Alumina is one of the most commonly used engineering ceramics for a variety of applications ranging from microelectronics to prosthetics due to its desirable properties. Unfortunately, conventional machining techniques generally lead to fracture, tool failure, low surface integrity, high energy consumption, low material removal rate, and high tool wear during machining due to high hardness and brittleness of the ceramic material. Laser machining offers an alternative for rapid processing of brittle and hard engineering ceramics. However, the material properties, especially the high thermal expansion coefficient and low thermal conductivity, may cause ceramic fracture due to thermal damage. Striation formation is another defect in laser cutting. These drawbacks limit advanced ceramics in engineering applications. In this work, various lasers and machining techniques are investigated to explore the feasibility of high-quality laser machining different thicknesses of alumina. The main contributions include: (i) Fibre laser crack-free cutting of thick-section alumina (up to 6-mm-thickness). A three-dimensional numerical model considering the material removal was developed to study the effects of process parameters on temperature, thermal-stress distribution, fracture initiation and propagation in laser cutting. A rapid parameters optimisation procedure for crack-free cutting of thick-section ceramics was proposed. (ii) Low power CW CO2 laser underwater machining of closed cavities (up to 2-mm depth) in alumina was demonstrated with high-quality in terms of surface finish and integrity. A three-dimensional thermal-stress model and a two-dimensional fluid smooth particle hydrodynamic model (SPH) were developed to investigate the physical processes during CO2 laser underwater machining. SPH modelling has been applied for the first time to studying laser processing of ceramics. (iii) Striation-free cutting of alumina sheets (1-mm thickness) is realised using a nano-second pulsed DPSS Nd: YAG laser, which demonstrates the capability of high average power short pulsed lasers in high-quality macro-machining. A mechanism of pulsed laser striation-free cutting was also proposed. The present work opens up new opportunities for applying lasers for high-quality machining of engineering ceramics.

<p>Aluminum alloys have broad applications in aerospace, automotive, and defense industries as structural material due to the low density, high-specific strength, good castability and formability. However, aluminum alloys commonly suffer from problems such as low yield strength, low stiffness, and poor wear and tear resistance, and therefore are restricted to certain advanced industrial applications. To overcome the problems, one promising method is the fabrication of aluminum matrix composites (AMCs) by introducing ceramic reinforcements (fibers, whiskers or particles) in the metal matrix. AMCs typically possess advanced properties than the matrix alloys such as high specific modulus, strength, wear resistance, thermal stability, while remain the low density. Among the AMCs, particulate reinforced aluminum matrix composites (PRAMCs) are advantageous for their isotropic properties, ease of fabrication, and low costs. Particularly, the PRAMCs with in-situ particulate reinforcements have received great interest recent years. The in-situ fabricated particles are synthesized in an aluminum matrix via chemical reactions. They are more stable and finer in size, and have a more uniform distribution in the aluminum matrix and stronger interface bonding with aluminum matrix, compared to the ex-situ particulate reinforcements. As a consequence, the in-situ PRAMCs have superior strength and mechanical properties as advanced engineering materials for a broad range of industrial applications.