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This bachelor’s thesis investigates the feasibility of designing a lightweight, aero-dynamic child bike trailer using composite materials for its main structural ele-ments. The project encompasses theoretical design, finite element analysis (FEA),and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) to optimize the structure for weight re-duction and improved aerodynamics while ensuring strength. Key considerationsinclude material selection, laminate stiffness, and manufacturing methods. Thestudy provides a plan for future prototype development. Findings suggest that acomposite-based design can significantly reduce weight and enhance aerodynamicperformance compared to traditional materials and structural design.

Utilizing carbon fiber reinforced polymers (CFRP) in design offers advantages including as mass reduction, increased stiffness, enhanced corrosion resistance, improved sound damping, and vibration absorption. The notable strength-to-weight ratio of CFRP has driven its adoption over traditional materials like aluminum and steel in various industries such as aerospace, automotive, and sports. The assembly of "Stack-ups," which are layered assemblies of CFRP and metal components, becomes crucial as CFRP increasingly replaces metallic parts in high mechanical loading structural situations. The high thrust force involved in machining fiber reinforced polymers (FRPs) causes a peel-up and push-out effect on the workpiece, leading to delamination of the plies. This study developed an FE tool to simulate the drilling of FRPs effectively, aiming to validate tool design and enhance the cutting process. Modeling the impact of fiber orientation in CFRP material on mechanical behavior is essential for optimizing component design and manufacturing. To reduce the exhaustive experimental work related to CFRP material characterization Abaqus Explicit is used to predict the tensile material response through fracture. FEA analyses included mesh size, mass/time scaling, failure models, and cohesive surfaces. Experimental results with the new fixturing-rig show consistent gauge region failure, regardless of fiber orientation. Puck's model accurately predicts fracture force and displacement for parallel fiber orientation. 45 and 90-degree orientations, maximum strain and LaRCO2 models offer better accuracy. Most apparent, was the criticality of cohesive surfaces to predict the nonlinear loading response observed experimentally. Simulations for various fiber layup orientations indicate similar force-displacement signatures, with a notable reduction in failure force at angles between parallel and 45 degrees. Simulating CFRP mechanical properties under three-point bending to understand cohesive interactions between plies in a laminate was investigated; this capability critical to effectively model the peel-up and push-out problem observed when drilling. A parametric FEA study investigated the affect of mesh size, mass/time scaling, failure models (Hashin, MCT, LaRC02, Maximum Strain, Puck), and cohesive surfaces versus loading response. Experimental results with a larger radius punch show failure on the intended bottom side, facilitating Aramis strain camera recording. Effective mass/time scaling reduces computation time while maintaining accuracy. For perpendicular fiber orientation, all failure models exhibit a similar force-displacement rate. Minimal difference exists among 0-degree models, except for a 4.18% underprediction by LaRC02. At 45 and 90 degrees, Maximum Strain and LaRCO2 models prove more accurate and converge well. The study underscores the need for cohesive surfaces to predict nonlinearity in loading responses for non-parallel bending setups. A 3D drilling model is developed discussing significance of modelling techniques and considerations. The removal of failed elements creates periodic voids between the workpiece and tool, underlining the importance of proper mesh development. Accurate, computationally efficient models with element lengths of 50-75 µm near the expected failure region were emphasized. Using a discrete rigid body yielded a 42.1% reduction in memory requirements and a 2.81x reduction in time step compared to deformable bodies with rigid constraints. Mass scaling led to over tenfold computation time reduction with a mere 5.3% mass change. Increasing viscosity parameters improved the loading response of CFRP laminate during high-speed drilling. Strain rate strengthening, aligned with literature, increased the load profile by 10.9%. Friction in the CFRP drilling model showed less sensitivity than estimated, with a 4.4% standard deviation. The FE model once confidently developed, was compared to experiments. The prediction aligned well with experiments, accurately predicting thrust force differences between CD854 and CD856 drills. The CD856 exhibited reduced inter-ply damage, highlighting the advantage of double-angle drill geometry. The CD854's "spur" cutting edge geometry improved hole quality. The "Stack-up" drilling model effectively predicted thrust force transitions between UD-CFRP and Aluminum layers, confirming the CD854's reduced thrust force when drilling Aluminum, as described by the tool manufacturer Sandvik. / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Yes / This paper reports the testing of three continuously and two simply supported concrete beams reinforced with carbon fibre reinforced polymer (CFRP) bars. The amount of CFRP reinforcement in beams tested was the main parameter investigated. A continuous concrete beam reinforced with steel bars was also tested for comparison purposes. The ACI 440.1R-06 equations are validated against the beam test results. Test results show that increasing the CFRP reinforcement ratio of the bottom layer of simply and continuously supported concrete beams is a key factor in enhancing the load capacity and controlling deflection. Continuous concrete beams reinforced with CFRP bars exhibited a remarkable wide crack over the middle support that significantly influenced their behaviour. The load capacity and deflection of CFRP simply supported concrete beams are reasonably predicted using the ACI 440.1R-06 equations. However, the potential capabilities of these equations for predicting the load capacity and deflection of continuous CFRP reinforced concrete beams have been adversely affected by the de-bonding of top CFRP bars from concrete.

