Em virtude da presença cada vez mais frequente de solicitações cíclicas nas estruturas de engenharia e do aprimoramento da análise de projetos, os ensaios em solos sob carregamentos cíclicos tiveram seu interesse renovado nos últimos anos. Os ensaios de laboratório são realizados de forma que simulem, da melhor maneira possível, as condições observadas em campo. Tais condições auxiliam na escolha dos ensaios a serem conduzidos para a determinação de parâmetros geotécnicos relevantes a cada situação observada em campo. Dentre os ensaios empregados na Engenharia Geotécnica, destaca-se o simple shear. Este ensaio é conhecido e utilizado para medir a resistência ao cisalhamento e a rigidez de solos. Este é o único ensaio de laboratório capaz de submeter uma amostra a condições de deformação plana sob volume constante e permitir a rotação das tensões principais. Tais condições são frequentemente representativas em diversas situações em campo como, por exemplo, o modo de cisalhamento adjacente ao fuste de uma estaca ou sob plataformas offshore com base gravitacional. Nesse contexto, um equipamento foi desenvolvido para a realização de ensaios do tipo simple shear. O aparato conta com uma câmara, na qual é aplicada pressão à amostra de solo. Diferenciando-se do equipamento comercial para tais ensaios, que emprega uma membrana com anéis metálicos, a amostra de solo neste equipamento é envolta por uma membrana de látex, o que possibilita a consolidação de forma isotrópica ou anisotrópica. Quanto ao carregamento, o equipamento desenvolvido permite que o carregamento seja realizado de forma monotônica ou clíclica. Quando do carregamento cíclico, este pode ainda ser realizado de forma a se manter a tensão controlada ou a deformação. Foram conduzidos ensaios de calibração e validação do equipamento empregando-se uma areia fina de granulometria uniforme cujas propriedades são amplamente conhecidas através de outros ensaios. Os resultados obtidos foram então comparados com estudos no mesmo material em equipamentos triaxiais, cisalhamento direto e outro simple shear. Os resultados mostraram-se satisfatórios, validando o equipamento desenvolvido. / In view of the ever more frequent presence of the cyclic solicitations on Engineering structures and the enhancement of design analysis, the soil testing under cyclic loading conditions had its interest renewed in the last years. The laboratory tests are conduced in a way that simulates, in the best way possible, the observed field conditions. Said conditions aid on the choice of the tests to be conducted in order to determinate the relevant geomechanics parameters.to each situation observed on the field. Among the employed tests in Geotechnical Engineering, it is highlighted the simple shear. This test is known and used to measure the shear strength and soil righty. This is the only laboratory test capable of submitting the sample to plane strain conditions under constant volume and allows the main stress rotations. Said conditions are frequently representative in many field situations, such as, the adjacent shear mechanism to the shaft of a pile or, under offshore platforms with gravitational base. In this context, a equipment was developed to perform simple shear tests. The apparatus has a chamber, in which it is applied confining pressure to the soil sample. Contrasting from the commercial equipment for said tests, that uses a membrane with metallic rings, in this equipment the soil sample is involved by a latex membrane, allowing the consolidation being carried out isotropically or anisotropically. The loading on this equipment can be conduced on monotonic or cyclic conditions. The cyclic loading can even be conduced by controlling the deformation or the stress. Calibration and validation testes where conduced on the equipment using a fine sand of uniform granulometry which properties are largely known through other tests. The obtained results where then compared to other tests carried out on the same material in triaxial tests, direct shear and other simple shear, The results obtained were considered satisfactory, validating the developed equipment.