</p> <p>This dissertation focuses on the investigation of high strength aluminum matrix composites reinforced with in-situ particulates. The first chapter provides a brief introduction for the studied materials in the dissertation, including the background, the scope, the significance and the research questions of the study. The second chapter presents the literature review on the basic knowledge, the fabrication methods, the mechanical properties of in-situ PRAMCs. The strengthening mechanisms and strategies of in-situ PRAMCs are summarized. Besides, the micromechanical simulation is introduced as a complementary methodology for the investigation of the microstructure-properties relationship of the in-situ PRAMCs. The third chapter shows the framework and methodology of this dissertation, including material preparation and material characterization methods, phase diagram method and finite element modelling. </p> <p>In Chapter 4, the microstructures and mechanical properties of in-situ Al₃Ti particulate reinforced A356 composites are investigated. The microstructure and mechanical properties of in-situ 5 vol. % Al₃Ti/A356 composites are studied either taking account of the effects of T6 heat treatment and strontium (Sr) addition or not. Chapter 5 studies the evolution of intermetallic phases in the Al-Si-Ti alloy during solution treatment, based on the work of Chapter 4. The as-cast Al-Si-Ti alloy is solution treated at 540 °C for different periods between 0 to 72 h to understand the evolution of intermetallic phases. In Chapter 6, a three-dimensional (3D) micromechanical simulation is conducted to study the effects of particle size, fraction and distribution on the mechanical behavior of the in-situ Al₃Ti/A356 composite. The mechanical behavior of the in-situ Al₃Ti/A356 composite is studied by three-dimensional (3D) micromechanical simulation with microstructure-based Representative Volume Element (RVE) models. The effects of hot rolling and heat treatment on the microstructure and mechanical properties of an in-situ TiB₂/Al2618 composite with minor Sc addition are investigated in Chapter 7. TiB₂/Al2618 composites ingots were fabricated <i>in-situ</i> via salt-melt reactions and subjected to hot rolling. The microstructure and mechanical properties of the TiB₂/Al2618 composite are investigated by considering the effects of particle volume fraction, hot rolling thickness reduction, and heat treatment. </p>

La complexité des microsystèmes, leur multidisciplinarité, l’hétérogénéité des matériaux utilisés et les interfaces avec l’environnement extérieur rendent difficiles l’évaluation et la maîtrise de leur fiabilité indispensables pour l’exploitation des nombreuses possibilités innovantes qu’ils offrent.L’approche que nous avons proposée dans ce travail, afin de prédire la fiabilité des microsystèmes, se fonde sur l’usage intensif de la modélisation et de la simulation, dans les conditions d’usage du microsystème (profil de mission), en associant donc l’évaluation de la fiabilité à la démarche de conception : avant d’entreprendre une modélisation fonctionnelle de type VHDL-AMS, les objectifs de fiabilité sont exprimés explicitement dans le cahier des charges du microsystème, au même titre que les objectifs plus habituels de performances.Afin de supporter nos travaux, nous avons appliqué cette démarche de prédiction de la fiabilité sur deux types de microsystèmes :- des micro-actionneurs électrothermiques. - des commutateurs RF capacitifs à actionnement électrostatique / The complexity of microsystems, their multidisciplinarity, the heterogeneity of materials and interfaces with the external environment makes difficult the assessment and control of reliability, which is indispensable for the exploitation of the several innovative opportunities that they offer. The approach we proposed, in this work, to predict the reliability of microsystems is based on the intensive use of modelling and simulation, in the use and environmental conditions of micro-system (mission profile), thus by combining the reliability evaluation in the design process: before undertaking any type of functional modelling VHDL-AMS, reliability objectives are expressed explicitly in the specification of the micro-system, as well as the most common performance goals.To support our work, we applied this approach for predicting the reliability for two types of microsystems:- Electro-thermal micro-actuators.- Capacitive RF MEMS switches

