abstract: The Very High Temperature Reactor (VHTR) is one of six conceptual designs proposed for Generation IV nuclear reactors. Alloy 617, a solid solution strengthened Ni-base superalloy, is currently the primary candidate material for the tubing of the Intermediate Heat Exchanger (IHX) in the VHTR design. Steady-state operation of the nuclear power plant at elevated temperatures leads to creep deformation, whereas loading transients including startup and shutdown generate fatigue. A detailed understanding of the creep-fatigue interaction in Alloy 617 is necessary before it can be considered as a material for nuclear construction in ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code. Current design codes for components undergoing creep-fatigue interaction at elevated temperatures require creep-fatigue testing data covering the entire range from fatigue-dominant to creep-dominant loading. Classical strain-controlled tests, which produce stress relaxation during the hold period, show a saturation in cycle life with increasing hold periods due to the rapid stress-relaxation of Alloy 617 at high temperatures. Therefore, applying longer hold time in these tests cannot generate creep-dominated failure. In this study, uniaxial isothermal creep-fatigue tests with non-traditional loading waveforms were designed and performed at 850 and 950°C, with an objective of generating test data in the creep-dominant regime. The new loading waveforms are hybrid strain-controlled and force-controlled testing which avoid stress relaxation during the creep hold. The experimental data showed varying proportions of creep and fatigue damage, and provided evidence for the inadequacy of the widely-used time fraction rule for estimating creep damage under creep-fatigue conditions. Micro-scale damage features in failed test specimens, such as fatigue cracks and creep voids, were quantified using a Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) to find a correlation between creep and fatigue damage. Quantitative statistical imaging analysis showed that the microstructural damage features (cracks and voids) are correlated with a new mechanical driving force parameter. The results from this image-based damage analysis were used to develop a phenomenological life-prediction methodology called the effective time fraction approach. Finally, the constitutive creep-fatigue response of the material at 950°C was modeled using a unified viscoplastic model coupled with a damage accumulation model. The simulation results were used to validate an energy-based constitutive life-prediction model, as a mechanistic model for potential component and structure level creep-fatigue analysis. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Mechanical Engineering 2017

Le fluage est une déformation ductile affectant certaines failles actives, voire toutes. Il existe en effet deux types de fluage. Le premier, le fluage permanent, concerne certaines failles. La déformation s'effectue de façon continue et constante dans le temps. Le second, plus ponctuel, est fréquemment enregistré à la suite d'un séisme. On peut alors parler de déformation post-sismique. La compréhension des mécanismes à l'origine de ces deux types de fluage apparaît étroitement liée à celle de la succession des différentes phases du cycle sismique. Notre étude, basée à la fois sur des observations naturelles et sur des expérimentations de laboratoire, a démontré que le fluage résultait d'une combinaison de processus interagissant les uns avec les autres et favorisant la mise en place d'un mécanisme dominant. Nous avons mis en évidence que les deux paramètres les plus importants à l'établissement de cette dominance étaient la composition minéralogique de la roche et son état d'endommagement. Dans une zone de faille, ces deux paramètres varient avec le temps, la profondeur et avec l'éloignement à la zone de glissement. Par conséquent, les mécanismes de fluage évoluent eux aussi en fonction de ces données. Notre approche microstructurale d'échantillons provenant de la zone en fluage actif de la faille de San Andreas, fournis par le forage SAFOD, nous a permis d'établir une chronologie des déformations subies par les roches de cette zone. Un modèle d'évolution des mécanismes de fluage a ainsi émergé. Cette évolution est capable d'entretenir le fluage au cours du temps de façon permanente, soit par un enrichissement de la zone en minéraux à faible coefficient de friction, comme révélé par les échantillons de la Faille de San Andreas, soit par un équilibre entre processus de fracturation et de cicatrisation, maintenant la résistance de la roche à un seuil trop faible pour un fort chargement. Dans ce dernier cas, nos expérimentations de laboratoire ont montré que si les processus de cicatrisation devenaient dominants, il y avait création d'hétérogénéités de résistance à l'intérieur de la roche. A l'échelle