Em virtude da presença cada vez mais frequente de solicitações cíclicas nas estruturas de engenharia e do aprimoramento da análise de projetos, os ensaios em solos sob carregamentos cíclicos tiveram seu interesse renovado nos últimos anos. Os ensaios de laboratório são realizados de forma que simulem, da melhor maneira possível, as condições observadas em campo. Tais condições auxiliam na escolha dos ensaios a serem conduzidos para a determinação de parâmetros geotécnicos relevantes a cada situação observada em campo. Dentre os ensaios empregados na Engenharia Geotécnica, destaca-se o simple shear. Este ensaio é conhecido e utilizado para medir a resistência ao cisalhamento e a rigidez de solos. Este é o único ensaio de laboratório capaz de submeter uma amostra a condições de deformação plana sob volume constante e permitir a rotação das tensões principais. Tais condições são frequentemente representativas em diversas situações em campo como, por exemplo, o modo de cisalhamento adjacente ao fuste de uma estaca ou sob plataformas offshore com base gravitacional. Nesse contexto, um equipamento foi desenvolvido para a realização de ensaios do tipo simple shear. O aparato conta com uma câmara, na qual é aplicada pressão à amostra de solo. Diferenciando-se do equipamento comercial para tais ensaios, que emprega uma membrana com anéis metálicos, a amostra de solo neste equipamento é envolta por uma membrana de látex, o que possibilita a consolidação de forma isotrópica ou anisotrópica. Quanto ao carregamento, o equipamento desenvolvido permite que o carregamento seja realizado de forma monotônica ou clíclica. Quando do carregamento cíclico, este pode ainda ser realizado de forma a se manter a tensão controlada ou a deformação. Foram conduzidos ensaios de calibração e validação do equipamento empregando-se uma areia fina de granulometria uniforme cujas propriedades são amplamente conhecidas através de outros ensaios. Os resultados obtidos foram então comparados com estudos no mesmo material em equipamentos triaxiais, cisalhamento direto e outro simple shear. Os resultados mostraram-se satisfatórios, validando o equipamento desenvolvido. / In view of the ever more frequent presence of the cyclic solicitations on Engineering structures and the enhancement of design analysis, the soil testing under cyclic loading conditions had its interest renewed in the last years. The laboratory tests are conduced in a way that simulates, in the best way possible, the observed field conditions. Said conditions aid on the choice of the tests to be conducted in order to determinate the relevant geomechanics parameters.to each situation observed on the field. Among the employed tests in Geotechnical Engineering, it is highlighted the simple shear. This test is known and used to measure the shear strength and soil righty. This is the only laboratory test capable of submitting the sample to plane strain conditions under constant volume and allows the main stress rotations. Said conditions are frequently representative in many field situations, such as, the adjacent shear mechanism to the shaft of a pile or, under offshore platforms with gravitational base. In this context, a equipment was developed to perform simple shear tests. The apparatus has a chamber, in which it is applied confining pressure to the soil sample. Contrasting from the commercial equipment for said tests, that uses a membrane with metallic rings, in this equipment the soil sample is involved by a latex membrane, allowing the consolidation being carried out isotropically or anisotropically. The loading on this equipment can be conduced on monotonic or cyclic conditions. The cyclic loading can even be conduced by controlling the deformation or the stress. Calibration and validation testes where conduced on the equipment using a fine sand of uniform granulometry which properties are largely known through other tests. The obtained results where then compared to other tests carried out on the same material in triaxial tests, direct shear and other simple shear, The results obtained were considered satisfactory, validating the developed equipment.

