The mechanical behavior of a high pressure die cast AM60B Mg alloy is studied. Constant load amplitude fatigue tests were conducted at room, elevated and cold temperatures, with a stress ratio of R=0.1, and frequency of 30 Hz. The objective was to identify the possible effects of temperature on fatigue life cycle. In addition, fatigue crack propagation tests were conducted to ascertain the fatigue response of the alloy and determine its fatigue crack growth rate as a function of the applied stress ratio, experimentally, analytically and computationally, using Walker’s model. The results demonstrated that temperature had a significant influence on the fatigue life, and that the life increased at cold temperature but decreased at elevated temperature as compared to that evaluated at room temperature. In this study, the limit for applicability of LEFM was established for AM60B magnesium alloy. In addition, fatigue crack propagation test results were used to evaluate the coefficients of the Paris model.

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The modified mapping-collocation (MMC) method is applied to analyze a circumferential crack in an isotropic curved beam. Based on the method a MATLAB code was developed to obtain the stress field. Incorporating the stress correlation technique, the opening and sliding fracture mode stress intensity factors (SIF)s of the crack for the beam under pure bending moment load case are calculated. The MMC method aims to solve two-dimensional problems of linear elastic fracture mechanics (LEFM) by combining the power of analytic tools of complex analysis (Muskhelishvili formulation, conformal mapping, and extension arguments) with simplicity of applying the boundary collocation method as a numerical solution approach. Qualitatively, a good agreement between the computed stress contours and the fringe shapes obtained from the photoelastic experiment on a plexiglass specimen is observed. Quantitatively, the results are compared with that of ANSYS finite element analysis software. The effect of crack size, crack position and beam thickness variation on SIF values and mode mixity is investigated.

Concrete, which was hitherto considered as a brittle material, has shown much better softening behavior after the post peak load than anticipated. This behavior of concrete did put the researchers in a quandary, whether to categorize concrete under brittle materials or not. Consequently concrete has been called a quasi-brittle material. Fracture mechanics concepts like Linear elastic fracture mechanics (LEFM) and Plastic limit analysis applicable to both brittle and ductile materials have been applied to concrete to characterize the fracture behavior. Because of quasi-brittle nature of concrete, which lies between ductile and brittle response and due to the presence of process zone ahead of crack/notch tip instead of a plastic zone, it is found that non-linear fracture mechanics (NLFM) principles are more suitable than linear elastic fracture mechanics (LEFM) principles to characterize fracture behavior. Fracture energy, fracture process zone (FPZ) size and the behavior of concrete during fracture process are the fracture characteristics, which are at the forefront of research on concrete fracture. Another important output from the research on concrete fracture has been the size effect. Numerous investigations, through mathematical modeling and experiments, have been carried out and reported in literature on the effect of size on the strength of concrete and fracture energy. Identification of the sources of size effect is of prime importance to arrive at a clear analytical model, which gives a comprehensive insight into the size effect. With the support of an unambiguous theory, it is possible to incorporate the size effects into codes of practices of concrete design. However, the theories put forth to describe the size effect do not seem to follow acceptable regression. After introduction in Chapter-1 and literature survey in Chapter-2, Chapter-3 details the study on size effect through three point bend (TPB) tests on 3D geometrically similar specimens. Fracture behavior of beams with smaller process zone size in relation to ligament dimension approaches LEFM. The fracture energy obtained from such beams is said to be size independent. In the current work Size effect law (Bazant et al. 1987) is used on beams geometrically similar in three dimensions with the depth of the largest beam being equal to 750mm, and size independent fracture energy G Bf is obtained. In literature very few results are available on the results obtained from testing geometrically similar beams in three dimensions and with such large depth. In the current thesis the results from size effect tests yielded average fracture energy of 232 N/m. Generally the fracture energies obtained from 2D-geometrically similar specimens are in the range of 60-70 N/m as could be seen in literature. From 3D-geometrically similar specimens, the fracture energies are higher. The reason is increased peak load, could be due to increased width. The RILEM fracture energy Gf , determined from TPB tests, is said to be size dependent. The assumption made in the work of fracture is that the total strain energy is utilized for the fracture of the specimen. The fracture energy is proportional to the size of the FPZ, it also implies that FPZ size increases with increase in (W−a) of beam. This also means that FPZ is proportional to the depth W for a given notch to depth ratio, because for a given notch/depth, (W−a) which is also W(1 − a ) is proportional to W`because (1 − a ) is a constant. WWThis corroborates the fact that fracture energy increases with size. Interestingly, the same conclusion has been drawn by Abdalla & Karihaloo (2006). They have plotted a curve relating fracture process zone length and overall depth the beam. In the present study a new method namely Fracture energy release rate method is suggested. In the new method the plot of