Load Sensor in An Elastomer Suspension Element

Knowledge of the loading applied to railcar suspension elements is necessary for improved rail safety, efficiency, and for monitoring bearing health. An economical, reliable system for keeping track of both dynamic and static loads on a rail car bearing offers potential for many improvements in rail service. The difficulties of implementing such a system are considerable because the sensor must be in the bearing load path and is thus subject to all the stressors of that environment including high impact, high load, high temperature, and corrosion. This thesis describes an attempt to incorporate a load measurement system in a polyurethane suspension element. It reviews existing technology and describes several experiments using strain gauges, Micro-Electro-Mechanical pressure sensors, and piezo electric materials as load measurement devices

X-ray imaging of failure and degradation mechanisms of lithium-ion batteries

Lithium-ion batteries are becoming increasingly energy and power dense, and are required to operate in demanding applications and under challenging conditions. Both safety and performance of lithium-ion batteries need to be improved to meet the needs of the current demand, and are inextricably linked to their microstructure and mechanical design. However, there is little understanding of the complex, multi-length scale, structural dynamics that occur inside cells during operation and failure. From the evolving particle microstructure during operation to the rapid breakdown of active materials during failure, the plethora of dynamic phenomena is not well understood. In this thesis, both ex-situ and operando X-ray imaging, and computed tomography, in combination with image-based modelling and quantification are used to characterise battery materials and components in 3D. Degradation mechanisms are investigated across multiple length-scales, from the electrode particle to the full cell architecture, and direct comparisons between materials in their fresh and failed states are made. Rapid structural evolution that occurs during operation and failure is captured using high-speed synchrotron X-ray imaging, and quantified by correlating sequential tomograms. Consistent degradation mechanisms that occur over fractions of a second are identified and are shown to contribute significantly towards uncontrolled and catastrophic failure, and previously unexplored interplay between the mechanical design of cells and their safety and performance is described. The experiments reported here assess the thermal and mechanical responses of cells to extreme operating and environmental conditions. The interaction between the dynamic architecture of active materials and the mechanical designs of commercial cells are revealed, highlighting the importance of the engineering design of commercial lithium-ion batteries and their efficacy to mitigate failure. These insights are expected to influence the future design of safer and more reliable lithium-ion batteries

Generation and propagation of acoustic emissions in buried steel infrastructure for monitoring soil–structure interactions

Soil–structure systems (e.g. pipelines, pile foundations, retaining structures) deteriorate with time and experience relative deformations between the soil and structural elements. Whether a result of age, working conditions, or environmental conditions, deformations have the potential to cause catastrophic social, economic, and environmental issues, including limit state failure (fatigue, serviceability, ultimate). The UK spends £100s of millions a year spent on infrastructural maintenance; the early detection of deterioration processes could reduce this spend by an order of magnitude.Techniques to monitor ground instability and deterioration are consequently increasing in use, with most conventional approaches providing localised information on deformation at discrete time intervals. Nascent technologies (e.g. ShapeAccelArray, fibre optics) are however beginning to provide continuous measurements, allowing for near real-time observations to be made, although none are without either technical limitation or prohibitive cost.A novel monitoring system is proposed, whereby pre-existing and newly built steel infrastructure (e.g. utility pipes, pile foundations) are employed as waveguides to measure soil-steel interaction-generated AE using piezoelectric sensors. With this, a two-stage quantitative framework for understanding soil-steel interaction-generated AE and its propagation through steel structures is also developed where (stage 1) informs the creation of an adaptable sensor network for a variety of infrastructure systems, and stage (2) informs interpretations of the collected AE data to allow for decision makers to take appropriate action. Timely actions made possible by such a framework is of great significance to practitioners, having the potential to reduce the direct and indirect impacts of deterioration and deformation, whether long- and short-term.Stage 1 used an extensive programme of computational models, alongside small- and large-scale physical models, to enable attenuation coefficients to be quantified for a range of soil types. It was shown that both the structure and bounding materials, i.e. the burial system, significantly influenced propagation and attenuation through steel structures. In free-systems, though, the frequency-thickness product was more influential; propagation distances of 100s of metres are obtained at products Stage 2 used a programme of large direct-shear box tests to allow for relationships between AE and normal effective stress, mobilised shearing resistance, and shearing velocity to be quantified. This enabled for quantitative interpretations of soil-steel interaction behaviours to be made using various AE parameters. Both the magnitude of values, and the rates of change of the parameters, could be used in the interpretation of behaviours. Shearing and stress conditions of sand could also be determined, increasing proportionally with AE activity, whilst the point at which full shear strength mobilisation occurs was also identifiable.</div