d'une zone de faille, ces hétérogénéités peuvent être suffisamment importantes pour mener à l'initiation d'une rupture conséquente. Ces expériences sont analogues au cas de la Faille de San Andreas, où dans un contexte de fluage permanent, des microaspérités locales génèrent de la sismicité. / Creep is a ductile deformation mechanism affecting many, if not all, active faults. This mechanism is twofold. First, creep may be permanent, i.e. the deformation takes place through time in a continuous and constant manner. Creep may also appear in a more discontinuous manner, commonly associated with post-seismic deformation. Understanding the origin of both types of creep appears closely connected to understanding the succession of the various stages of the seismic cycle. Our approach is based both on the investigation of natural samples and on laboratory experiments. By doing so, we demonstrate that creep results from a combination of several processes themselves interacting with one another, until the promotion of one particular mechanism. We have established that the most important driving parameters to this convergence were the mineralogical composition of the host rock and its damage state. Within the fault, these parameters change with time, depth and distance from the slip zone. Therefore, the creep mechanisms themselves may change according to the parameters above-mentioned. Our micro-structural approach using SAFOD drill core samples from the San Andreas Fault (California) allowed us to unveil a time-lapsed picture of the deformation sequence in this area. Based on these observations, we suggest a conceptual model for the evolution of creep mechanisms. According to this model, creep is maintained within the fault zone either by the crystallization of low-friction minerals (as shown by the SAFOD samples) or by reaching equilibrium between fracturing and healing, thereby maintaining rock strength below the threshold for important stress loading. In the first scenario, our laboratory experiments showed that if the healing processes become dominant, strength heterogeneities appear within the rock. At the fault scale, these heterogeneities would become numerous enough to lead to a major rupture. These experiments are reasonably similar to what is expected for the San Andreas Fault where permanent creep occurs whereas local asperities are seismic.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-10-09T12:26:27Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 / Made available in DSpace on 2014-10-09T14:04:31Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 / Dissertacao (Mestrado) / IPEN/D / Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares - IPEN-CNEN/SP

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Este trabalho apresenta resultados de ensaios de fluência confinada e não-confinada de geotêxteis não-tecidos agulhados. Algumas dificuldades encontradas durante o desenvolvimento dos equipamentos utilizados para realizar esses ensaios em laboratório são também apresentadas e discutidas. A etapa de investigação sem confinamento envolveu a utilização de geotêxteis de poliéster e de polipropileno. Os resultados confirmaram o grande potencial desses materiais em apresentar fluência assim como a maior susceptibilidade dos geotêxteis de polipropileno. No caso de ensaios com confinamento, tentativas de se tracionar um geotêxtil de polipropileno entre duas camadas de solo revelaram grandes dificuldades para manter a carga aplicada constante ao longo do corpo de prova, em virtude da existência de atrito nas interfaces solo-geotêxtil. Ensaios alternativos retirando-se o solo e envolvendo-se o geotêxtil em uma membrana de látex lubrificada apresentaram bons resultados, comprovando a redução da fluência em relação aos ensaios não confinados e denotando tratar-se de uma solução viável para investigar o real papel do confinamento na fluência dos geotêxteis. / This work presents results of confined and unconfined creep tests on nonwoven needle punched geotextiles. Withdraws found during the equipment development used to perform these tests are also highlighted and discussed. The unconfined tests encompassed the use of polyester and polypropylene geotextiles. Results confirm that these materials have a great potential to creep, being the polypropylene geotextiles the material with the greatest susceptibility. The confined tests where geotextile was placed between two soil layers revealed difficulties in keeping the applied load constant throughout the specimen due to soil-geotextile interface friction. Alternative tests performed without the soil and embedding the geotextile in a lubricated latex membrane showed good results, proving the decrease of creep in relation to unconfined tests. Thus, one can conclude that this is a viable solution towards the investigation of the real role that confinement plays in geotextile creep.

