function of lubricin in the jaw and pectoral fin joints in ray-finned fishes, such as zebrafish, suggesting previous assumption to be questionable. The current study aim to further investigate the jaw joints in the ray-finned zebrafish, by examininge the morphology and presence of specific cell types, called synoviocytes, associated with the synovial joint. The synoviocytes are divided into two groups: macrophage-like cells and fibroblast-like cells. Tissue sections were histologically investigated with nuclear staining and immunohistochemically with antibodies to chondroitin sulphate (CS-56) and uridine diphosphoglucose dehydrogenase (UDPGD, UGDH) to investigate the presence of fibroblast-like cells. Small and circular cells were observed in the joint line and surrounding cartilage nascent to the joint. These cells could not be identified as chondrocytes or part of the perichondrium, and their UDPGD activity witness on similarities to the fibroblast-like cells. UDPGD is associated to the synthesis of hyaluronan (HA) which plays a key role in joint cavitation, hence, suggesting functional similarities in the development of zebrafish jaw joint to synovial joints. Furthermore a double transgenic zebrafish, fli1:EGFP/mpeg1:mCherry, was used to examine the presence of macrophages within the joint area. Macrophages were observed on the surface of the jaw joint in close association with blood vessels but did not show signs of incorporation within the joint. These results present further similarities of joints in ray-finned fish to the synovial joint but also the need to further examine similarities in order to understand the development and evolution of the joints. The possibility to implement the zebrafish model would facilitate future studies on the healthy synovial joint as well the diseases related to it.

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The usage of lead-­free solder joints in electronic packaging is of greatest concern to the electronic industry due to the health and environmental hazards arising with the use of lead. As a consequence, lead is legally prohibited in the European Union and the industry is aiming to produce lead-free products.            The reliability of solder joints is an important issue as the failure could destroy the whole function of a product. SnAgCu is a commonly used alloy for lead-­free solders. Compared to solders containing lead, tin-­rich solders react more rapidly with the copper substrate. The reaction results in formation of brittle intermetallic compounds and in poor mechanical reliability. The formation can be slowed down by the addition of nickel in the under bump metallization.     In this project the objective was to evaluate the mechanical reliability of solder joints in high temperature applications. An alloy of nickel and phosphorus was plated on copper plates by electroless plating. The plates were joined together using SnAgCu solder. The samples were then thermally aged at 180°C for different durations (100, 200, 300, 400 and 500 hours). Tensile tests were performed on the samples. The result from the tensile test showed a decrease in mechanical strength with increasing aging duration. The fracture path shifted from being in the bulk solder to being at the interfaced.

Experimental study of the shear strength of unfilled and rough rock joints Ahmed Elsayed, KTH   A series of shear tests have been performed in order to study the influence of matedness on the shear strength of rock joints. The tests have been performed with different degrees of matedness. The purpose is to analyze if the effect from matedness on the peak shear strength can be predicted by using the criterion proposed by Johansson 2009. The first phase of the study involves the measurement of the surface properties of the rock joints using optical scanning. The second step is the use of the model and the surface properties to analytically calculate all the different parameters and the peak shear strength. In the third step, direct shear tests are performed. The fourth and final step includes the verification and comparison of the results obtained from the model with those of the shear tests. The results from the comparison show good agreement between the conceptual model and the shear tests.

Metal-plate-connected (MPC) splice joints were tested in combined tension and bending to generate data that were used in the development of a design procedure for determining the steel net-section strength of bottom chord splice joints of MPC wood trusses. Several common wood truss splice joint configurations were tested at varying levels of combined tension and bending loading. The joint configurations were 2x4 lumber with 20-gauge truss plates, 2x6 lumber with 20-gauge truss plates, and 2x6 lumber with 16-gauge truss plates. All the joints tested failed in the steel net-section of the truss plates. The combined loading was achieved by applying an eccentric axial tension load to the ends of each splice joint specimen. Three structural models were developed to predict the ultimate strength of the steel net-section of the splice joints tested under combined tension and bending loading. The test data were fitted to each model, and the most accurate model was selected. Data from other published tests of splice joints were used to validate the accuracy of the selected model. A design procedure for determining the allowable design strength of the steel net-section of a splice joint subjected to combined tension and bending was developed based on the selected model. The new design procedure was compared with two existing design methods. The proposed design procedure is recommended for checking the safe capacity of the steel net-section of bottom chord splice joints of MPC wood trusses subjected to combined tension and bending. / Master of Science