It has been shown that alloys with submicron-grained structure can be produced by severe plastic deformation (SPD). However, our understanding about the characteristics of mechanical behaviors of these materials is still limited. According to the literature, many alloys exhibit quite different mechanical properties as the grain size decreasing to submicrometer range. In this study, commercial purity aluminum (AA1050) of grain size ranging from 0.35 to ~ 45 mm was obtained by the proper combination of equal-channel angular extrusion (ECAE) and annealing treatment. The influences of grain size, testing temperature and boundary character on the mechanical properties were studied in this work. Generally speaking, the materials of grain sizes below 1mm have quite different mechanical properties than those of coarser grain sizes. In tensile tests, they exhibited yield drop immediately followed by work softening at RT, while they showed Lüders extension followed by work hardening at 77K. In addition, their yield strength at RT was about 20% higher in compression than in tension. The submicron-grained aluminum has much higher strength but lower tensile ductility than large grained aluminum at room temperature, while it exhibits both high strength and good ductility at 77K. This finding suggests that the poor tensile ductility of submicron-grained alloys at room temperature may be improved by reducing the dynamic recovery rate. The Hall-Petch slope in the submicrometer grain size range showed positive deviation from that extended from coarser grains at both room temperature and 77K. This might be arisen from the phenomenon of inhomogeneous yielding as grain size below 1 mm. In addition, the grain boundary character distribution was found to have influence on the tensile properties of matrials of submicrometer grain sizes. As the grain size increases to the range between 1 mm and 4 mm, the tensile deformation at RT proceeds by the propagation of Lüders band initially, and followed by strain hardening. For materials of grain sizes greater than 4 mm, a normal strain hardening behavior of coarse-grained aluminum resumes.

<p>In this Thesis Ti-Al-C thin films deposited by cathodic arc at 700, 800 and 900 °C were investigated with respect to composition, structure and mechanical properties. The highest growth temperature resulted in close to single crystalline Ti₂AlC MAX phase.</p><p> </p><p>A high oxygen incorporation of 7-12 at.% was detected in all the films, likely originating from residual gas and the Al₂O₃ substrate. It was evident that the characteristic nanolaminated MAX phase structure was retained upon deflection from the ideal MAX phase stoichiometry.</p><p> </p><p>Hardness and elastic modulus of the sample grown at 900 °C were 16 and 259 GPa, respectively, as determined by nanoindentation using a Berkovich tip. Nanoindentation measurements with a cube corner tip were also performed on all three samples in order to extract elastic moduli.</p><p> </p><p>Analysis of loading-unloading curves and SPM images revealed no relation between pop-in events and pile-ups around the residual imprints, indicating that other mechanisms than formation of kink bands may be responsible for formation of pile-ups. This was also confirmed by cross-sectional TEM investigation of an indent: Ti₂AlC MAX phase deformed without kinking and delamination, as opposed to the observations in single crystalline Ti₃SiC₂ films. Several possible reasons for the different deformation mechanism observed are discussed. </p><p> </p><p>These results are of importance for the fundamental understanding of the origin of material characteristics, and serve as an initial study initiating further investigations of the influence of defects on MAX phase properties.</p>

The effect of various inorganic and organic additives as possible nucleating agents on the crystallisation behaviour of P. E. T. and the suosequent influence on the morphological and mechanical properties has been examined. Various methods of mixing(: the polymer and additive were investigated and a method involving the screw-Extrusion of the polymer and the additive was ultimately adopted. Crystallisation studies were carried out using differential scanning calorimetry under dynamic and isothermal modes. The results produced under conditions of isothermal crystallisation were analysed by means of a computer. Despite differences between batches of polymer all the additives with the exception of indigo produced a nucleating effect in the polymer as indicated by an increase in the rate of crystallisation compared with that of the base polymer. Two organo-metallic substances (sodium benzoate and sodium stearate) proved to be the most effective in this respect by decreasing the degree of supercooling of the polymer by 20 [degrees]. Morphological studies were carried out on isothermally crystallised samples, after etching and replication using a transmission electron microscope. A nodular structure whose dimensions were sensitive to both the nucleating agent and the temperature of crystallisation was observed. Mechanical testing of samples direct from the D. S. C. was carried out using a compression method. The breaking loads were found to vary with both the type of nucleating agent used and the crystallisation temperature chosen. A separate study involving the exanination of the resulting fracture surfaces by scanning electron microscopy revealed that a, high breaking load was associated with a fine discontinuous structure whereas lower breaking loads were characterised by a more continuous linear appearance. This implies a higher energy of fracture due to the increased surface area of the fracture surface of the former.