A fluência dos geossintéticos encontra-se entre as propriedades mais relevantes no projeto de estruturas de solo reforçado com esses materiais. A caracterização desse fenômeno emprega ensaios normalizados e de baixa complexidade, que apresentam dois aspectos negativos principais: a duração e o fato de não considerarem o efeito da interação dos geossintéticos com o solo circundante. Ensaios conduzidos em temperatura elevada e em câmaras que simulam o confinamento do solo apresentam-se como alternativas para solucionar cada um desses empecilhos, mas apenas separadamente. Diante disso, esta pesquisa visou desenvolver um novo equipamento para realização de ensaios de fluência em geossintéticos que incorpora, simultaneamente, ambas as medidas utilizadas para mitigar esses dois aspectos. Cinco tipos de geossintéticos (duas geogrelhas, dois geotêxteis não tecidos e um geotêxtil tecido) foram submetidos a ensaios de fluência em diferentes condições de confinamento e temperatura, de maneira combinada ou não. Ensaios de ruptura por fluência em condição confinada e a determinação da resistência à tração residual de corpos de prova submetidos à diferentes períodos de fluência também foram incluídos no programa experimental. O novo equipamento mostrou-se bastante versátil, permitindo a realização de quatro tipos de ensaios: convencionais, confinados, acelerados e confinado-acelerados. As deformações por fluência mostraram-se dependentes do confinamento nas geogrelhas e nos geotêxteis não tecidos e independentes no geotêxtil tecido. Assim, destaca-se que as geogrelhas tiveram um comportamento em fluência diferente daquele previsto na literatura técnica, uma vez que as deformações por fluência desses materiais são comumente referidas como independentes do confinamento. A elevação da temperatura de ensaio mostrou-se eficaz para a aceleração das deformações por fluência em todos os geossintéticos testados. Adicionalmente, verificou-se que a resistência residual dos geossintéticos é pouco afetada pela ocorrência de deformação por fluência. O novo equipamento para realização de ensaios de fluência em geossintéticos permite considerar um dos aspectos mais controversos no projeto de estruturas de reforço de solo com geossintéticos sob uma nova perspectiva. / Creep behavior plays an important role in geosynthetics reinforced soil structures. Its characterization is commonly performed by means of standard tests in which in-isolation specimens are subjected to a constant load while their elongation is measured over time. Despite their widespread use, standard creep tests present two main negative aspects. Firstly, they may last up to 10.000 hours. In addition, they do not consider the possibly significant effect of soil-geosynthetic interaction. Therefore, tests conducted under standard procedures may increase the costs of full creep behavior characterization and result in conservative parameters. Tests conducted at elevated temperature and with special chambers in which the specimens are subjected to confining stresses may be used provide an insight on the soil-geosynthetic interaction in accelerated tests. Both measures have been broadly published in the technical literature, but only independently. In this regard, this dissertation presents a new piece of equipment developed to conduct confined-accelerated creep tests on geosynthetics. Five different geosynthetics were subjected to creep tests with the new equipment (two geogrids, two nonwoven geotextiles and one woven geotextile). In addition, creep rupture tests were performed with both geogrids and the residual tensile strength of specimens were determined by tensile tests performed after creep tests in different conditions. The new creep test equipment was found to be able to performed four different types of test: conventional, confined, accelerated and confined-accelerated ones. The creep behavior of the geogrids was found to be confinement-dependent. This is not mentioned in technical literature. On the other hand, both types geotextiles behaved as expected regarding their confined creep behavior. The woven geotextile creep behavior was independent of confining stresses in sand whereas the nonwoven geotextile creep deformations were strongly reduced by confinement in sand. In addition, the creep deformations of every tested geosynthetic increased with temperature. The tensile tests performed after creep tests showed that the residual strength of the geosynthetics was approximately equal to the values found with virgin specimens. The new creep testing equipment performance was adequate, since it was able to simultaneously address both main concerns of standardized creep tests on geosynthetics.