No / This paper presents a numerical method for estimating the curvature, deflection and moment capacity of hybrid FRP/steel reinforced concrete beams. A sectional analysis is first carried out to predict the moment-curvature relationship from which beam deflection and moment capacity are then calculated. Based on the amount of FRP bars, different failure modes were identified, namely tensile rupture of FRP bars and concrete crushing before or after yielding of steel reinforcement. Comparisons between theoretical and experimental results of tests conducted elsewhere show that the proposed numerical technique can accurately predict moment capacity, curvature and deflection of hybrid FRP/steel reinforced concrete beams. The numerical results also indicated that beam ductility and stiffness are improved when steel reinforcement is added to FRP reinforced concrete beams. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved,

Yes / This paper reports the testing of five reinforced concrete continuous beams strengthened in flexure with externally bonded carbon-fibre-reinforced polymer (CFRP) laminates. All beams had the same geometrical dimensions and internal steel reinforcement. The main parameters studied were the position and form of the CFRP laminates. Three of the beams were strengthened using different arrangements of CFRP plate reinforcement, and one was strengthened using CFRP sheets. The performance of the CFRP-strengthened beams was compared with that of an unstrengthened control beam. Peeling failure was the dominant mode of failure for all the strengthened beams tested. The beam strengthened with both top and bottom CFRP plates produced the highest load capacity. It was found that the longitudinal elastic shear stresses at the adhesive/concrete interface calculated at beam failure were close to the limiting value recommended in Concrete Society Technical Report 55.

No / Although several research studies have been conducted on simply supported concrete elements reinforced with fibre reinforced polymer (FRP) bars, there is little reported work on the behaviour of continuous elements. This paper reports the testing of four continuously supported concrete slabs reinforced with carbon fibre reinforced polymer (CFRP) bars. Different arrangements of CFRP reinforcement at mid-span and over the middle support were considered. Two simply supported concrete slabs reinforced with under and over CFRP reinforcement and a continuous concrete slab reinforced with steel bars were also tested for comparison purposes. All continuous CFRP reinforced concrete slabs exhibited a combined shear–flexure failure mode. It was also shown that increasing the bottom mid-span CFRP reinforcement of continuous slabs is more effective than the top over middle support CFRP reinforcement in improving the load capacity and reducing mid-span deflections. The ACI 440.1R–06 formulas overestimated the experimental moment at failure but better predicted the load capacity of continuous CFRP reinforced concrete slabs tested. The ACI 440.1R–06, ISIS–M03–07 and CSA S806-06 design code equations reasonably predicted the deflections of the CFRP continuously supported slabs having under reinforcement at the bottom layer but underestimated deflections of continuous slabs with over-reinforcement at the bottom layer.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T14:58:15Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 MayaraSCFL_DISSERT.pdf: 5165682 bytes, checksum: c5b249c3b897f27db4e517452be9b9ce (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012-04-30 / Coordena??o de Aperfei?oamento de Pessoal de N?vel Superior / Composites based on PEEK + PTFE + CARBON FIBER + Graphite (G_CFRP) has increased application in the top industries, as Aerospace, Aeronautical, Petroleum, Biomedical, Mechanical and Electronics Engineering challenges. A commercially available G_CFRP was warmed up to three different levels of thermal energy to identify the main damage mechanisms and some evidences for their intrinsic transitions. An experimental test rig for systematize a heat flux was developed in this dissertation, based on the Joule Effect. It was built using an isothermal container, an internal heat source and a real-time measurement system for test a sample by time. A standard conical-cylindrical tip was inserted into a soldering iron, commercially available and identified by three different levels of nominal electrical power, 40W (manufacturer A), 40W (manufacturer B), 100W and 150W, selected after screening tests: these power levels for the heat source, after one hour of heating and one hour of cooling in situ, carried out three different zones of degradation in the composite surface. The bench was instrumented with twelve thermocouples, a wattmeter and a video camera. The twelve specimens tested suffered different degradation mechanisms, analyzed by DSC (Differential Scanning Calorimetry) and TG (Thermogravimetry) techniques, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Energy-Dispersive