Development of a numerical modelling approach to predict residual stresses in Ti-6Al-4V linear friction welds

Linear friction welding (LFW) is a solid-state joining process which has been successfully implemented to manufacture bladed-disks, chains and near-net shape components. During welding, large residual stresses are created as a consequence of a non-uniform heating of the component which can severely affect the integrity of the structure. Experimental measurement of residual stresses and temperatures on linear friction welds is difficult, so researchers have used modelling to provide a better understanding of these important characteristics. Models developed in the literature, replicate the welding process by including the oscillation of the workpieces, resulting in long computational times. Therefore, numerical models are mostly confined to 2D geometry and complex geometry cases such as keystone or bladed-disk welds are rarely considered. This thesis focuses on the development and validation of computational models capable of predicting the residual stress field developed in Ti-6Al-4V LFW without modelling the complex mechanical mixing occurring at the weld interface. Using a sequentially coupled thermo-mechanical analysis on a 3D model defined in ABAQUS, the heat was applied at the weld interface using the average heat flux post-processed from the machine data obtained during welding trials, for all the phases. The material deformation was ignored and the material expulsion is accounted for by sequentially removing rows of elements. The models were validated against thermocouples, neutron diffraction and contour method measurements. The shearing occurring at the interface while welding was found to have little effect on the final residual stress field and therefore can be omitted. The residual stress field was found to be driven by the temperature profile obtained at the end of welding, prior to cooling and by the weld interface dimensions. A low weld interface temperature, shallow thermal gradient across the weld and small weld interface dimensions should be sought to minimise the residual stress magnitude. Therefore, a low burn-off rate obtained with reduced welding frequency, amplitude and applied force should be used; however the impact of using these parameters on the microstructure and material properties may need to be considered. The modelling approach was successfully implemented on a blisk LFW and its peculiar geometry was found to have little effect on the residual stress field as the peak magnitude is driven by the overall length of the part and the thermal profile prior to cooling. Several cycles of post-weld heat treatment were also investigated for the blisk weld. The results showed that all post-weld heat treatments reduced the residual stresses, however the differences between the heat treatments on the resulting stress field was minimal. In conclusion, the thesis presents an innovative computationally efficient modelling approach capable of predicting the residual stresses within standard and complex geometry LFW

3D modelling of Ti–6Al–4V linear friction welds

Linear friction welding (LFW) is a solid-state joining process that significantly reduces manufacturing costs when fabricating Ti–6Al–4V aircraft components. This article describes the development of a novel 3D LFW process model for joining Ti–6Al–4V. Displacement histories were taken from experiments and used as modelling inputs; herein is the novelty of the approach, which resulted in decreased computational time and memory storage requirements. In general, the models captured the experimental weld phenomena and showed that the thermo-mechanically affected zone and interface temperature are reduced when the workpieces are oscillated along the shorter of the two interface contact dimensions. Moreover, the models showed that unbonded regions occur at the corners of the weld interface, which are eliminated by increasing the burn-off

Development of a numerical modelling approach to predict residual stresses in Ti-6Al-4V linear fraction welds.

Linear friction welding (LFW) is a solid-state joining process which has been successfully implemented to manufacture bladed-disks, chains and near-net shape components. During welding, large residual stresses are created as a consequence of a non-uniform heating of the component which can severely affect the integrity of the structure. Experimental measurement of residual stresses and temperatures on linear friction welds is difficult, so researchers have used modelling to provide a better understanding of these important characteristics. Models developed in the literature, replicate the welding process by including the oscillation of the workpieces, resulting in long computational times. Therefore, numerical models are mostly confined to 2D geometry and complex geometry cases such as keystone or bladed-disk welds are rarely considered. This thesis focuses on the development and validation of computational models capable of predicting the residual stress field developed in Ti-6Al-4V LFW without modelling the complex mechanical mixing occurring at the weld interface. Using a sequentially coupled thermo-mechanical analysis on a 3D model defined in ABAQUS, the heat was applied at the weld interface using the average heat flux post-processed from the machine data obtained during welding trials, for all the phases. The material deformation was ignored and the material expulsion is accounted for by sequentially removing rows of elements. The models were validated against thermocouples, neutron diffraction and contour method measurements. The shearing occurring at the interface while welding was found to have little effect on the final residual stress field and therefore can be omitted. The residual stress field was found to be driven by the temperature profile obtained at the end of welding, prior to cooling and by the weld interface dimensions. A low weld interface temperature, shallow thermal gradient across the weld and small weld interface dimensions should be sought to minimise the residual stress magnitude. Therefore, a low burn-off rate obtained with reduced welding frequency, amplitude and applied force should be used; however the impact of using these parameters on the microstructure and material properties may need to be considered. The modelling approach was successfully implemented on a blisk LFW and its peculiar geometry was found to have little effect on the residual stress field as the peak magnitude is driven by the overall length of the part and the thermal profile prior to cooling. Several cycles of post-weld heat treatment were also investigated for the blisk weld. The results showed that all post-weld heat treatments reduced the residual stresses, however the differences between the heat treatments on the resulting stress field was minimal. In conclusion, the thesis presents an innovative computationally efficient modelling approach capable of predicting the residual stresses within standard and complex geometry LFW.PhD in Manufacturin