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-10-09T12:26:27Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 / Made available in DSpace on 2014-10-09T14:04:31Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 / A utilização de materiais compósitos poliméricos em elementos estruturais requer o conhecimento do comportamento durante a vida em serviço. A garantia da integridade destes elementos estruturais de compósitos demanda um estudo do comportamento dependente do tempo, por causa da sua resposta viscoelástica e das inúmeras possibilidades de configurações de fabricação. No presente estudo, foram realizados ensaios de fluência e ruptura por fluência em tração em compósitos unidirecionais fabricados com resina epoxídica e fibra de carbono de alta resistência, com os ângulo das fibras a 60º e 90º em relação à direção do carregamento, nas temperaturas de 25 e 70 ºC. A caracterização viscoelástica do compósito foi realizada por meio das curvas de fluência a vários níveis de carregamento constante em períodos de 1000 h, obtenção do envelope de ruptura por fluência pelas curvas de ruptura por fluência, a determinação da transição do comportamento linear para não linear pelos gráficos isócronos e ainda a comparação das curvas de flexibilidade à fluência com um modelo de predição de comportamento viscoelástico fundamentado na equação de Schapery. Pelos ensaios foi constatada uma modificação no comportamento do material, com relação à resistência, rigidez e deformação, demonstrando que estas propriedades foram afetadas pelo tempo e nível de tensão, especialmente em temperatura de trabalho acima da ambiente. O modelo de predição foi capaz de representar o comportamento à fluência, entretanto deve ser considerada a determinação dos termos das equações, além da variação destes com a tensão aplicada e o tempo decorrido de ensaio. / Dissertacao (Mestrado) / IPEN/D / Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares - IPEN-CNEN/SP

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Submitted by Divisão de Documentação/BC Biblioteca Central (ddbc@ufam.edu.br) on 2018-02-23T14:07:59Z No. of bitstreams: 2 Dissertação_Matheus P. S. Silva.pdf: 2830915 bytes, checksum: c6f42e6a9aedf5ccc332c112b241847f (MD5) license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Divisão de Documentação/BC Biblioteca Central (ddbc@ufam.edu.br) on 2018-02-23T14:08:14Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 2 Dissertação_Matheus P. S. Silva.pdf: 2830915 bytes, checksum: c6f42e6a9aedf5ccc332c112b241847f (MD5) license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-02-23T14:08:14Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 Dissertação_Matheus P. S. Silva.pdf: 2830915 bytes, checksum: c6f42e6a9aedf5ccc332c112b241847f (MD5) license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017-10-16 / There is a major concern on the global stage with the scarcity of natural resources and global warming. In this context, the paving has been looking for alternatives aimed at reducing fuel consumption and the consequent reduction of the emission of greenhouse gases, highlighting the use of warm mixtures as an option. In the local scenario, the urban roads of the city of Manaus / AM show historically premature deterioration, instigating the evaluation of regional asphaltic compositions notably regarding permanent deformation. On the other hand, besides the usual pathologies, the frequent increase in the volume of traffic and loads has generated the appearance of new pathologies, not considered in the traditional methods of designing asphalt mixtures. These facts led to the study of the warm mixtures applied in the city of Manaus / AM, in terms of their mechanical performance, and in particular, from the perspective of triaxial compression and dynamic creep tests. In this research, the physical characterization of the composite materials of the asphaltic composite, the dosage of this mixture according to the Brazilian specifications, as well as the results obtained in the mechanical tests were evaluated. The physical characterization, the dosage and the mechanical behavior indicated: a) the asphalt binder was classified as type 50/70, meeting the specifications of the ANP. However, for the local reality, it does not present adequate, since in the range of service temperature has already reached its softening point; b) the mineral dosage indicated that the formulation studied can be used for Range B and C of DNIT; and c) the analysis of the Marshall parameters, from the point of view of the DNIT specification, showed that the researched composition can only be applied as a rolling layer; d) the results of the triaxial test indicated that the cohesion decreases drastically by the variation of the ambient temperature to the service condition; e) in the dynamic creep test, the mathematical model proved to be more adequate with respect to the traditional methodology, since the minimum deformation rate per cycle did not correspond to the transition point from the secondary stage to the tertiary stage; and f) all NF results, either by the mathematical or traditional method, indicate that the regional coatings are subject to premature pathologies of the permanent deformation type. / Há no cenário global uma grande preocupação com a escassez de recursos naturais e o aquecimento global. Neste contexto, a pavimentação vem buscando alternativas visando à redução no consumo de combustíveis e a consequente redução da emissão