Gf / (W−a) versus (W−a) is obtained from a set of experimental results. The plot is found to follow power law and showed almost constant value of Gf / (W−a) at larger ligament lengths. This means that fracture energy reaches a constant value at large ligament lengths reaffirming that the fracture energy from very large specimen is size independent. The new method is verified for the data from literature and is found to give consistent results. In a quasi-brittle material such as concrete, a fracture process zone forms ahead of a pre-existing crack (notch) tip before the crack propagates from the tip. The process zone contains a scatter of micro-cracks, which coalesce into one or more macro-cracks, which eventually lead to fracture. These micro-cracks and macro-cracks release stresses in the form of acoustic waves having different amplitudes. Each micro or macro crack formation is called an acoustic emission (AE) event. Through AE technique it is possible to locate the positions of AE events. The zone containing these AE events is termed the fracture process zone (FPZ). In Chapter-4, a study on the evolution of fracture process zone is made using AE technique. In the AE study, the fracture process zone is seen as a region with a lot of acoustic emission event locations. Instead of the amplitudes of the events, the absolute AE energy is used to quantify the size of the process zone at various loading stages. It has been shown that the continuous activities during the evolution of fracture process zone correspond to the formation of FPZ, the size of which is quantified based on the density of AE events and AE energy. The total AE energy released in the zone is found to be about 78% of the total AE energy released and this is viewed as possible FPZ. The result reasonably supports the conclusion, from Otsuka and Date (2000) who tested compact tension specimens, that zone over which AE energy is released is about 95% can be regarded as the fracture process zone. As pointed out earlier, among the fracture characteristics, the determination of fracture energy, which is size independent, is the main concern of research fraternity. Kai Duan et al. (2003) have assumed a bi-linear variation of local fracture energy in the boundary effect model (BEM) to showcase the size effect due to proximity of FPZ to the specimen back boundary. In fact the local fracture energy is shown to be constant away from boundary and reducing while approaching the specimen back boundary. The constant local fracture energy is quantified as size independent fracture energy. A relationship between Gf , size independent fracture energy GF , un-cracked ligament length and transition ligament length was developed in the form of equations. In the proposed method the transition ligament length al is taken from the plot of histograms of energy of AE events plotted over the un-cracked ligament. The value of GF is calculated by solving these over-determined equations using the RILEM fracture energies obtained from TPB tests. In chapter-5 a new method involving BEM and AE techniques is presented. The histogram of energy of AE events along the un-cracked ligament, which incidentally matches in pattern with the local fracture energy distribution, assumed by Kai Duan et al. (2003), along the un-cracked ligament, is used to obtain the value of GF , of course using the same equations from BEM developed by Kai Duan et al. (2003). A critical observation of the histogram of energy of AE events, described in the previous chapter, showed a declining trend of AE event pattern towards the notch tip also in addition to the one towards the specimen back boundary. The pattern of AE energy distribution suggests a tri-linear rather than bi-linear local fracture energy distribution over un-cracked ligament as given in BEM. Accordingly in Chapter-6, GF is obtained from a tri-linear model, which is an improved bi-linear hybrid model, after developing expressions relating Gf , GF , (W−a) with two transition ligament lengths al and blon both sides. The values of Gf , and GF from both bi-linear hybrid method and tri-linear method are tabulated and compared. In addition to GF , the length of FPZ is estimated from the tri-linear model and compared with the values obtained from softening beam model (SBM) by Ananthan et al. (1990). There seems to be a good agreement between the results. A comparative study of size independent fracture energies obtained from the methods described in the previous chapters is made. The fracture process in concrete is another interesting topic for research. Due to heterogeneity, the fracture process is a blend of complex activities. AE technique serves as an effective tool to qualitatively describe the fracture process through a damage parameter called b-value. In the Gutenberg-Richter empirical relationship log 10N=a−bM, the constant ‘b’ is called the b-value and is the log linear slope of frequency-magnitude distribution. Fault rupture inside earth’s crust and failure process in concrete are analogous. The b-value, is calculated conventionally till now, based on amplitude of AE data from concrete specimens, and is used to describe the damage process. Further, sampling size of event group is found to influence the calculated b-value from the conventional method, as pointed out by Colombo et al. (2003). Hence standardization of event group size, used in the statistical analysis while calculating b-value, should be based on some logical assumption, to bring consistency into analytical study on b-value. In Chapter-7, a methodology has been suggested to determine the b-value from AE energy and its utilization to quantify fracture process zone length. The event group is chosen based on clusters of energy or quanta as named in the thesis. Quanta conform to the damage stages and justify well their use in the determination of the b-value, apparently a damage parameter and also FPZ length. The results obtained on the basis of quanta agree well with the earlier results.