Several boom segments form the crane boom. These segments are often truss structures formed out of circular hollow sections, which are welded together forming the truss joints. A adequate modelling of these truss joints is very important for operational strength and life. Due to the large boom sizes, efficient models are used in the finite element method, generally built of beam elements. These models have problems capturing the proper bending moments working in the truss joints. This is caused by a insufficient portrayal of the joint stiffness. In the literature several modelling techniques with beam elements are proposed, which capture the joint stiffness better. These different modelling methods are implemented in a parametric boom section and compared with a shell element FE model. From this comparison the most appropriate modelling method is selected, which improve the portrayal of internal loads and nominal stresses. With these improved nominal stress values, it is investigated to implement a different fatigue assessment. The structural stress can be calculated from the nominal stress in combination with stress concentration factor (SCF) equations. To implement the structural stress method as fatigue assessment, several modelling and extrapolation methods have been compared. Which lead to a method for evaluating the structural stress in a efficient matter. This method is compared with existing SCF K truss joint equations, from which a new set of SCF equations is derived. These equations are constructed from a larger dataset, hold a wider validity range and fit better with the FE models. When applying these SCF equations with the improved beam modelling method in a boom section, the structural stress is not adequately captured. This is caused by unsymmetrical stressed braces in the K truss joints. Both the modelling methods and SCF equations account for uniformly stressed braces forming the truss joints. More research needs to be conducted to this uneven behaviour. If the structural stress method needs to be implemented with efficient FE models, submodels out of shell elements combined with beam elements are recommended. For fatigue evaluation with the nominal stress method, beam models which account for the local joint flexibility give sufficient realistic results. / Flera kranarmsegment bildar kranarmen. Dessa segment är ofta fackverk utformade av cirkulära ihåliga profiler, som är sammansvetsade och bildar fackverkslederna. En ordentlig modellering av dessa fackförband är mycket viktig för dess driftsstyrka och livslängd. På grund av storleken används finita elementmetoden, vanligtvis uppbyggt av balkelement. Dessa modeller har problem med att beräkna de korrekta böjmomenten som uppstår i fackverkslederna. Detta orsakas av en otillräcklig beskrivning av ledstyvheten. I litteraturen föreslås flera modelleringstekniker med balkelement som tar hänsyn till ledens styvhet bättre. Dessa olika modelleringsmetoder implementeras i en parametrisk kranarmsektion och jämförs med en FE-modell med skalelement. Med denna jämförelse väljs den mest lämpliga modelleringsmetoden, vilket bör förbättra skildringen av interna belastningar och nominella spänningar. Med dessa förbättrade nominella spänningsvärden, undersöks det att genomföra en annan utmattningsbedömning. Den strukturella spänningen kan beräknas utifrån den nominella spänningen i kombination med spänningskoncentrationsfaktor- (SCF) ekvationerna. För att implementera strukturella spänningsmetoden som utmattningsbedömning, har flera modellerings- och extrapoleringsmetoder jämförts. Detta leder till en metod för att utvärdera den strukturella spänningen effektivt. Denna metod jämförs med befintliga SCF-ekvationer, från vilka en ny uppsättning SCF-ekvationer härleds. Dessa ekvationer är konstruerade från en större datauppsättning, har ett bredare giltighetsområde och passar bättre med FE-modellerna. När man applicerar dessa SCF-ekvationer med den förbättrade balkmodelleringsmetoden i en kranarmsektion, uppsamlas strukturella spänningar inte tillräckligt, detta orsakas av ojämna spänningar i diagonalelementen i fackverkslederna. Både modelleringsmetoderna och SCF-ekvationerna tar hänsyn till jämnt spända diagonalelement som uppstår i fackverkslederna. Mer forskning bör göras över detta ojämna beteende. Om den strukturella spänningsmetoden måste implementeras med effektiva FE-modeller, rekommenderas undermodeller av skalelement kombinerade med balkelement. För utmattningsutvärdering med den nominella spänningsmetoden, ger balkmodeller som tar hänsyn till den lokala ledflexibiliteten tillräckligt realistiska resultat.