2D linear friction weld modelling of a Ti-6Al-4V T-joint

Most examples of linear friction weld process models have focused on joining two identically shaped workpieces. This article reports on the development of a 2D model, using the DEFORM finite element package, to investigate the joining of a rectangular Ti-6Al-4V workpiece to a plate of the same material. The work focuses on how this geometry affects the material flow, thermal fields and interface contaminant removal. The results showed that the material flow and thermal fields were not even across the two workpieces. This resulted in more material expulsion being required to remove the interface contaminants from the weld line when compared to joining two identically shaped workpieces. The model also showed that the flash curves away from the weld due to the rectangular upstand "burrowing" into the base plate.Understanding these critical relationships between the geometry and process outputs is crucial for further industrial implementation of the LFW process.EPSRC, The Welding Institut

A computationally efficient thermal modelling approach of the linear friction welding process

Numerical models used to simulate LFW rely on the modelling of the oscillations to generate heat. As a consequence, simulations are time consuming, making analysis of 3D geometries difficult. To address this, a model was developed of a Ti-6Al–4 V LFW that applied the weld heat at the interface and ignored the material deformation and expulsion which was captured by sequentially removing row of elements. The model captured the experimental trends and showed that the maximum interface temperature was achieved when a burn-off rate of between 2 and 3 mm/s occurred. Moreover, the models showed that the interface temperature is reduced when a weld is produced with a higher pressure and when the workpieces are oscillated along the shorter of the two interface dimensions. This modelling approach provides a computationally efficient foundation for subsequent residual stress modelling, which is of interest to end users of the process

A literature review of Ti-6Al-4V linear friction welding

Linear friction welding (LFW) is a solid-state joining process that is an established technology for the fabrication of titanium alloy bladed disks (blisks) in aero-engines. Owing to the economic benefits, LFW has been identified as a technology capable of manufacturing Ti-6Al-4V aircraft structural components. However, LFW of Ti-6Al-4V has seen limited industrial implementation outside of blisk manufacture, which is partly due to the knowledge and benefits of the process being widely unknown. This article provides a review of the published works up-to-date on the subject to identify the “state-of-the-art”. First, the background, fundamentals, advantages and industrial applications of the process are described. This is followed by a description of the microstructure, mechanical properties, flash morphology, interface contaminant removal, residual stresses and energy usage of Ti-6Al-4V linear friction welds. A brief discussion on the machine tooling effects is also included. Next, the work on analytical and numerical modelling is discussed. Finally, the conclusions of the review are presented, which include practical implications for the manufacturing sector and recommendations for further research and development. The purpose of this article is to inform industry and academia of the benefits of LFW so that the process may be better exploited

Effect of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor and angiotensin receptor blocker initiation on organ support-free days in patients hospitalized with COVID-19

IMPORTANCE Overactivation of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) may contribute to poor clinical outcomes in patients with COVID-19. Objective To determine whether angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor or angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB) initiation improves outcomes in patients hospitalized for COVID-19. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS In an ongoing, adaptive platform randomized clinical trial, 721 critically ill and 58 non–critically ill hospitalized adults were randomized to receive an RAS inhibitor or control between March 16, 2021, and February 25, 2022, at 69 sites in 7 countries (final follow-up on June 1, 2022). INTERVENTIONS Patients were randomized to receive open-label initiation of an ACE inhibitor (n = 257), ARB (n = 248), ARB in combination with DMX-200 (a chemokine receptor-2 inhibitor; n = 10), or no RAS inhibitor (control; n = 264) for up to 10 days. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES The primary outcome was organ support–free days, a composite of hospital survival and days alive without cardiovascular or respiratory organ support through 21 days. The primary analysis was a bayesian cumulative logistic model. Odds ratios (ORs) greater than 1 represent improved outcomes. RESULTS On February 25, 2022, enrollment was discontinued due to safety concerns. Among 679 critically ill patients with available primary outcome data, the median age was 56 years and 239 participants (35.2%) were women. Median (IQR) organ support–free days among critically ill patients was 10 (–1 to 16) in the ACE inhibitor group (n = 231), 8 (–1 to 17) in the ARB group (n = 217), and 12 (0 to 17) in the control group (n = 231) (median adjusted odds ratios of 0.77 [95% bayesian credible interval, 0.58-1.06] for improvement for ACE inhibitor and 0.76 [95% credible interval, 0.56-1.05] for ARB compared with control). The posterior probabilities that ACE inhibitors and ARBs worsened organ support–free days compared with control were 94.9% and 95.4%, respectively. Hospital survival occurred in 166 of 231 critically ill participants (71.9%) in the ACE inhibitor group, 152 of 217 (70.0%) in the ARB group, and 182 of 231 (78.8%) in the control group (posterior probabilities that ACE inhibitor and ARB worsened hospital survival compared with control were 95.3% and 98.1%, respectively). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE In this trial, among critically ill adults with COVID-19, initiation of an ACE inhibitor or ARB did not improve, and likely worsened, clinical outcomes. TRIAL REGISTRATION ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT0273570

Industrie 4.0: Digitale Wirtschaft – Herausforderung und Chance für Unternehmen und Arbeitswelt

Seit Mitte der 1990er Jahre werden neue Informations- und Kommunikationstechnologien in der Arbeitswelt genutzt, in wachsendem Ausmaß und mit wachsender Bedeutung. Die verstärkte Digitalisierung verändert sowohl die Wirtschaft als auch die Gesellschaft. Es wird sogar von der "vierten industriellen Revolution" gesprochen, denn traditionelle Geschäftsmodelle geraten unter Druck.Since the mid-1990s, new information and communication technologies have been used to an increasing extent and with growing importance in the world of work. Increased digitisation has changed both the economy and society. Some even call this a "fourth industrial revolution", because traditional business models are being called into question