The past twenty years have seen the successful characterization and computational modeling efforts by the smart materials community to better understand the Shape Memory Alloy (SMA). Commercially available numerical analysis tools, coupled with powerful constitutive models, have been shown to be highly accurate for predicting the response of these materials when subjected to predetermined loading conditions. This thesis acknowledges the development of such an established analysis framework and proposes an expanded design framework that is capable of accounting for the complex coupling behavior between SMA components and the surrounding assembly or system. In order to capture these effects, additional analysis tools are implemented in addition to the standard use of the non-linear finite element analysis (FEA) solver and a full, robust SMA constitutive model coded as a custom user-defined material subroutine (UMAT). These additional tools include a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) solver, a cosimulation module that allows separate FEA and CFD solvers to iteratively analyze fluid-structure interaction (FSI) and conjugate heat transfer (CHT) problems, and the addition of the latent heat term to the heat equations in the UMAT to fully account for transient thermomechanical coupling. Procedures for optimizing SMA component and assembly designs through iterative analysis are also introduced at the highest level. These techniques are implemented using commercially available simulation process management and scripting tools. The expanded framework is demonstrated on example engineering problems that are motivated by real morphing structure applications, namely the Boeing Variable Geometry Chevron (VGC) and the NASA Shape Memory Alloy Hybrid Composite (SMAHC) chevron. Three different studies are conducted on these applications, focusing on component-, assembly-, and system-level analysis, each of which may necessitate accounting for certain coupling interactions between thermal, mechanical, and fluid fields. Output analysis data from each of the three models are validated against experimental data, where available. It is shown that the expanded design framework can account for the additional coupling effects at each analysis level, while providing an efficient and accurate alternative to the cost- and time-expensive legacy design-build-test methods that are still used today to engineer SMA actuated morphing aerostructures.

Fatigue damage of aluminium alloys is one of the key concerns in transport industries, particularly in the aerospace industry. The purpose of the project is to develop new knowledge and techniques against fatigue failure for these industries through a systematic investigation of fatigue resistance and crack growth behaviours of aluminium alloys. Fatigue and fracture mechanics have been investigated analytically, numerically and experimentally in this project. Overload transient effect on fatigue crack growth has been examined by considering various parameters including crack closure, overload ratio (OLR), load ratio (R ratio), baseline stress intensity factor range, (∆K)_BL and geometry. It was found that crack closure can be correlated qualitatively and quantitatively to all other parameters associated with overload transient behaviour. It is proposed that the effect of crack tip plasticity on the non-linearity of the compliance curve can be separated to obtain reliable crack closure measurement. In this project, different methods are used to better understand the transient retardation process so that the damage tolerance design (DTD) of the components made of aluminium alloys can be enhanced. Another important parameter for fatigue and damage tolerance design (DTD) of engineering components is the threshold stress intensity factor range for fatigue crack growth, ∆K_th. A small variation in identification of ∆K_th can lead to a big change in overall estimation of fatigue life. In this project, an analytical model has been developed for aluminium alloys by fitting an analytical curve with raw crack growth data in order to identify the ∆K_th. This model has the capacity to identify ∆K_th for different aluminium alloys at various R ratios. There is a great demand for enhanced fatigue life of aluminium alloys in the transport industry. This project has carried out a detailed investigation of electromagnetic treatment (ET) in the form of electropulsing treatment to develop an efficient technique for fatigue resistance enhancement. ET parameters including the treatment intensity, treatment time and the number of applications have been optimised. It is suggested that the duration of ET treatment can be used as the main parameter among all these to control the fatigue resistance of the aluminium alloy. The improvement in fatigue resistance has been explained by the change in microhardness and conductivity of aluminium alloy due to ET. Additionally, the fracture morphology was analysed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The precipitates and dislocation characteristics were also studied using transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The outcomes of this investigation will help improve structural integrity by enhancing fatigue resistance of aluminium alloys.

This master thesis focuses on modelling and simulation of impact tests of composite panels. Simulations and analysis were made by using Finite Element Method in software MSC Patran and Dytran. The first part of the thesis deals with describing the properties of composite panels during impact testing and other cases of impacts on composite structures. Next part deals with the used models and results from Dytran. These results are compared with experimental data from real low-velocity impact tests. Part of the thesis is devoted to impact on panels with the stacking sequences which is supposed to be used for design of air duct for airplane Aero L-39NG.