Se realizó el estudio de las propiedades térmicas y mecánicas de mezclas de Poli(Etilén Tereftalato) (PET) con resinas poliméricas basadas enl Bisfenol-A: Poli(Carbonato de Bisfenol-A) (PC) y Poli(Hidroxi-Éter de Bisfenil-A) (PHEB), en contenidos no superiores a un 30% en peso de estos polímeros y preparadas por extrusión doble-husillo.Una evaluación físico-química (ft-IR, densidad y MVR) de ambos sistemas indicó que pueden ocurrir reacciones de transesterificación, principalmente entre el PET y el PC y verificado vía DSC y DMTA, mientras que dichas reacciones tienen una baja extensión en el caso del PHEB, principalmente evidenciado en la pérdida de la capacidad de cristalización del PET (sin mayores cambios en su transición vítrea) en presencia de PC y casi invariabilidad al adicionar PHEB. Con el apoyo de SEM se verificó la presencia de fases ricas de ambos componentes en las mezclas en todo el rango de composiciones, verificándose el carácter inmiscible de ambos sistemas.A través de un fraccionamiento térmico por Autonucleaciones y Recocidos Sucesivos (SSA) y medidas del MVR, ensayos que favorecieron la transesterificación, se estableció que ésta promueve un aumento de la masa molecular en ambos sistemas, donde en las mezclas PET/PC esto se da por reacciones de extensión de cadena y que en las mezclas PET/PHEB conducen a la formación de ramificaciones largas y entrecruzamientos.Las propiedades mecánicas a tracción y flexión indicaron un aumento de la resistencia mecánica y deformabilidad a mayor contenido de fase bisfenólica, al observarse un aumento de los parámetros característicos de estos ensayos, donde módulos elásticos y tensiones siguieron generalmente una desviación positiva de la "Ley Aditiva de Mezcla" (LAM). Tales tendencias indicaron un efecto rigidizante de la fase bisfenólica combinado con interacciones fuertes entre los componentes que favoreció la transmisión de tensiones y la deformabilidad de la mezcla, existiendo una compatibilidad mecánica aceptable al menos a bajas velocidades de deformación, principalmente en las mezclas PET/PC en donde hay evidencias de un aumento en la tenacidad. Se verificó que hay mejoras en la Resistencia al Impacto tanto caída de dardo como pendular al menos hasta un 20% de PC, superando a las mezclas PET/PHEB las cuales manifestaron una fuerte sensibilidad a la entalla.En el análisis de la fractura a través de la Mecánica de la Fractura Elástico Lineal (LEFM) a altas velocidades y el Trabajo Esencial de Fractura (EWF) a bajas velocidades de solicitación, para contenido no superiores a 10% de fase PC y PHEB donde la morfología de fases fue comparable (partículas), se tiene que los parámetros de fractura fueron siempre superiores para las mezclas PET/PC, con una tendencia general de que el PC aporta mejoras a estos parámetros respecto al PET, mientras que el PHEB no los afecta o tiende a disminuirlos. Esto sugiere que que la adhesión interfacial es un factor determinante que favorece la transmisión de tensiones, particularmente favorable en las mezclas PET/PC por su mayor reactividad.A mayores contenidos de fase bisfenólica, el comportamiento es más complejo como consecuencia del particular balance entre tamaño, geometría y orientación de la fase dispersa que tiende a dominar sobre la adhesión interfacial, detectándose procesos de cavitación en la mayoría de las condiciones de ensayos que promovieron pocas mejoras o decaimiento en los parámetros de fractura respecto al PET. Cabe destacar que los parámetros de fractura LEFM indicaron que todos los materiales presentaron una fractura en condiciones mixtas con una componente importante de tensión plana, con excepción de las mezclas PET/PHEB que corresponderían a condiciones de deformación plana, todo lo cual fue corroborado a través del análisis fractográfico.