Proceedings of the 2018 Canadian Society for Mechanical Engineering (CSME) International Congress

Published proceedings of the 2018 Canadian Society for Mechanical Engineering (CSME) International Congress, hosted by York University, 27-30 May 2018

he Ignition Behaviour of Energetic Materials Under Confined Cookoff

© Cranfield University 2018. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the written permission of the copyright ownerIn a series of experiments and theoretical work, the process of ignition in confined energetic materials has been explored and understanding gained. Early work focused on the direct observation of the cook-off process but was hampered by the available technology. In more recent work, dynamic measurements of the deformation of the confinement have been explored, and refinements to the direct observation method have been made that make use of recent advances in camera technology. We have observed, for the first time, complex melting and development of gas spaces within which the early stages of ignition take place, and propose a new mechanism by which violent cook-off responses might develop in certain explosivesPh

The Mechanical Behavior of Salt X

Rock salt formations have long been recognized as a valuable resource - not only for salt mining but for construction of oil and gas storage caverns and for isolation of radioactive and other hazardous wastes. Current interest is fast expanding towards construction and re-use of solution-mined caverns for storage of renewable energy in the form of hydrogen, compressed air and other gases. Evaluating the long term performance and safety of such systems demands an understanding of the coupled mechanical behavior and transport properties of salt. This volume presents a collection of 60 research papers defining the state-of-the-art in the field. Topics range from fundamental work on deformation mechanisms and damage of rock salt to compaction of engineered salt backfill. The latest constitutive models are applied in computational studies addressing the evolution and integrity of storage caverns, repositories, salt mines and entire salt formations, while field studies document ground truth at multiple scales. The volume is structured into seven themes: Microphysical processes and creep models Laboratory testing Geological isolation systems and geotechnical barriers Analytical and numerical modelling Monitoring and site-specific studies Cavern and borehole abandonment and integrity Energy storage in salt caverns The Mechanical Behavior of Salt X will appeal to graduate students, academics, engineers and professionals working in the fields of salt mechanics, salt mining and geological storage of energy and wastes, but also to researchers in rock physics in general

Studying “fitness for service” of the sealing assemblies and cement system

Well integrity is a crucial phase of well design and construction, as such multiple barriers are usually installed in wells to prevent any migration of formation fluids. One of these barriers include the elastomeric sealing system or seal assembly. Limited knowledge is available on elastomer behavior in harsh downhole conditions. Lack of adequate knowledge makes elastomer selection during well design a problematic phase. This thesis reviews literature on elastomer performance under various conditions and expounds on the chemical reactions involved in the failure mechanisms of elastomers. Experiments have also been conducted on three popular elastomers: Nitrile butadiene rubber (NBR), Ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM), and Fluoroelastomers (FKM) in the presence of hydrogen sulfide (H2S), methane (CH4), carbon dioxide (CO2) and brine. The performance of these elastomers is also discussed. Experiments conducted help us make an informed decision thus classifying the elastomers based on the degree of degradation under these harsh downhole conditions. The second barrier is the set cement. In Oil and Gas drilling operations, cement is used to maintain wellbore integrity by preventing the movement of formation fluids through the annular space outside the casing. However, in gas migration prone regions, cement sealability may be inadequate. The reduced sealability also makes such regions prone to well instability. This thesis reviews gas mitigation approaches according to published literature. Some slurry designs published in literature are used in the experiments and the results are reported herein. A novel gas tight cement slurry is designed to prevent gas migration. This cement slurry has been tested in different pipe sizes and has proven to mitigate gas migration of any sort