Globally, approximately 1.2 million people die each year due to traffic accidents. Upper extremity injuries account for 18% to 25% of all car accident injuries. In order to be able to analyze these crash-related injuries, Human body models(HBMs) are used as a complement to FE simulations. An example of a HBM is the THUMS SAFER that is based on a 50 percentile American male. The aim of this study was to improve the upper extremity of the THUMS SAFER with respect to Autoliv's requirements to better predict fractures. In addition, this was validated against the Forman experiment(Forman, et al., The journal of trauma and acute care surgery, vol. 77, 2014) where human cadavers of the upper extremity were axially impacted to replicate a car collision. This was done by generating the upper extremity geometry with segmentation of medical images of a right human hand in combination with the complete STL-geometry of the forearm from the Piper project. The STL-geometry of the segmented human hand and Piper forearm was integrated and a complete STL-geometry of the upper extremity was obtained. Based on the complete STL-geometry, the FE-arm HEX 4.0 was built with modelling of bones, ligaments, soft tissue and skin with corresponding material choice in accordance with Autoliv's requirements. The model HEX 4.0 was improved considering an increased mesh density from an average of 94% to 98%. HEX 4.0 was also validated against the data from the Forman experiment for experiments 5, 6 and 15. It showed a good correlation with the acceleration curves between the simulated and experimental values for the three experiments. The reaction force in the elbow was compared for experiment 15, where the simulated value 5.7 kN divided by a factor of 1.4 from 4 kN for the experiment. Furthermore, the fi rst principal strains that occurred in HEX 4.0 were analysed by 17 ms were the highest acceleration was achieved for experiments 5 and 6. Both experiments were shown to be close to the failure threshold of bones. However, the highest value e5=9.8E-03 occurred in the radius for experiment 5, while e6=9.3E-03 in a ligament for experiment 6. In addition, the failure threshold for experiment 15 exceeded 5 ms in lunate, schapoid and triquetrum. This indication of fractures is in good agreement with the experimental results where the corresponding bones resulted in fractures in experiment 15. HEX 4.0 was an improved upper extremity of the THUMS SAFER considering an increased mesh density. It is also capable of indicating fractures and corresponding positions in the form of analyzes of occurring stresses and strains. Nevertheless, improvements and further validation of HEX 4.0 has been proposed in the future work section. / Globalt, dör varje år ungefär 1.2 miljoner personer på grund av trafi kolyckor. Skador på övre extremitet utgör 18% till 25% av alla skador inom bilolyckor. För att kunna analysera dessa krockrelaterade skador används humanmodeller(HBM) som komplement för FE-simuleringar. Ett exempel på en HBM är THUMS SAFER som är baserad på en "50 percentile" amerikans man. Målet med denna studie är att förbättra över extremiten av THUMS SAFER med avseende på Autolivs krav för att bättre kunna förutspå frakturer. Dessutom validerades detta mot Forman experiment(Forman, et al., The journal of trauma and acute care surgery, vol. 77, 2014) där övre extremitet av människokadaver blev axiellt påverkade för att replikera en bilkollsion. Detta gjordes genom att generera STL-geometrin av en övre extremitet med segmentering av medicinska bilder av en höger människohand i kombination med färdig STL-geometri av underarmen från Piper projektet. STL-geometrin av den segmenterande människohanden och Piper underarmen integrerades och en komplett STL-geometri av övre extremiteten erhölls. Baserad på den kompletta STL-geometrin byggdes FE-armen HEX 4.0 med modellering av ben, ligament, mjukvävnad samt hud med motsvarande materialval i enighet med Autolivs krav. Modellen HEX 4.0 förbättrades i form av en ökad mesh densitet från medelvärdet 94% till 98%. Den validerades även gentemot data från Forman experimentet för experiment 5, 6 och 15. Det påvisade en god korrelation på accelerations kurvorna mellan de simulerade och experimentella värdena för de tre experimenten. Reaktionskraften i armbågen jämfördes för experiment 15 där den simulerade värdet 5.7 kN skiljde sig med en faktor 1.4 från 4 kN för experimentet. Ytterligare analyserades första huvudtöjningarna som uppkom i HEX 4.0 vid 17 ms, då den högsta accelerationen uppnådes för experiment 5 och 6. Det visades att båda experimenten låg nära gränsen för benfraktur, däremot uppkom det högsta värdet e5=9.8E-03 i radius för experiment 5, samt e6=9.3E-03 i ett ligament för experiment 6. Dessutom överskred gränsen för benfrakturer för experiment 15 efter 5 ms i lunate, schapoid och triquetrum. Denna indikation av frakturer stämmer väl med resultatet av experimentet där motsvarande benen resulterades i frakturer i experiment 15. HEX 4.0 är en förbättrad övre extremitet av THUMS SAFER i form av förbättrad meshdensitet. Den är även kapabel att indikera frakturer och motsvarande position i form av analyser på förekommande spänningar och töjningar. Förbättringar och ytterligare validering av HEX 4.0 föreslås för framtida arbete.