Viscoelastic materials have been used widely in different applications, such as constructing tires, artificial joints, shoe heels, and soles. A study on the different characteristics of viscoelastic materials has always been a matter of interest in order to improve their properties for various applications. In the automotive industry, rubber, as a viscoelastic material, has been used in several subsystems, such as vehicle interior, suspension, steering joints, and tires. The tire and terrain's contact characteristics are among the essential factors for assessing the performance of the tire and the vehicle in general. Friction and tread wear are two of these contact characteristics. Considering the tire's functionality, for most applications, it is desired to have higher friction to have better traction and a lower wear rate to minimize the material loss of the tread. The friction coefficient and the rubber's wear rate depend on various parameters such as rubber material properties, terrain characteristics, temperature (tread and the environment), and the load. To obtain the wear rate and friction of a viscoelastic material, three approaches have been used for this study: Experimental, Analytical, and Numerical. The results obtained using these approaches have been compared and validated. Several test setups have been designed and implemented to study the wear and friction of the rubber experimentally. Also, a new linear friction tester has been designed and manufactured by the author to achieve this project's objectives. The new test setup has several advantages over existing test setups in this field, such as covering a higher range of velocities while maintaining high precision. The designed Linear Friction tester and the modified dynamic friction tester at the CenTiRe laboratory at Virginia Tech were used to measure the rubber's friction and wear for different testing conditions such as different normal loads, different velocities, and various surfaces such asphalt and sandpaper. The data collected by the experiment will later be used for the validation of the developed models. In order to obtain the wear rate of the rubber using the analytical approach, the real contact area and friction of the rubber were calculated using Persson's model. The simulation has created the surface to obtain the friction coefficient and the real contact area. After obtaining the friction coefficient and the real contact area, the rubber's wear rate was calculated using a novel approach by combining the Persson Powdery Rubber Wear model with the Crack Propagation model. The results from the improved model compare well with the results from the original model. For the last step of this project, a Finite Element approach was used for modeling a tread block and round rubber sample. A new semi-empirical model for wear was developed by improving the Archard wear model. The novel approach was implemented to Abaqus by using the Umeshmotion subroutine and adaptive mesh motion (ALE) and subroutine UFric and UFric_Coef in two categories: The Node base method and the Ribbon base method. For finite element modeling, the visco-hyper elastic material model has been used to define the rubber's material properties. / Doctor of Philosophy / Viscoelastic materials have been used widely in different applications, such as constructing tires, artificial joints, shoe heels, and soles. Therefore, studying the different characteristics of viscoelastic materials has always been a matter of interest in improving their properties for various applications. In the automotive industry, rubber, as a viscoelastic material, has been used in several subsystems, such as vehicle interior, suspension, steering joints, and tires. The tire and terrain's contact characteristics are among the essential factors for assessing the performance of the tire and the vehicle in general. Friction and tread wear are two of these contact characteristics. Considering the tire's functionality, for most applications, it is desired to have higher friction to have better traction and a lower wear rate to minimize the material loss of the tread. This study used different approaches such as experimental, analytical, and numerical methods to predict the friction and wear of the rubber sample in contact with different surfaces. For the experimental parts, the author designed and manufactured a linear friction test setup. For the numerical parts, a new semi-empirical model was created to predict rubber samples' wear accurately.

Precision control under the effect of friction requires an effective compensation of friction. Since friction has a complex and highly nonlinear behaviour, it is generally insufficient to represent the friction in a dynamic control system only with a linear viscous model, which is mostly valid in high-velocity motions. Especially when the control system moves near zero velocity regions or changes the direction of motion, an accurate modelling of friction including the lowvelocity dynamic behaviour is a prerequisite to obtain a more complete and realistic dynamic model of the system. Furthermore, the parameters of the friction model should be identified as accurate as possible in order to attain a satisfactory performance. Therefore, the parameters of the friction should be estimated regarding the working conditions. The estimated friction force can then be used to improve the controlled performance of the dynamic system under consideration. In this thesis, the modelling, identification and compensation of friction in a rotary mechanical system are studied. The effectiveness of the existing friction models in the literature are investigated / namely the classical Coulomb with viscous friction model, the Stribeck friction model, the LuGre friction model, and the Generalized Maxwell-Slip (GMS) friction model. All friction models are applied to the system together with the same linear, proportional with derivative (PD)-type and proportional with integral and derivative (PID)-type feedback control actions for the sake of being faithful in comparison. The accuracy of the friction compensation methods is examined separately for both the low-velocity and high-velocity motions of the system. The precision of friction estimation is also shown in the case of using both the desired velocity and measured velocity as an input to the friction models. These control studies are verified in simulation environment and the corresponding results are given. Furthermore, an experimental set-up is designed and manufactured as a case study. The parameters of the aforementioned friction models are identified and the control laws with different friction models are applied to the system in order to demonstrate the compensation capabilities of the models. The results of the experiments are evaluated by comparing them among each other and with the simulation results.