The creep behaviour, and elastic and anelastic properties of polycrystalline ice

Ice is ubiquitous on Earth and on the outer planets and satellites of the solar system. Ice is an important geologic material, and is a critical contributor to global climate and sea-level models. Understanding and modelling the dynamic behaviour of the glaciated regions on earth and in the outer solar systems requires an intimate knowledge of the mechanisms that control the mechanical behaviour of ice polycrystals. During dynamic events, such as rapid heating or ice-shelve collapse, much of the response of ice sheets is governed by its internal deformation, that is, the ductile flow behaviour of the ice. Ductile flow in ice is primarily controlled by temperature and the arrangement of ice crystals into crystallographic preferred orientations (CPO), which both have a dramatic effect on flow rates and mechanical anisotropy. Seismic field surveys provide a window into the regional characteristics of ice sheet flow, via the relationship between CPO and polycrystal elastic anisotropy. That is, CPO effects the velocity of elastic waves travelling at different directions through a textured polycrystal. CPO geometry in ice evolves as a function of deformation conditions such as temperature and the stress field. Thus, elastic anisotropy can be used to interpret mechanical anisotropy, an important parameter for predicting long-term ice sheet behaviour. Here, we present the results of several un-confined uniaxial compression experiments on cylinders of isotropic polycrystalline ice under controlled temperature and displacement-rate conditions. The deformed material was characterised in real-time by measuring ultrasonic time-of-flight in-situ during ductile creep, and post-deformation using cryo electron backscatter diffraction to characterise the final microstructure. Resonant ultrasound spectroscopy measurements were made on cylinders of synthetic isotropic ice polycrystals, to determine the relationship between temperature and the elastic and anelastic characteristics that govern wave propagation in ice. At high homologous temperatures (-5°C), uniaxial shortening gives rise to a CPO cone girdle, where the c-axes of the individual crystals become aligned into an orientation 30-50° from the shortening direction. The evolution of this CPO is controlled primarily by strain-energy driven grain boundary migration, where grains in orientation favourable for slip on the basal planes grow at the expense of those in hard slip orientations. Grains in hard basal slip orientations deform by non-basal slip on pyramidal planes. Rapid weakening occurs in the samples around 3% strain, and corresponds to the formation of a network of grains well oriented for basal slip. Through in-situ measurements of elastic wave velocity evolution, we observe that changes in ultrasonic velocity anisotropy can be used as a continuous proxy for CPO evolution, quantifying the relationship between velocity anisotropy and fabric strength. Resonant ultrasound measurements show that elastic wave velocity is strongly sensitive to temperature in ice polycrystals, as are the components of the elasticity tensor. These measurements reveal that compressional wave speeds and intrinsic attenuation are most sensitive to temperature, which we attribute to liquid phases on ice grain boundaries associated with pre-melting conditions

Optimization of Operation Sequencing in CAPP Using Hybrid Genetic Algorithm and Simulated Annealing Approach

In any CAPP system, one of the most important process planning functions is selection of the operations and corresponding machines in order to generate the optimal operation sequence. In this paper, the hybrid GA-SA algorithm is used to solve this combinatorial optimization NP (Non-deterministic Polynomial) problem. The network representation is adopted to describe operation and sequencing flexibility in process planning and the mathematical model for process planning is described with the objective of minimizing the production time. Experimental results show effectiveness of the hybrid algorithm that, in comparison with the GA and SA standalone algorithms, gives optimal operation sequence with lesser computational time and lesser number of iterations

Optimization of Operation Sequencing in CAPP Using Hybrid Genetic Algorithm and Simulated Annealing Approach

In any CAPP system, one of the most important process planning functions is selection of the operations and corresponding machines in order to generate the optimal operation sequence. In this paper, the hybrid GA-SA algorithm is used to solve this combinatorial optimization NP (Non-deterministic Polynomial) problem. The network representation is adopted to describe operation and sequencing flexibility in process planning and the mathematical model for process planning is described with the objective of minimizing the production time. Experimental results show effectiveness of the hybrid algorithm that, in comparison with the GA and SA standalone algorithms, gives optimal operation sequence with lesser computational time and lesser number of iterations