X-Rays (EDX) Analysis. Before and after each testing, it was measured the hardness of the sample by HRM (Hardness Rockwell M). Excellent correlations (R2=1) were obtained in the plots of the evaporated area after one hour of heating and one hour of cooling in situ versus (1) the respective power of heat source and (2) the central temperature of the sample. However, as resulting of the differential degradation of G_CFRP and their anisotropy, confirmed by their variable thermal properties, viscoelastic and plastic properties, there were both linear and non-linear behaviour between the temperature field and Rockwell M hardness measured in the radial and circumferential directions of the samples. Some morphological features of the damaged zones are presented and discussed, as, for example, the crazing and skeletonization mechanism of G_CFRP / Comp?sitos baseados em matrizes polim?ricas de PEEK e PTFE, refor?adas com fibra de carbono e grafite (G_CFRP) apresentam crescente aplica??o e desafios ? Engenharia nas ind?strias Aeroespacial, Aeron?utica, de Petr?leo, Biom?dica, Mec?nica e Eletr?nica. Um comp?sito G_CFRP foi aquecido em tr?s n?veis de energia t?rmica para identificar os principais mecanismos de dano e algumas evid?ncias em suas transi??es de mecanismos. Uma bancada experimental foi desenvolvida para sistematizar o fluxo t?rmico com base no Efeito Joule. Foi constru?da usando-se um recipiente isot?rmico, uma fonte quente interna e um sistema de medidas em tempo real para ensaiar um corpo-de-prova (CP) de cada vez. Uma ponta c?nica-cil?ndrica foi inserida em um ferro de soldar, comercialmente dispon?vel e identificado por tr?s diferentes n?veis de pot?ncia el?trica, 40W (fabricante A), 40W (fabricante B), 100W e 150W, selecionados ap?s ensaios piloto: estes n?veis de pot?ncia para a fonte quente, ap?s uma hora de aquecimento e uma hora de resfriamento in situ, promoveu tr?s zonas diferentes de degrada??o na superf?cie do comp?sito. A bancada foi instrumentada com doze termopares, um watt?metro e uma c?mera de v?deo. Os doze C.P. ensaiados apresentaram diferentes mecanismos de degrada??o, analisados pelas t?cnicas de Calorimetria Diferencial Explorat?ria (DSC) e Termogravimetria (TG), e pelas an?lises de Microscopia Eletr?nica de Varredura (MEV) e Energia Dispersiva de Raios-X (EDS). Antes e ap?s cada ensaio, foram feitos ensaios de dureza Rockwell M (HRM). Excelentes correla??es (R2=1) foram obtidas nas curvas da ?rea evaporada ap?s uma hora de aquecimento e uma hora de resfriamento in situ versus (1) a respectiva pot?ncia da fonte quente e (2) a temperatura central do C.P. entretanto, como resultado da degrada??o diferencial do G_CFRP e da sua anisotropia, confirmadas por suas propriedades t?rmicas vari?veis, propriedades viscoel?sticas e viscopl?sticas, houve comportamentos linear e n?o-linear entre o campo de temperatura e a HRM medidos nas dire??es radial e circunferencial dos C.P. Algumas peculiaridades morfol?gicas das zonas de dano s?o apresentadas e discutidas, como, por exemplo, os mecanismos de dano por crazing e esqueletiza??o do G_CFRP

Dans l’industrie aérospatiale, l’utilisation des matériaux hybrides CFRP/Ti montre une tendance à la hausse en raison de leurs propriétés mécaniques/physiques améliorées ainsi que des fonctions structurelles plus flexibles. En dépit de leurs nombreuses applications, l’usinage CFRP/Ti en perçage en une seule passe reste le principal défi scientifique et technologique de l’assemblage multi-matériaux. Par rapport au coût de production élevé et le temps des recherches basées sur des approches exclusivement expérimentales de l’usinage multi-matériaux, cette étude a pour objectif d’amener une meilleure compréhension de la coupe CFRP/Ti à travers une approche physique hybride qui fait dialoguer les méthodes numériques et expérimentales. Un modèle EF utilisant le concept de zone cohésive a été développé pour étudier l’usinabilité anisotrope de pièces structurales CFRP/Ti à des fins d’assemblage. L’approche numérique explicite, par des études préliminaires, les mécanismes de coupe clés qui contrôlent l’usinage CFRP/Ti. Par la suite, l’approche expérimentale a été conduite sous différentes conditions d’usinage en configuration de coupe orthogonale et de perçage. Une attention spéciale a été consacrée aux effets des stratégies des séquences de coupe CFRP/Ti sur la formation des endommagements d’interface induits. Ces études expérimentales et numériques ont permit (i) d’expliciter les mécanismes physiques activés qui contrôlent la coupe à l’interface ainsi que les endommagements induits par celle-ci, (ii) de préciser les effets des différentes stratégies d’assemblage multi-matériaux sur l’usinage CFRP/Ti, (iii) de définir la classification d’usinabilité CFRP/Ti, et (iv) d’analyser enfin les effets paramétriques géométrie/matériau d’outil régissant l’opération d’usinage CFRP/Ti. / In modern aerospace industry, the use of hybrid CFRP/Ti stacks has experienced an increasing trend because of their