Friction compensation is challenging but imperative for control engineers. For high-performance engineering systems, a friction-model-based controller is typically required to accommodate the nonlinearities arisen from the friction model employed. It is well known that the parameters of the friction model used in the friction compensation are nearly impossible to be accurately identified. Therefore, the objective of this research is to study the effect of these parametric uncertainties on the stability of a set-point position control system. With the above goal in mind, a variety of aspects are investigated in this work. Firstly, several common friction features and friction models are surveyed to provide background knowledge which helps select the friction model with the highest accuracy for our study. Secondly, an experimental setup is proposed and fabricated to validate the levels of accuracy given by the candidate friction models. The comparisons between the numerical and experimental results confirm that the LuGre friction model is the best approximation of the observed friction behaviours among all models selected. Moreover, a series of profound discussions addressing the relation between the candidate models’ structures and their numerical friction feature predictions are provided and followed by a summary table that recapitulates the properties of the candidate friction models. Last but not least, the state space models of the proposed setup formulated by the improved version of the LuGre model and the two controllers of interest, namely input-output linearization controller and nominal characteristic trajectory following (NCTF) controller, are derived for the stability analysis under the parametric uncertainties. Two parameters in the friction model used, σ_0 and σ_1, are perturbed for the stability analysis in which the results applying the concept of Lyapunov exponents (LEs) clearly illustrate the significant effect of the varying σ_0 and σ_1 values on the system stability. The effect of parametric uncertainties can depend quite significantly on the incorporated controller, and the stability results obtained here are applicable to the design and analysis of other systems that are inherently similar to our setup. The stability analysis conducted is this work is recommended for other control systems to avoid unwanted qualitative behaviours under parametric perturbations. / October 2016

O presente trabalho avalia a evolução das microestruturas e das propriedades mecânicas em tubos API 5L X65 soldados por fricção com auxílio de um anel centralizador na posição de topo. A soldagem foi realizada em tubos de 114,3 mm (4,5’’) de diâmetro nominal e 8 mm de espessura. A avaliação mecânica foi realizada segundo normas ASTM para os ensaios de tração, dobramento de raiz, dobramento de face, ensaio de impacto Charpy V e perfis de microdurezas. Os ensaios de fadiga foram realizados para análise da vida em fadiga das juntas soldadas. Os ensaios mecânicos realizados comprovam que houve a união metalúrgica dos materiais, sendo registradas regiões com defeitos de falta de adesão o que prejudicou as propriedades mecânicas ocasionando rupturas com baixa ductilidade nas interfaces de soldagem nestes locais. Nos resultados dos ensaios de microdurezas houve um pequeno aumento das microdurezas registradas próximo às interfaces de soldagem e uma redução nas microdurezas registradas nas regiões de ZACs. Os resultados do ensaio de impacto Charpy -20 °C foi aceitável segundo a norma API 5L. As microestruturas formadas nas interfaces de soldagem são compostas por ferrita de Widmanstätten e ferrita poligonal com crescimento de grão quando comparado com o tamanho de grão do material de base. Nas regiões de ZACs houve um reordenamento de carbonetos aliado a refino de grão sendo registrada uma redução nas microdurezas destas regiões. / This paper assesses the evolution of microstructures and mechanical properties in pipes API 5L X65 welded by friction with the aid of centering ring on top position. The welding was performed in tubes of 114.3 mm (4.5'') nominal diameter and 8 mm in thickness. The mechanical evaluation was performed according to ASTM standards for tensile, root bending, face folding, Charpy V impact test and microhardness profile. Fatigue tests were performed to analyze the fatigue life of the welded joints. The mechanical tests prove that there was a metallurgical union of the materials, regions with lack of adhesion defects being recorded which affected the mechanical properties causing fractures with low ductility in the weld interfaces in these places. Microhardness test results registered a small increase in the microhardness near the weld interfaces and a reduction in the microhardness recorded in the HAZ regions. The results of the Charpy impact test at -20°C was acceptable according to API 5L. The microstructures formed at the weld interfaces are composed of Widmanstatten ferrite and polygonal ferrite with grain growth when compared to the grain size in the base material. In HAZ regions there was a reorganization of carbides combined with grain refinement, with a reduction in microhardness of these regions being registered.