Le projet ANR SOLCYP dans lequel s’inscrit ce travail a pour objectif premier l’étude et la modélisation du comportement des pieux sous sollicitations cycliques à grand nombre de cycles, typiquement de l’ordre du million. Ce type de sollicitations engendre une forte évolution de l’état interne de l’interface pieu/sol et les modèles de comportement classiques ne sont alors pas adaptés pour traiter ce problème. La prise en compte plus fine de l’état interne dans les modèles de comportement semble être nécessaire pour ce genre d’application qui est celui des champs d’éoliennes, hydroliennes, fondations de plateforme offshore. Cette tâche a été envisagée ici dans le cadre d’un nombre de cycles modéré, plus simple à manipuler.Le problème de l’interface est en soi complexe car l’interface mécanique peut se dissocier singulièrement de l’interface géométrique en étant repoussée vers le matériau sol. Les deux cas de comportement extrêmes sont celui des pieux bétons, où l’interface suivra un comportement analogue à celui du sol et celui des peux tubés en acier, qui s’apparentera à un comportement de type Coulomb .Deux variables internes ont pu être identifiées : une variable qualifiée de non-orientée dont la mesure est facilement accessible et une variable orientée associée à l’anisotropie de comportement du matériau. Classiquement, seule la première variable est retenue comme explicative des propriétés du matériau ou de son comportement. Il s’agit bien sûr d’une approximation et la variable orientée dont l’influence est sous-jacente en général tout le long du chemin de contraintes doit apparaître plus explicitement dans certains cas. Les lois d’évolution des propriétés du matériau aux différents états repères ont été données tout comme l’évolution des paramètres de modèle en fonction de ces variables internes.Ce travail a conduit à la mise au point de deux modèles : le premier destiné à la modélisation des éléments de volume de sol. Il compte un jeu unique de 20 paramètres identifiable sur quatre essais et permet de modéliser convenablement le comportement du sol sous des chemins de contrainte très variés (monotone, cyclique, drainé, non-drainé) et différents états internes initiaux (densités, pression de confinement). Le second modèle consiste en l’adaptation du premier à la structure des interfaces, il compte 14 paramètres et permet également de reproduire le comportement de ce type de système pour une large gamme d’états initiaux et différentes conditions aux limites. Chacun de ces modèles, validé sur quelques dizaines de cycles, pourra ultérieurement servir de base à une formulation du problème à grands nombres de cycles. / This work is include in the national project SOLCYP. This project, support by ANR, focus on the observation and modeling of behavior of pile under cyclic loading with large number of cycles (about one million). This type of solicitations leads to an important change in the internal state of the interface soil/pile and classic models aren’t adapted to deal with this issue. Here, internal state of material is taken into account with a number of cycle limited (easier to study).In geometrical, interface issue is pretty difficult, mainly due to the fact that mechanical interface can be shifted from the geometrical contact to the mass of soil. In extreme ways, concrete pile will have a behavior mainly linked to the behavior of soil when steel pile behavior can be assessed with coulomb friction.Two internal variables have been identifies: the first one can be regarded as isotropic and can be easily assessed when the second one is considered as anisotropic harder to quantify. Generally, just the first variable is taken into the account to forecast the evolution of material properties and behavior. But this is no more than an approximation. In fact, anisotropic variable has an action as well as the isotropic one. But, depending to the type of solicitations, these actions can be strongly linked or really uncorrelated. Evolution of parameters set is given depending these variables.This work has made possible the design of two models: the first one is a mass soil model. It needs 20 parameters, identified from four triaxial and isotropic tests, and is able to reproduce the soil behavior under numerous loading paths (monotonic, cyclic, drained, undrained) and different initial states (density, mean pressure…). The second one is an adaptation of the soil model for rough interface issues. It needs 14 parameters and is also able to forecast interface behavior under different initial state and limit conditions. Both, confirmed for some dozens of cycles, will be used in the large number of cycles issues formulation.

Magister Scientiae Dentium - MSc(Dent) / Statement of the problem: Fibre reinforcement of polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) denture base material is known to improve the strength, as well as the fatigue behavior, of the material. The powder liquid (P/L) ratio of PMMA is often changed to modify the handling properties of the material. Little is known about the effect of this deviation from manufacturer’s guidelines on the fatigue behaviour of the fibre reinforced product. Purpose: This study compared the flexural strength (FS) of PMMA reinforced with glass fibre using different P/L ratios, before and after cyclic loading. Methods and materials: Three groups, with 50 glass fibre reinforced (everStick nonimpregnated fibers) heat-cured PMMA resin (Vertex Rapid Simplified) specimens each, were prepared using a custom-made template (dimensions 