As hydrogel products are manufactured and used for applications ranging from biomedical to agricultural, it is useful to characterize their behavior and interaction with other materials. This thesis investigates the adhesion between two different solvated semi-interpenetrating polymer network (S-IPN) silicone hydrogels and a cyclo-olefin (COP) polymer through experimental, analytical, and numerical methods. Interfacial fracture data was collected through the application of the wedge test, a relatively simple test allowing for the measurement of fracture properties over time in environments of interest. In this case, the test was performed at discrete temperatures within range of 4Ë C to 80Ë C. Two COP adherends were bonded together by a layer of one of the S-IPN silicone hydrogels. Upon the insertion of a wedge between the two adherends, debonding at one of the two interfaces would initiate and propagate at a decreasing rate. Measurements were taken of the debond length over time and applied to develop crack propagation rate versus strain energy release rate (SERR) curves. The SERR values were determined through the application of an analytical model derived for the wedge test geometry and to take into account the effects of the hydrogel interlayer. The time-temperature superposition principle (TTSP) was applied to the crack propagation rate versus SERR curves by shifting the crack propagation rates with the Williams-Landel-Ferry (WLF) equation-based shift factors developed for the bulk behavior of each hydrogel. The application of TTSP broadened the SERR and crack propagation rate ranges and presented a large dependency of the adhesion of the system on the viscoelastic nature of the hydrogels. Power-law fits were applied to the master curves in order to determine parameters that could describe the adhesion of the system and be applied in the development of a finite element model representing the interfacial fracture that occurs for each system. The finite element models were used to validate the analytical model and represent the adhesion of the system such that it could be applied to future geometries of interest in which the S-IPN silicone hydrogels are adhered to the COP substrate. <i>[Files modified per J. Austin, July 9, 2013 Gmc]</i> / Master of Science

Fracture mechanics is an effective approach for characterizing material resistance to interfacial failure and for making interface reliability predictions. Because interfacial bond integrity is a major concern for performance and reliability, the need to evaluate the fracture and delamination resistance of an interface under different environmental conditions is very important. This study investigates the effects of temperature, solution chemistry and environmental preconditioning, in several solutions on the durability of silicon/epoxy and glass/epoxy systems. A series of experiments was conducted using wedge test specimens to investigate the adhesion performance of the systems subjected to a range of environmental conditions. Both silicon and glass systems were relatively insensitive to temperature over a range of 22-60°C, but strongly accelerated by temperatures above 60°C, depending on the environmental chemistry and nature of the adhesive system used. Silicon/commercial epoxy specimens were subjected to preconditioning in deionized (DI) water and more aggressive solution mixtures prior to wedge insertion to study the effect of prior environmental exposure time on the system. The wedge test data from preconditioned specimens were compared with standard wedge test results and the system was insensitive to preconditioning in DI water but was affected significantly by preconditioning in aggressive environments. Plots describing - G (crack velocity versus applied strain energy release rate) characteristics for a particular set of environmental conditions are presented and a comparison is made for different environmental conditions to quantify the subcritical debonding behavior of systems studied. A kinetic model to characterize subcritical debonding of adhesives for microelectronic applications is also proposed based on molecular interactions between epoxy and a silane coupling agent at the interface and linear elastic fracture mechanics, which could help predict long-term deterioration of interfacial adhesion. / Master of Science

The target of the ‘Green Overlays’ research was a cost effective, minimal disruption, sustainable and environmentally friendly alternative to the wholesale demolition, removal and complete reconstruction of the existing structural concrete pavement. The important problem of flexural resistance for strengthening concrete pavements with structural overlays has been scrutinised. A new mix design method for steel fibre reinforced, roller compacted, polymer modified, bonded concrete overlay has been proposed. The mixes developed were characterized of high flexural strength and high bond strength with the old concrete substrate. ‘Placeability’ and ‘compactability’ of the mix were two dominant issues during laboratory investigation. An innovative approach for establishing the relationship between Stress and Crack Face Opening Displacement for steel fibre reinforced concrete beams under flexure was developed. In addition, a new and simple method for calculating the interfacial Strain Energy Release Rate of both, a two-dimensional specimen and a three-dimensional model of the overlay pavement system were developed. This method can be readily and easily used by practicing engineers. Finally, a new test specimen and its loading configuration for measuring interfacial fracture toughness for concrete overlay pavements were established. The interfacial fracture toughness of a composite concrete beam, consisted of steel fibre-reinforced roller compacted polymer modified concrete bonded on conventional concrete and undergoing flexure, was assessed. In summary, this thesis presents four key findings: A new mix design method for steel fibre-reinforced roller compacted polymer modified concrete bonded on conventional concrete. A new method for establishing the fibre bridging law by an inverse analysis approach. A new, simplified method for calculating strain energy release rate at the interface of a composite beam. A new, innovative technique for calculating strain energy release rate at the interface of an overlaid pavement. The thesis contains a plethora of graphs, data-tables, examples and formulae, suitable for future researchers.

Water-assisted crack growth at an epoxy/glass interface was measured as a function of applied strain energy release rate, G, and temperature using a wedge test geometry. The specimens consist of two glass plates bonded with a thin layer of proprietary epoxy adhesive. The crack fronts along the epoxy/glass interfaces were measured using an optical stereomicroscope. The relationship between G and the debonding rate, v, can be measured using this method, and the threshold value of strain energy release rate, Gth, can be determined from the measured data. Two types of testing procedures were conducted in this study: ex situ, i.e., pre-conditioned wedge tests and in situ ones, in which wedges were applied before the specimens were submerged into water. A preliminary model was developed based on the thermal activation barrier concept, and allows the prediction of Gth for the temperatures beyond the testing region. Changes in interfacial strain energy release rate caused by thermal residual stresses in a triple-layered specimen were analyzed in Chapter Three. The method is based on linear elastic fracture mechanics and simple beam theory. The curvature of a bimaterial strip was chosen to characterize the residual stress in the specimen, and the strain energy release rate, caused by both tensile and compressive residual stresses in the adhesive, was derived for an asymmetric double cantilever beam (ADCB) geometry. The contribution of the thermal residual and mechanical stress to the global energy release rate was analyzed. The thermally induced energy release rate, GT, is found to be independent of crack length, but is a function of residual stress level and geometric and material parameters of the specimen. The adhesion of films and coatings to rigid substrates is often measured using blister geometries, which are loaded either by an applied pressure or a central shaft. The measurement will be affected if there are residual stresses that make a contribution to the energy release rate. This effect is investigated using analytical solutions based on the principle of virtual displacements. A geometrically nonlinear finite element analysis is conducted for comparison. Furthermore, the relationships among strain energy release rate, load, deflection, and fracture radius are discussed in detail in Chapter Four. Both analytical solutions and numerical results reveal that uniform tensile residual stresses reduce a specimen's deflection if it experiences plate behavior under small loads. However, this effect diminishes when membrane behavior is dominant. The mechanics of a single-lap joint with different boundary conditions subjected to tensile loading are investigated. Closed-form solutions are obtained for a specimen configuration considering different clamping methods. Based on the approach pioneered by Goland and Reissner, the solutions reported in this paper provide a simple but useful way to understand the effects of boundary conditions on this test geometry. The solutions in this study suggest that different grip configurations mainly affect the response of the specimens if the grip position is close to the joint edge or the loads are small. Generally, the influence caused by different gripping methods is only limited to the boundary region, and the behavior of the joint part subjected to tensile loading is almost the same as that for a simply-supported case. / Ph. D.