O presente trabalho avalia a evolução das microestruturas e das propriedades mecânicas em tubos API 5L X65 soldados por fricção com auxílio de um anel centralizador na posição de topo. A soldagem foi realizada em tubos de 114,3 mm (4,5’’) de diâmetro nominal e 8 mm de espessura. A avaliação mecânica foi realizada segundo normas ASTM para os ensaios de tração, dobramento de raiz, dobramento de face, ensaio de impacto Charpy V e perfis de microdurezas. Os ensaios de fadiga foram realizados para análise da vida em fadiga das juntas soldadas. Os ensaios mecânicos realizados comprovam que houve a união metalúrgica dos materiais, sendo registradas regiões com defeitos de falta de adesão o que prejudicou as propriedades mecânicas ocasionando rupturas com baixa ductilidade nas interfaces de soldagem nestes locais. Nos resultados dos ensaios de microdurezas houve um pequeno aumento das microdurezas registradas próximo às interfaces de soldagem e uma redução nas microdurezas registradas nas regiões de ZACs. Os resultados do ensaio de impacto Charpy -20 °C foi aceitável segundo a norma API 5L. As microestruturas formadas nas interfaces de soldagem são compostas por ferrita de Widmanstätten e ferrita poligonal com crescimento de grão quando comparado com o tamanho de grão do material de base. Nas regiões de ZACs houve um reordenamento de carbonetos aliado a refino de grão sendo registrada uma redução nas microdurezas destas regiões. / This paper assesses the evolution of microstructures and mechanical properties in pipes API 5L X65 welded by friction with the aid of centering ring on top position. The welding was performed in tubes of 114.3 mm (4.5'') nominal diameter and 8 mm in thickness. The mechanical evaluation was performed according to ASTM standards for tensile, root bending, face folding, Charpy V impact test and microhardness profile. Fatigue tests were performed to analyze the fatigue life of the welded joints. The mechanical tests prove that there was a metallurgical union of the materials, regions with lack of adhesion defects being recorded which affected the mechanical properties causing fractures with low ductility in the weld interfaces in these places. Microhardness test results registered a small increase in the microhardness near the weld interfaces and a reduction in the microhardness recorded in the HAZ regions. The results of the Charpy impact test at -20°C was acceptable according to API 5L. The microstructures formed at the weld interfaces are composed of Widmanstatten ferrite and polygonal ferrite with grain growth when compared to the grain size in the base material. In HAZ regions there was a reorganization of carbides combined with grain refinement, with a reduction in microhardness of these regions being registered.

