Mathematical models of heat flow and elastic stress generation based on the finite-element method have been developed and utilized to analyze the Epic-3 Monofrax-S casting process (Monofrax-S is primarily composed of 47-57% A1₂O₃, 34-41% ZrO₂ and 10-15% SiO₂). The results of the mathematical analysis, in conjunction with information obtained from a comprehensive industrial study, has led to the development of mechanisms for the formation of the various crack types found in this casting process. Thermal stresses have been predicted to be generated early in the solidification process in association with rapid cooling of the refractory surface as it contacts the initially cool mould and again later in the solidification process in conjunction with the tetragonal-to-monoclinic phase transformation which occurs in the zirconia component of Monofrax-S. The mathematical analysis has also helped to identify indirectly a potential mechanism for the generation of mechanical stresses. Based on an understanding of the generation of tensile stresses, recommendations have been made for modifications to the moulding and casting procedures in order to reduce the propensity for the formation of cracks. The modifications have included changes to the mould construction and geometry to reduce the generation of mechanical stresses and changes to the moulding materials to impact on the flow of heat at key times during solidification and cooling. With the recommendations in place, the casting process has been re-examined with the mathematical models to verify the impact of the modifications. The predictions show that the modifications have acted to reduce tensile stresses associated with the formation of Type-A and -B cracks. Preliminary industrial trials with the modified mould have yielded blocks free of these defects. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Materials Engineering, Department of / Graduate

This study expands on the work of ElHajjar and HajAli (2003) on a quantitative thermoelastic strain analysis method for composite materials. Computational models for various prepreg and thicksection composites are validated with experiments using this quantitative strain analysis method. This study provides this thermomechanical calibrations for prepreg S2glass/epoxy, Carbon/epoxy, and pultruded Eglass/polyester. A research collaboration with the Institute of Paper Science and Technology (IPST) focused on infrared thermography for defect detection in wood and fibrous materials and structural systems. This study provides some detailed information on various testing setups for fiber and corrugated board systems to analyze anomalies and manufacturing defects. Quantitative infrared thermography is suggested as a preferred method for assessing the bond quality in corrugated paper systems. Methods for tracking fullfield thermal data during fatigue have been developed for FRP composites. The temperature changes on the surface of an FRP composite caused by damage during fatigue are tracked and thermoelastic stress analysis (TSA) technique is developed to relate the surface deformation to the IR emission. Infrared thermography is developed for fatigue damage detection in FRP composites with stochastic methods for analyzing this fullfield data. Future damage detection techniques in aging aircraft will require quantitative and noncontact nondestructive evaluation (NDE) methods especially for composite components. Infrared (IR) thermograpy techniques are qualitatively used to assess and indirectly infer the durability of structural systems. A research collaboration with Lockheed Martin for nondestructive evaluation of composite lap shear joints led to a development of thermoelastic stress analysis techniques for evaluation aerospace structures. Infrared thermography is used to investigate failure initiation and progression in composite lap shear joints.

Many studies with Thermoelastic Stress Analysis (TSA) and Infrared Thermography, in Fiber Reinforced Polymeric materials (FRPs), are concerned with surface detection of "hot spots" in order to locate and infer damage. Such experimental analyses usually yield qualitative relations where correlations between stress state and damage severity cannot be obtained. This study introduces quantitative experimental methodologies for TSA and Digital Image Correlation to expand the use of remote sensing technologies for static behavior, static damage initiation detection, and fatigue damage in FRPs. Three major experimental studies are conducted and coupled with nonlinear anisotropic material modeling: static and TSA of hybrid bio-composite material systems, a new stochastic model for fatigue damage of FRPs, and fracture analysis for FRP single-lap joints. Experimental calibration techniques are developed to validate the proposed macromechanical and micromechanical nonlinear anisotropic modeling frameworks under multi-axial states of stress. The High Fidelity Generalized Method of Cells (HFGMC) is a sophisticated micromechanical model developed for analysis of multi-phase composites with nonlinear elastic and elastoplastic constituents is employed in this study to analyze hybrid bio-composites. Macro-mechanical nonlinear anisotropic models and a linear orthotropic model for fracture behavior using the Extended Finite Element method (XFEM) are also considered and compared with the HFGMC method. While micromechanical and FE results provide helpful results for correlating with quasi-static behavior, analyzing damage progression after damage initiation is not straightforward and involves severe energy dissipation, especially with increasing damage progression. This is especially true for fatigue damage evolution, such as that of composite joints as it is associated with uncertainty and randomness. Towards that goal, stochastic Markov Chain fatigue damage models are used to predict cumulative damage with the new damage indices proposed using full-field TSA image analysis algorithms developed for continuously acquired measurements during fatigue loading of S2-Glass/E733FR unidirectional single-lap joints. Static damage initiation is also investigated experimentally with TSA in single-lap joints with thick adherends providing for new design limitations. The computational modeling, stochastic and experimental methods developed in this study have a wide range of applications for static, fracture and fatigue damage of different FRP material and structural systems.