enhanced mechanical/physical properties and flexible structural functions. In spite of their widespread applications, machining hybrid CFRP/Ti stacks in one-shot time still consists of the main scientific and technological challenge in the multi-material fastening. Compared to the high cost of pure experimental investigations on the multi-material machining, this study aims to provide an improved CFRP/Ti cutting comprehension via both numerical and experimental methodologies. To this aim, an FE model by using the cohesive zone concept was established to construct the anisotropic machinability of the bi-material structure. The numerical work aims to provide preliminary inspections of the key cutting mechanisms dominating the hybrid CFRP/Ti stack machining. Afterward, some systematic experimental work including orthogonal cutting and hole drilling was carefully performed versus different input cutting conditions. A special focus was made on the study of the effects of different cutting-sequence strategies on CFRP/Ti cutting output and induced interface damage formation. The combined numerical-experimental studies provide the key findings aiming to (i) reveal the activated mechanisms controlling interface cutting and subsequent interface damage formation, (ii) clarify the influences of different cutting-sequence strategies on hybrid CFRP/Ti stack machining, (iii) outline the machinability classification of hybrid CFRP/Ti stacks, and (iv) analyze finally the parametric effects of the material/tool geometry on cutting CFRP/Ti stacks.

I dagsläget är de flesta broar i Sverige tillverkade med betong eller stål. Dessa broar är många gånger förknippade med stora kostnader som ofta beror på underhåll och reparation. FRP, som står för Fiber Reinforced Polymer, är ett relativt nytt material i bärande stommar men är ett väl etablerat material i förstärkningssammanhang. I Europa och i synnerhet Nederländerna finns det flertal broar byggda i FRP. Men på grund av brist på normer och regelverk att luta sig emot sker det sällan någon form av brokonstruktion med FRP i Sverige. Detta examensarbete syftar till att undersöka befintliga normer och studera hur materialet FRP används vid förstärkning och konstruktion av broar. Vidare syftar även arbetet till att undersöka egenskaperna hos FRP som byggmaterial och jämföra det med konventionella material som stål och betong. FRP, också benämnd fiberkomposit, är ett kompositmaterial som kan sammanställas på flera olika sätt. Genom olika material som kombineras och olika tillverkningsprocesser som används kan man på så sätt ge individuell utformning till materialet för dess användning. Fördelarna med FRP är många, men i allmänhet har det god styrka, god beständighet samtidigt som det har en låg vikt. Detta resulterar i att inom brokonstruktion så ger det strukturen en minskad egenvikt, vilket i sin tur underlättar en mängd olika saker. Detta arbete visar på att FRP-material har fördelaktiga egenskaper och kan i vissa situationer vara mer gynnsamt att använda än stål eller betong. Dock som tidigare påpekat saknas det specifika Eurokoder för detta material. Däremot är vi säkra på att introduktionen av en ny Eurokod samt med uppmuntran från myndigheter kommer användningen av FRP inom brokonstruktion utan tvekan öka. / At present, most bridges in Sweden are made with concrete or steel. These bridges are often associated with high costs, which often depend on maintenance and repair. FRP, which stands for Fiber Reinforced Polymer, is a relatively new material in load-bearing structures but is a well- established material in the context of reinforcement. In Europe and in particular the Netherlands, there are several bridges built in FRP. But due to a lack of norms and regulations to lean against, there is rarely any kind of FRP bridge construction in Sweden. The aim of this thesis is to examine existing norms and study how the material FRP is used in the reinforcement and construction of bridges. Furthermore, this thesis also aims to investigate the properties of FRP as building material and compare it with conventional materials such as steel and concrete. FRP, also called fiber-composite, is a composite material that can be assembled in several different ways. Through various materials that are combined and different manufacturing processes used, one can thus provide individual designs for the material. The benefits of FRP are many, but generally it has good strength, good durability while having a low weight. This results in that within bridge construction, it gives the structure a reduced self-weight, which in turn facilitates a variety of things. This thesis shows that FRP materials have advantageous properties and in some situations can be more favorable to use than steel or concrete. However, as previously pointed out, there are no specific Eurocodes for this material. However we are sure that the introduction of a new Eurocode and encouragement from authorities will undoubtedly increase the use of FRP in bridge construction.