10x9x50mm). Each group had a different P/L ratio: the control group (100%) had the manufacturer’s recommended ratio; the 90% and 80% groups had reduced P/L ratios (by weight).Twenty five specimens from each group were subjected to a 3-point bending compression test using a universal testing machine. The remaining 25 specimens from each group were subjected to cyclic loading (104 cycles) before compression testing. The (FS) was calculated using the highest force (Fmax) before specimen failure. Flexural strength was calculated using the equation: FS=3WL/2bd2. Within each group, median FS values before and after cyclic loading were compared by means of a non-parametric analysis of variance. The Aligned Ranks Transform method was used for the analysis. Statistical significance was set at p=0.05. Results: The Fmax (N) of the control (100%), 90% and 80% groups fatigued and unfatigued were 100%: 1665 (fat), 1465 (unfat); 90%: 1679 (fat), 1548 (unfat) and 80%: 1585 (fat), 1467 (unfit) respectively. There was no significant interaction between Mix ratio and Fatigue state, and the 80% mix had a significantly higher mean than either the 90% or 100% mix (with differences of about 0.3 units for both). The Fatigued state had a higher mean than the Un- fatigued state by about 6.0 units. Using FS (MPa) it was found that the fatigued 80% mix specimens had the highest value. The FS MPa of the control (100%), 90% and 80% groups fatigued and un-fatigued were 64.3, 60.6; 66.9, 65.6 and 70.2, 69.3 respectively. The fact that fatiguing strengthened the specimens merits further research. When observing the broken specimens it was found that there was a complete debonding of the fibres and the PMMA. Conclusion and clinical relevance: a) Fibre: The benefit of using glass fibre bundles to reinforce prostheses fabricated using heat cured PMMA is questionable due to problems with bonding between the fibre bundles and the heat cured PMMA resin. b) Fatiguing: An average person chews 107 times during a 3 year period. A limited period of average masticatory forces should not have a detrimental effect on prostheses made from heat cured PMMA resin. c) Mix ratio: Within the normal parameters of laboratory techniques the mix ratio of PMMA resin had no significance on the fracture resistance of the prostheses. Due to the high cost of the fibres used for the reinforcement and the limited success and insignificant results achieved in this study, this researcher cannot recommend using Stickbond or Stick fibers for the reinforcement of dentures made with heat cured PMMA resin.

This thesis deals with the dependence of static modulus of elasticity of concrete in compression on number of load cycles. The deformation of test specimens during multiple cyclic loading was measured with resistive strain gages. Up to 1600 load cycles was conducted. Static modulus of elasticity in compression was determined from measured deformations. The aim of this thesis is assessment changes in the values of static modulus of elasticity depending on the number of load cycles.

Cette thèse traite des effets de pré-écrouissage, monotone ou cyclique, sur le comportement cyclique et la durée de vie en fatigue (traction-compression à température ambiante). Les matériaux utilisés sont un alliage de nickel-chrome (80-20%), un acier inoxydable austénitique 316L et du cuivre pur. Ils présentent une aisance croissante au glissement dévié ; un paramètre considéré comme majeur pour expliquer les écarts de sensibilité aux effets de mémoire de pré-écrouissage existants entre ces matériaux.Des courbes d'écrouissage cyclique obtenues suite à des chargements multi-paliers sur des échantillons pré-écrouis sont comparées à celles des matériaux vierges. Cette comparaison permet de tracer des cartographies d'effet mémoire. Différents effets y sont observés et leurs origines discutées via une approche par partition de contrainte. Enfin, des essais de fatigue sont effectués pour chaque domaine de mémoire de pré-écrouissage et leurs conséquences sur la durée de vie sont discutées / This work focuses on the effect of a pre-hardening, either monotonic or cyclic, on the cyclic behavior and the fatigue life during tension-compression tests at room temperature. Materials used are a nickel-chromium alloy (80-20%), a 316L austenitic stainless steel and OFHC pure copper. They present an increasing ease to the cross-slip : a deformation mechanism identified as a key parameter to understand the distinct memory effect sensibilities existing between materials.Cyclic stress-strain curves obtained from sequential loadings on prestrained samples are compared to the ones of virgin materials. Such comparison allows plotting memory effect maps. According to these memory plots, different pre-hardening effects exist and their origins are discussed through a stress-partition analysis. Finally, fatigue tests are carried out for each domain of the prestrain memory and their consequences on fatigue life are discussed