de gases causadores do efeito estufa, destacando-se como opção o uso de misturas mornas. No cenário local, as vias urbanas da cidade de Manaus/AM mostram historicamente prematura deterioração, instigando a avaliação das composições asfálticas regionais notadamente quanto à deformação permanente. Por outro lado, além das usuais patologias, o frequente aumento do volume de tráfego e de cargas tem gerado o surgimento de novas patologias, não consideradas nos métodos tradicionais de dimensionamento de misturas asfálticas. Tais fatos suscitaram o estudo das misturas mornas aplicadas na cidade de Manaus/AM, quanto ao seu desempenho mecânico, e em particular, sob a ótica dos ensaios de compressão triaxial e creep dinâmico. Nesta pesquisa, avaliou-se a caracterização física dos materiais partícipes do compósito asfáltico, a dosagem desta mistura de acordo com as especificações brasileiras, bem como os resultados obtidos nos ensaios mecânicos. A caracterização física, a dosagem e o comportamento mecânico indicaram: a) o ligante asfáltico classificou-se como do tipo 50/70, atendendo as especificações da ANP. No entanto, para a realidade local, não se apresenta adequada, uma vez que na faixa de temperatura de serviço já atingiu seu Ponto de amolecimento; b) a dosagem mineral indicou que a formulação estudada pode ser empregado para Faixa B e C do DNIT; e c) a análise dos parâmetros Marshall, sob a ótica da especificação do DNIT, mostrou que a composição pesquisada pode ser aplicada somente como camada de rolamento; d) os resultados do ensaio triaxial indicaram que a coesão diminui drasticamente pela variação da temperatura ambiental para condição de serviço; e) no teste de creep dinâmico, o modelo matemático mostrou-se mais adequado referente à metodologia tradicional, uma vez que a taxa mínima de deformação por ciclo não condizia com o ponto de transição do estágio secundário para o estágio terciário; e f) todos os resultados de FN, seja pelo método matemático ou tradicional, apontam que os revestimentos regionais estão sujeitos a prematuras patologias do tipo deformação permanente.

Une assemblée d’objets solides de taille typique d’une fraction de millimètre n’est pas sensible à l’agitation thermique. En effet, ces éléments sont trop massifs pour être mis en mouvement par le chaos moléculaire. Cependant, un tel empilement est susceptible de se réorganiser sous la seule influence des variations de température ambiante. Ces dernières induisent des changements de longueur certes relativement petits (coefficient de dilatation typique de l'orde de 10-5 K-1) mais, compte tenu de la rigidité de ces matériaux (module d’Young de l’ordre de 1011Pa), les déformations associées sont suffisantes pour créer des efforts capables de déplacer des grains de manière irréversible. Nous étudions expérimentalement la compaction d’une colonne de billes de verre soumise à des cycles de température. Imposer les variations de température par un fil tendu placé au centre de la colonne et alimenté par un courant sinusoïdal de fréquence assez haute permet de minimiser les effets de la dilatation du récipient. La dynamique du système est étudiée en fonction des caractéristiques du chauffage et des conditions mécaniques. Par ailleurs, d'un point de vue théorique, nous nous intéressons aux effets des variations de température sur un système discret modèle, des patins liés par des ressorts en contact frictionnel avec un plan incliné. Nous étudions l’influence de l’angle d'inclinaison et des caractéristiques des variations de température sur la reptation du système. Nous observons que proche d’une amplitude critique, entre mouvement et arrêt du système, ce dernier exhibe une dynamique intermittente. / An assembly of solid objects of typical size, a fraction of a millimeter is not sensitive to thermal agitation. Indeed, these elements are too massive to be moved by the molecular chaos. However, such a stack is likely to reorganize under the influence of ambient temperature variations. The latter lead to changes in length relatively small (coefficient of expansion typical of order 10-5 K-1), but, due to the rigidity of these materials (Young's modulus of about 1011Pa) deformations associated are sufficient to create stresses capable of moving grain irreversibly.We study experimentally the compaction of a column of glass beads subjected to temperature cycles. The temperature variations imposed by a stretched wire placed at the center of the column supplied by a high frequency sinusoidal current minimize the effects of expansion of the container. The dynamic of the system is studied for different heating and mechanical conditions.Moreover, from a theoretical point of view, we consider the effects of temperature variations on a discrete model system, sliders connected by springs in frictional contact with an inclined plane. We study the influence of the inclination angle and the characteristics of temperature variations on the creep of the system. We observe that close to a critical amplitude, between motion and rest, the system exhibits an intermittent dynamic.