Image based simulation of one-dimensional compression tests on carbonate sand

High factors of safety and conservative methods are commonly used on foundation design on shelly carbonate soils. A better understanding of the behavior of this material is, thus, critical for more sustainable approaches for the design of a number of offshore structures and submarine pipelines. In particular, understanding the physical phenomena taking place at the microscale has the potential to spur the development of robust computational methods. In this study, a one-dimensional compression test was performed inside an X-ray scanner to obtain 3D images of the evolving internal structure of a shelly carbonate sand. A preliminary inspection of the images through five loading increments has shown that the grains rearrange under loading and in some cases cracks develop at the contacts. In order to replicate of the experiments in the numerical domain, the 3D image of the soil prior to loading was imported into a micro Finite Element (µFE) framework. This image-based modelling tool enables measurements of the contact force and stress map inside the grains while making use of the real microstructure of the soil. The potential of the µFE model to contribute insights into yield initiation within the grain is demonstrated here. This is of particular interest to better understand the breakage of shelly grains underpinning their highly compressive behavior

Time Scale Approach for Chirp Detection

International audienceTwo different approaches for joint detection and estimation of signals embedded in stationary random noise are considered and compared, for the subclass of amplitude and frequency modulated signals. Matched filter approaches are compared to time-frequency and time scale based approaches. Particular attention is paid to the case of the so-called " power-law chirps " , characterized by monomial and polynomial amplitude and frequency functions. As target application, the problem of gravitational waves at interferometric detectors is considered

Directional Plastic Flow and Fabric Dependencies in Granular Materials

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Directional Plastic Flow and Fabric Dependencies in Granular Materials

International audienc

Modeling of high-density compaction of granular materials by the Discrete Element Method

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Experimental investigation and process optimization of the ultrasonic welding applied to papers

International audienceUltrasonic welding is a serious candidate in the development of methods to assemble papers and paperboards without using additional substances. However, the ultrasonic welding of papers remains a technological challenge considering the low weldability of lignocellulosic materials. This study aims to investigate on the ultrasonic welding process applied to papers in order to identify the processing conditions which favor the formation of strong welded joints. To reach such purpose, an experimental strategy was developed by combining the characterization of welded materials and the monitoring of process parameters. Experimentations were performed using a reference paper displaying a good weldability to specifically highlight the contribution of process parameters. Results indicate that the process is highly sensitive to vibration amplitude, power supplied by the high frequency generator, and sample thickness. Power seems to be a reliable indicator of the severity of the process. A strong decrease in the strength of the welded joints is observed when working with low thicknesses. It seems that the layers coated on top of papers are the main part of the material contributing in the development of adhesion at the welding joint. Overall, instrumenting the device has led to a better understanding of the ultrasonic welding of papers

Coupling photogrammetric data with a discrete element model for rock slope stability assessment

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Forming Of Native Starch/Wood Composites

International audienceDue to their excellent native mechanical properties, several biosourced materials are promising candidates as raw materials for manufacturing biocomposites with enhanced mechanical properties. However, classical composite forming techniques generally induce irreversible degradation of both structural and mechanical native properties of such materials. In this study, thermo-compression and ultrasonic compression moulding were used to form composite materials made up of starch powder and softwood pulp reinforcement fibres. The objective was to find a window of forming parameters enabling the preservation of the native structure and excellent mechanical properties of starch granules. The best set of investigated forming parameters (pressure, temperature, and starch powder moisture content) allowed us to obtain composite samples with good mechanical properties. For instance, their Young modulus ranged from 4 to 6 GPa and their mechanical strength from 30 to 70 MPa, depending on fibre content. The two processing techniques produced composite samples with similar mechanical properties but distinct microstructures. While a better control of the microstructure is achieved using thermo-compression moulding in terms of both coalescence of starch granules and crystallinity, ultrasonic compression moulding allows a significant gain in processing time

Manufacturing of starch-based materials using ultrasonic compression moulding (UCM): toward a structural application

International audienceAn experimental study of the ultrasonic compression moulding (UCM) to manufacture biobased composites made of semicrystalline starch powders and softwood fibres is described. The main objective was to assess the potential of using this fast and economical processing technique to elaborate a 100% biobased composite which might substitute more usual polymer materials for structural applications. The starch powder was chosen as raw material for the matrix while the reinforcement was made of softwood fibres. Tablets made of starch only and composite beams were processed under different conditions and characterised by several techniques. Three types of starch powders and two types of fibres were used as raw materials. A morphological and crystalline analysis was carried out by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The native semicrystalline structure of starch granules was not totally preserved so as to obtain a homogeneous material. Diametral compression tests on tablets were performed to improve the processing route and obtain the materials with the best properties. Bending tests were used on composite beams to quantify the mechanical properties and study the effects of the processing parameters. The optimum processing parameters were defined and allowed obtaining a matrix for which the flexural strength reached 21 MPa. Mechanical properties were improved when fibres were added into the matrix: three-points bending tests showed a Young's modulus of 6 GPa, a flexural strength of 75 MPa and a flexural strain at break of 6% for a bulk density of 1.25. Considering these results, UCM appears to be a promising process to design a 100% biobased composite with mechanical properties comparable to those of classical discontinuous fibre composites