L'objectif de la thèse est d'analyser le comportement mécanique de matériaux granulaires composites bidimensionels en terme de textures granulaires en utilisant deux approches : étude expérimentale par "thermoelastic stress analysis" et étude numérique par dynamique moléculaire. Les systèmes granulaires composites sont préparés à l'aide de cylindres en polyoxyméthylène (POM) et polyéthylène haute densité (PEHD), présentant un rapport de rigidité de 4 entre eux. Différents rapports de diamètres et de nombres de particules sont considérés. Les résultats expérimentaux et numériques sont en bon accord à l'échelle macroscopique. En particulier, le réseau fort (qui est ici caractérisé par des contraintes hydrostatiques supérieures à la valeur moyenne) contient moins de 50% des particules, et présente une distribution décroissance exponentielle quel que soit le type de particules considéré pour l'analyse (particules souples, particules rigides, toutes les particules). De plus, la distribution des contacts entre particules rigides (contacts POM-POM) est anisotrope et tend à s'organiser dans le sens de la direction du chargement extérieur appliqué, tandis que les autres types de contact agissent principalement pour maintenir le système en équilibre. / The main objective of our dissertation is to analyze the mechanical behavior of two-dimensional composite granular materials through the granular textures. Thermoelatic stress analysis experiments and molecular dynamics simulations are used for this purpose. The composite granular systems are prepared from polyoxymethylene (POM) and high-density polyethylene (HDPE) cylinders with a stiffness ratio of about 4 between them. Different configurations in terms of ratios of diameter size and ratio of particle numbers are systematically investigated. Experimental and numerical results are good correlated at the macroscopic scale. In particular the strong network, which is here characterized by hydrostatic stresses higher than the mean value, consists of less than 50% of all particles, and exhibits an exponential decay whatever the type of particles considered for the analysis (soft, stiff, or both types). In addition, the contact distributions between stiff particles (POM-POM contacts) is anisotropic with an effort to arrange parallel to the direction of the external applied load, whereas the other types of contacts just act to sustain the granular system in equilibrium.

La thermographie infrarouge est un moyen d'analyse du comportement mécanique des matériaux. Elle a connu un essor considérable depuis les années 80 avec l'apparition des premiers capteurs. Deux techniques principales ont pu être développées ; la calorimétrie quantitative et l'analyse des contraintes par thermoélasticité (TSA en anglais). Jusqu'à aujourd'hui, la majorité des travaux a été réalisée sur les métaux et les polymères. Le présent manuscrit relève le challenge d'appliquer ces techniques aux matériaux verres, en développant une méthodologie de débruitage des films thermiques, permettant de conserver la résolution spatiale des mesures thermiques. Cela permet de caractériser de forts gradients dans des champs de variations de température de faible intensité. Cette méthodologie a été utilisée pour débruiter des films thermiques d'échantillons de verre soumis à un chargement mécanique cyclique. Dans un premier temps, elle a été appliquée pour étudier la réponse thermique d'une empreinte à l'échelle microscopique. Dans un second temps, elle a été utilisée pour remonter à des champs de contraintes et de sources de chaleur à l'échelle macroscopique. Ce travail ouvre de nouvelles perspectives à l'étude du comportement thermomécanique des matériaux fragiles présentant une faible réponse thermique sous sollicitation mécanique et de forts effets de gradients spatiaux. Les applications visées sont la fissuration et l'identification de paramètres constitutifs. / The infrared thermography is used to analyse the mechanical behavior of materials. Since the 80's, it has rised with the appearance of the first sensors. Two principal techniques has been developed; the quantitative calorimetry and the thermoelastic stress analysis (TSA). Until today, most of the works has been carried out on metals and polymers. This manuscript takes-up the challenge of applying these techniques to glassy materials by developing a methodology to denoise infrared movies, which allows to preserve the spatial resolution of the thermal measurement. It allows to caracterise high gradients of low temperature variation fields. This methodology has been used to denoised thermal movies of glass samples submitted to a cyclic mechanical test. In a first time, it has been applied to study the thermal response of an imprint at the microscopic scale. In a second time, stress and heat sources fields have been determined at the macroscopic scale. This work provides new possibilities to study the thermomechanical behavior of brittle materials which present a low thermal response and high spatial gradients under mechanical loading. The target applications are the cracking phenomenom and the identification of constitutive parameters.

A new nonlinear fracture analysis framework is developed for the mode-I and II fracture response of thick-section fiber reinforced polymeric (FRP) composites. This framework employs 3D micromechanical constitutive models for the nonlinear material behavior along with cohesive elements for crack growth. Fracture tests on various cracked geometries are used to verify the prediction of the failure loads and the crack growth behavior. A commercially available pultruded E-glass/polyester and vinylester thick-section FRP composite material was used to demonstrate the proposed fracture approach along with the nonlinear constitutive modeling. A new Infra-red thermography technique is derived to measure the surface strain field near the crack tip in the linear response range. Mode I and II fracture toughness tests for pultruded composites are also examined using the eccentrically loaded, single-edge-notch tension, ESE(T), single-edge-notch tension, SEN(T), and a butterfly specimen with an Arcan-type fixture. Material nonlinearity and crack growth effects were observed during the tests and investigated using the proposed analysis framework. The effect of material orthotropy on the stress intensity factor solutions was addressed using the virtual crack closure technique. The analytic and experimental results support the use of the ESE(T) specimen for the measuring the mode-I fracture toughness and the butterfly shaped specimen for measuring the mode-II toughness. The calibrated cohesive models were able to predict the measured crack growth in both modes I and II for various crack geometries. A mixed mode failure criterion is proposed and verified with test results. Examples are presented for using this criterion and crack growth analyses. The experimental and analytical results of this study can form a foundation for using fracture-based methods for the design of structures using these materials.

It was found that a significant improvement of mechanical properties of CFRPs can be achieved by the adjustment of the matrix properties such as toughness and CF/matrix adhesion via the chemical modification, as well as the physical modification by a small amount of cheap and environment-friendly nano fibers. Based on investigation of fracture mechanisms at macro/micro scale, the effects of matrix properties and nano fiber on the mechanical properties of CFRP have been discussed. Subsequently, the relationship has been characterized by a numerical model to show how to modulate the parameters of the matrix properties to achieve excellent fatigue properties of CFRP. / 博士(工学) / Doctor of Philosophy in Engineering / 同志社大学 / Doshisha University