The aim of the research is to investigate the effect of increased axle loading on saturated and unsaturated railway foundation materials for heavy haul applications. The research methodology comprises of a literature review to identify the lacuna in the scientific knowledge, finite element modelling for characterisation of railway cyclic loading, development of a cyclic triaxial apparatus for laboratory testing and experimental work, followed by analysis, interpretation and discussion of results and lastly the formulation of conclusions and recommendations. The axle loading of interest start with a base load of 20 tonnes per axle for general freight followed by increased axle loading of 26, 30, 32.5 and 40 tonnes per axle for heavy haul. The test materials used in the experimental work are representative of the subballast and subgrade layers in a railway substructure. As a reproduction of the climatic conditions in the field and the loading from passing trains, experimental testing was carried out on saturated samples under undrained conditions and unsaturated samples under constant water content. Unsaturated samples were prepared to matric suctions of 50, 100 and 225 kPa via axis translation. Monotonic and cyclic tests were conducted to investigate the behaviour of railway foundation materials. Critical state theory for saturated and unsaturated soils is used as a method of analysis in establishing the failure criterion and the failure envelope. Various parameters, such as stress states, strains, resilient modulus, pore water pressure and matric suction are also utilised in investigating trends and behaviours. Based on the monotonic test results, the shear strength of unsaturated samples was found to be greater than that of saturated samples, attributed mainly to strain hardening caused by the unsaturated soil conditions, with the presence of a peak deviator stress when plotted on the stress-strain graph. However, unsaturated samples were also found to be prone to load-collapse during monotonic shear, even when the water content and confining stress remained constant, which resulted in brittle behaviour with the sudden rupture and formation of multiple bifurcation shear bands and slip planes. Based on the cyclic tests on saturated materials, it was discovered that increased axle loading can result in phase-transition in soil behaviour, based on the stress states in the soil relative to the critical state line plotted in the effective stress space. Stress states below the critical state line resulted in a no-phase transition with dilation behaviour. Stress states on the critical state line resulted in a single-phase transition from dilation to contraction. Stress states above the critical state line resulted in a double-phase transition from dilation to contraction behaviour and then strain-softening. It is therefore concluded that increased axle loading can only be sustained by materials which presented dilation and no phase-transition in soil behaviour, which occurred at axle loading of 20 and 26 tonnes per axle for the subballast and subgrade materials. Based on the cyclic tests on unsaturated materials, it was established that increased axle loading did not cause material failure for all load axle cases and materials. The stress states of all tests plotted well below the failure envelope in the net stress space, which is indicative of resilient and elastic behaviour. Increased axle loading instead resulted in decreased permanent strain, until the critical level of repeated deviator stress of 32.5 tonnes per axle was found, where the permanent strain increased. It is therefore concluded that, as a result of the increased shear strength from the strain hardening property of unsaturated materials, an increased axle loading of 32.5 tonnes per axle can be safely sustained by the tested materials provided the matric suction in the soil is greater than 50 kPa. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2020. / Civil Engineering / PhD / Unrestricted

Diverse hypotheses are behind the strength degradation in metals due to hydrogen diffusion, leading to a severe, sudden failure. These diverse hypotheses of hydrogen embrittlement include various mechanisms that are responsible for the embrittlement of metals due to hydrogen exposure in their microstructures. This research study focuses on one hydrogen embrittlement mechanism: Hydrogen-Enhanced-Localized-Plasticity (HELP). The HELP is the only single mechanism characterized by promoting localization of plastic flow ahead of the crack by increasing dislocation motion in that region. The current state of the art is a development of a numerical model representing a fully diffusion-mechanical coupled model. This fully coupled model attempts to gain valuable insights into hydrogen's influence on the mechanical properties and the fatigue life of metals, in general. First, detailed development of a numerical approach is illustrated describing how to fully couple the hydrogen diffusion and stresses using a finite element method. The formulation is based on a coupled temperature-displacement procedure using Abaqus. This coupled computational model, described in this first part, is novel because the mechanical part is based on an isotropic-kinematic hardening law. Furthermore, this fully coupled numerical model can capture both a hardening and softening effect of the stress-strain curve when the solution of the plastic properties is dependent on hydrogen. This can also contribute in a complementary way to the results previously shown by other researchers. Though these previous studies used the same hydrogen diffusion model, their mechanical part was based on a power law. Second, this research attempts to delve into the hydrogen effect on the constitutive response of metals undergoing a cyclic load. Hence, based on the HELP theory, this constitutive coupled model can capture different cyclic hardening behaviors. This study can largely contribute to understanding the degradation of the mechanical properties of materials before crack propagation, which has been heavily covered in the literature.