M. Tech. Mechanical Engineering / The increased use of composite materials in different industries has led to the realization of some of its benefits and disadvantages. One of the major problems, however, is the availability of biaxial test data for different composite materials. This is because structures during application face multi-axial stress states examples of such stress state scenarios include wind turbine blades and pressure vessels. This has also led to diverse range of test methods and material compositions such as combining different fibbers. The material used in this work is polymer matrix honeycomb sandwich panels. Sandwich panels are fabricated by attaching two thin stiff skins of fiber glass or carbon fiber reinforced laminates to a lightweight core. This work addresses some of the major advantages and disadvantages of this testing method. The main objective of this study is to develop a repeatable, cost effective and time efficient method for multi-axial testing of sandwich panels using existing resources.

M. Tech. Civil Engineering / Composites of synthetic polymers and natural organic materials, used as fillers, find a wide application due to biodegradability, renewability, low-cost recyclability, low specific gravity, low weight, and non-abrasiveness to processing equipment. These composites find application in various areas such as automotive interior, households, ornaments, building, and packaging. In spite of these advantages, use of these materials as reinforcement or filler in thermoplastics in general and in polyolefin in particular, is not as extensive as expected. This is due to their limited thermal stability during processing, poor dispersion in the thermoplastic melt and limited compatibility with the matrix as well as poor toughness and stress transfer efficiency. The main objective of this research was to determine the suitability and performance of natural fibre reinforced polyolefin foam composite material as a possible construction material.

published_or_final_version / Medical Sciences / Master / Master of Medical Sciences

published_or_final_version / Mechanical Engineering / Master / Master of Philosophy

A new experimental method to characterize the mechanical properties of metallic nanowires is introduced. An accurate and fast mechanical characterization of nanowires requires simultaneous imaging and testing of nanowires. However, there exists no practical experimental procedure in the literature that provides a quantitative mechanical analysis and imaging of the nanowire specimens during mechanical testing. In this study, a customized atomic force microscope (AFM) is placed inside a scanning electron microscope (SEM) in order to locate the position of the nanowires. The tip of the atomic force microscope cantilever is utilized to bend and break the nanowires. The nanowires are prepared by electroplating of nickel ions into the nanoscale pores of the alumina membranes. Force versus bending displacement responses of these nanowires are measured experimentally and then compared against those of the finite element analysis and peridynamic simulations to extract their mechanical properties through an inverse approach.The average elastic modulus of nickel nanowires, which are extracted using finite element analysis and peridynamic simulations, varies between 220 GPa and 225 GPa. The elastic modulus of bulk nickel published in the literature is comparable to that of nickel nanowires. This observation agrees well with the previous findings on nanowires stating that the elastic modulus of nanowires with diameters over 100nm is similar to that of bulk counterparts. The average yield stress of nickel nanowires, which are extracted using finite element analysis and peridynamic simulations, is found to be between 3.6 GPa to 4.1 GPa. The average value of yield stress of nickel nanowires with 250nm diameter is significantly higher than that of bulk nickel. Higher yield stress of nickel nanowires observed in this study can be explained by the lower defect density of nickel nanowires when compared to their bulk counterparts.Deviation in the extracted mechanical properties is investigated by analyzing the major sources of uncertainty in the experimental procedure. The effects of the nanowire orientation, the loading position and the nanowire diameter on the mechanical test results are quantified using ANSYS simulations. Among all of these three sources of uncertainty investigated, the nanowire diameter has been found to have the most significant effect on the extracted mechanical properties.

Sorghum is a gluten free cereal and forms the staple diet of a majority of the populations living in the semi-arid tropics dough. It is usually consumed in the form of bread made from the grain flour. Dough made with sorghum flour has poor viscoelastic properties compared to wheat dough and mechanical methods for production of sorghum roti are scarce. This study was conducted to elucidate the rheological and thermal properties of sorghum dough to establish its behavior. The temperature and amount of water used for preparation of the dough and the composition of the flour were varied. Wheat, soya and black gram flours were used to prepare the composite doughs. Sensory characteristics of roti made with these dough samples by the traditional method and mechanical compression were studied. The results are presented and their implications are discussed.

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