O presente trabalho avalia a evolução das microestruturas e das propriedades mecânicas em tubos API 5L X65 soldados por fricção com auxílio de um anel centralizador na posição de topo. A soldagem foi realizada em tubos de 114,3 mm (4,5’’) de diâmetro nominal e 8 mm de espessura. A avaliação mecânica foi realizada segundo normas ASTM para os ensaios de tração, dobramento de raiz, dobramento de face, ensaio de impacto Charpy V e perfis de microdurezas. Os ensaios de fadiga foram realizados para análise da vida em fadiga das juntas soldadas. Os ensaios mecânicos realizados comprovam que houve a união metalúrgica dos materiais, sendo registradas regiões com defeitos de falta de adesão o que prejudicou as propriedades mecânicas ocasionando rupturas com baixa ductilidade nas interfaces de soldagem nestes locais. Nos resultados dos ensaios de microdurezas houve um pequeno aumento das microdurezas registradas próximo às interfaces de soldagem e uma redução nas microdurezas registradas nas regiões de ZACs. Os resultados do ensaio de impacto Charpy -20 °C foi aceitável segundo a norma API 5L. As microestruturas formadas nas interfaces de soldagem são compostas por ferrita de Widmanstätten e ferrita poligonal com crescimento de grão quando comparado com o tamanho de grão do material de base. Nas regiões de ZACs houve um reordenamento de carbonetos aliado a refino de grão sendo registrada uma redução nas microdurezas destas regiões. / This paper assesses the evolution of microstructures and mechanical properties in pipes API 5L X65 welded by friction with the aid of centering ring on top position. The welding was performed in tubes of 114.3 mm (4.5'') nominal diameter and 8 mm in thickness. The mechanical evaluation was performed according to ASTM standards for tensile, root bending, face folding, Charpy V impact test and microhardness profile. Fatigue tests were performed to analyze the fatigue life of the welded joints. The mechanical tests prove that there was a metallurgical union of the materials, regions with lack of adhesion defects being recorded which affected the mechanical properties causing fractures with low ductility in the weld interfaces in these places. Microhardness test results registered a small increase in the microhardness near the weld interfaces and a reduction in the microhardness recorded in the HAZ regions. The results of the Charpy impact test at -20°C was acceptable according to API 5L. The microstructures formed at the weld interfaces are composed of Widmanstatten ferrite and polygonal ferrite with grain growth when compared to the grain size in the base material. In HAZ regions there was a reorganization of carbides combined with grain refinement, with a reduction in microhardness of these regions being registered.

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Le développement d'outils prédictifs est nécessaire pour la conception des nouvelles générations de transmission à variation continue (CVT) à courroie de caoutchouc. Ce mémoire présente un modèle de CVT à courroie de caoutchouc, capable de prédire la réponse temporelle du rapport de transmission pour des variations de la force de serrage de la poulie motrice, du couple et du régime moteur. Pour ce faire, la courroie est discrétisée en noeuds sur lesquels s'exercent les forces internes de la courroie ainsi que les forces de contact imposées par les poulies. Les relations permettant de déterminer ces dernières sont développées, considérant la physique du contact entre les poulies et la courroie. La réponse temporelle du rapport de transmission est obtenue par la solution des équations différentielles découlant de l'application des lois de la mécanique classique sur les noeuds. Les résultats du modèle concordent avec les mesures expérimentales prises dans des conditions d'opération représentatives de l'exploitation normale des CVT. La similarité des prédictions du modèle et des résultats de tests est présentée à la fois pour le régime transitoire et les conditions stabilisées, validant que l'approche utilisée est valable et qu'elle permet l'obtention de résultats inatteignables jusqu'à présent. L'utilisation du modèle présenté dans ce mémoire aidera les concepteurs des futures générations de CVT en leur permettant d'anticiper le comportement de la transmission, sans avoir recours au prototypage.

We have extended the HOLA molecular dynamics (MD) code to run slider-on-block friction experiments for Al and Cu. Both objects are allowed to evolve freely and show marked deformation despite the hardness difference. We recover realistic coefficients of friction and verify the importance of cold-welding and plastic deformations in dry sliding friction. Our first data also show a mechanism for decoupling between load and friction at high velocities. Such a mechanism can explain an increase in the coefficient of friction of metals with velocity. The study of the effects of currents on our system required the development of a suitable electrodynamic (ED) solver, as the disparity of MD and ED time scales threatened the efficiency of our code. Our first simulations combining ED and MD are presented. / text

Recently, the Texas Department of Transportation began using Permeable Friction Course (PFC), a 5 cm overlay of porous pavement that is applied over conventional pavement. PFC was initially developed because it allows water to drain off the surface of roads much more rapidly, thus reducing visual impairment due to splash and spray as well as reducing the risk of hydroplaning. While investigating the water quality of stormwater runoff, researchers at the University of Texas discovered that PFC caused a reduction in many common stormwater pollutant concentrations. Monitoring of stormwater at one site has been ongoing for 5 years without any indication of a decline in water quality. A second location provided paired samples to analyze the particle size distribution. Results show a significant reduction in the mass of particles commonly associated with heavy metals and nutrient loads. A third location was chosen based on tests indicating it to have a lower hydraulic conductivity relative to other locations. The paired samples provided a comparison of runoff quality at a site believed to be heavily clogged. The results show PFC continues to produce significantly lower runoff pollutant concentrations despite the decreased hydraulic conductivity. / text