A non-linear finite element program to simulate the behaviour of infilled frames and plane stress reinforced concrete members under the action of monotonic and cyclic loading has been developed. Steel is modelled as a strain hardening plastic material, and in the concrete model cracking, yielding and crushing are considered. The separation, sliding, and opening and closing of initial gaps at the interfaces between the frame and the infill panels are accounted for by adjusting the properties of interface elements. The non-linear equations of equilibrium are solved using an incremental-iterative technique performed under load or displacement control. The iterative techniques use the standard and modified Newton-Raphson method or the secant Newton method. An automatic load incrementation scheme, line searches, and restart facilities are included. The capabilities of the program have been examined and demonstrated by analysing five reinforced concrete panels, a deep beam, a shear wall, and eight infilled frames. The accuracy of the analytical results was assessed by comparing them with the experimental results and those obtained analytically by other workers and shown to be good. A study of the effects of some material and numerical parameters on the results of analyses of reinforced concrete deep beam has been carried out. Two techniques have been proposed and used to overcome numerical problems associated with local strain concentrations which occur with the displacement control, when path dependent incremental iterative procedures are used for inelastic materials. The displacement control provided with these modifications has been shown to be more efficient than the load control. / Iraqi Government

Abstract Excess pore water pressure can be generated in subgrades of both railway and pavement sub-structures under cyclic loading caused by heavy traffic. When saturated subgrades are subjected to cyclic loading, excess pore water pressures accumulate over time which then could lead to migration of particles into overlying layers. The migration of subgrade soil particles to the upper layers would lead to clogging of pores and reducing the upper layers' drainage capacity. Both excess pore water pressure accumulation and migration of fine particles could negatively affect the long-term performance and service life of the sub-structures and eventually may lead to failure. Understanding the mechanism of both excess pore water pressure and migration of fine particles under cyclic loading is, therefore, essential for not only designing but also further proposing efficient and economical maintenance methods. The main objectives of this research are to (1) investigate excess pore water pressure generation in fine granular materials under cyclic loading and (2) evaluate migration of fine granular materials into overlying layers under cyclic loading.  A series of undrained cyclic triaxial tests were performed to study the excess pore water pressure generation in fine granular materials. Two types of fine granular materials, i.e., railway sand (natural granular material) and tailings (artificial granular material), were selected for this investigation. The cyclic characteristics of these materials, e.g., accumulated strain and excess pore water pressure, were evaluated in terms of number of cycles and applied cyclic stress ratios (CSR). As a result, axial strain and excess pore water pressure accumulated over time due to cyclic loading. However, its accumulations were significantly dependent on CSR values and material types. Finally, a relationship between excess pore water pressure and accumulated strain of the fine granular materials was discovered based on all outputs from the undrained cyclic triaxial tests (both tailings and railway sand samples).  In order to evaluate the migration of fine granular materials into overlying layers under cyclic loading, a modified large-scale triaxial system was used as a physical model test. Samples prepared for the modified large-scale triaxial system composed of a 60 mm thick gravel layer overlying a 120 mm thick subgrade layer (tailings and railway sand). The quantitative analysis on migration of the fine granular materials was based on the mass percentage and grain size of migrated materials collected at the gravel layer. In addition, the cyclic responses (strain and pore water pressure) were evaluated. As a result, the total migration rate of the railway sand sample was found to be small. There were no migrated sand particles pumped up to the gravel surface, i.e., no mud pumping, after the test terminated. The migrated sand particles were observed and collected at the bottom half of the gravel layer. The total migration rate of the tailing sample was much higher than that of the railway sand sample. In addition, the migration analysis revealed that finer tailings particles tended to be migrated into the upper gravel layer easier than coarser ones under cyclic loading. The migrated tailings particles were observed at the surface of the gravel layer after the test ended. It could be involved in significant increases in excess pore water pressure at the last cycles of the physical model test. The findings obtained in this research may provide an additional contribution to the literature dealing with the excess pore water pressure accumulation and its effects on the migration of fine particles under cyclic loading.