Mechanical response of composite materials with through-the-thickness reinforcement

An experimental investigation was conducted to identify the key geometrical parameters and quantify their influence on the mechanical response of through-the-thickness (TTT) reinforced composite materials. Composite laminates with TTT reinforcement fibers were fabricated using different TTT reinforcement materials and reinforcement methods and laminates were also fabricated of similar construction but without TTT reinforcement fibers. Coupon specimens were machined from these laminates and were destructively tested. TTT reinforcement yarns enhance damage tolerance and improve interlaminar strength. Thick-layer composites with TTT reinforcement yarns have equal or superior mechanical properties to thin-layer composites without TTT reinforcement yarns. A significant potential exists for fabrication cost reduction by using thick-layer composites with TTT reinforcement yarns. Removal of the surface loop of the TTT reinforcement improves compression strength. Stitching provides somewhat higher mechanical properties than integral weaving

Trans-laminar-reinforced (TLR) composites

A Trans-Laminar-Reinforced (TLR) composite is defined as composite laminate with up to five percent volume of fibrous reinforcement oriented in a trans-laminar fashion in the through-thickness direction. The TLR can be continuous threads as in stitched laminates , or it can be discontinuous rods or pins as in Z-Fiber{dollar}\sp{lcub}\rm TM{rcub}{dollar} materials. Adding TLR to an otherwise two dimensional laminate results in the following advantages: substantially improved compression-after-impact response; considerably increased fracture toughness in mode I (double cantilever beam) and mode II (end notch flexure); and severely restricted size and growth of impact damage and edge delamination. TLR has also been used to eliminate catastrophic stiffener disbonding in stiffened structures. as little as one percent volume of TLR significantly alters the mechanical response of laminates.;The objective of this work was to characterize the effects of TLR on the in-plane and inter-laminar mechanical response of undamaged composite laminates. Detailed finite element models were made of unit cells, or representative volumes, and an inter-laminar dominated problem of practical interest. The work was limited to the linear response of undamaged material with at least one ply interface. Adding a few percent TLR had a small negative effect on the in-plane extensional and shear moduli, E{dollar}\sb{lcub}\rm x{rcub}{dollar}, E{dollar}\sb{lcub}\rm y{rcub}{dollar} and G{dollar}\sb{lcub}\rm xy{rcub},{dollar} but had a large positive effect (up to 60 percent) on the thickness direction extensional modulus, E{dollar}\sb{lcub}\rm z{rcub}{dollar}. The out-of-plane shear moduli, G{dollar}\sb{lcub}\rm xz{rcub}{dollar} and G{dollar}\sb{lcub}\rm yz{rcub},{dollar} were significantly affected only with the use of a TLR with a shear modulus an order of magnitude greater than that of the composite lamina. A simple stiffness averaging method for calculating the elastic constants was found to compare closely with the finite element results, with the greatest difference being found in the inter-laminar shear moduli, G{dollar}\sb{lcub}\rm xz{rcub}{dollar} and G{dollar}\sb{lcub}\rm yz{rcub}.{dollar} Delamination initiation was studied with a strength of materials approach in the unit cell models and the flanged skin models. It was concluded that if the formation of a transverse crack is included as a source of delamination initiation, the addition of TLR will not be effective at preventing or delaying the onset of delamination. The many benefits of TLR may be accounted for by an increased resistance to delamination growth

A designed experiment in stitched/RTM composites

The damage tolerance of composite laminates can be significantly improved by the addition of through-the-thickness fibrous reinforcement such as stitching. However, there are numerous stitching parameters which can be independently varied, and their separate and combined effects on mechanical properties need to be determined. A statistically designed experiment (a 2(sup 5-1) fractional factorial, also known as a Taguchi L16 test matrix) used to evaluate five important parameters is described. The effects and interactions of stitch thread material, stitch thread strength, stitch row spacing and stitch pitch are examined for both thick (48 ply) and thin (16 ply) carbon/epoxy (AS4/E905L) composites. Tension, compression and compression after impact tests are described. Preliminary results of completed tension testing are discussed. Larger threads decreased tensile strength. Panel thickness was found not to be an important stitching parameter for tensile properties. Tensile modulus was unaffected by stitching

Mechanical characterization of two thermoplastic composites fabricated by automated tow placement

AS4/PEEK towpreg and IM7/Radel 8320 slit tape were used to make flat panels by automated tow placement. The panels were tested in notched and un-notched tension, notched and un-notched compression and compression after impact (CAI) at room temperature and under hot/wet conditions (notched and un-notched compression and CAI only). The properties were compared with AS4/PEEK tape laminate properties found in the literature. The tow placed AS4/PEEK material was stronger in tension but weaker in compression than the AS4/PEEK tape laminates. The tow placed AS4/PEEK was stronger but less stiff than the tow placed IM7/Radel 8320 in all compression tests. The IM7/Radel performed better in all other mechanical tests. The IM7/Radel outperformed the AS4/PEEK in all CAI tests

Type Ia Supernova Distances at z > 1.5 from the Hubble Space Telescope Multi-Cycle Treasury Programs: The Early Expansion Rate

We present an analysis of 15 Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) at redshift z > 1 (9 at 1.5 < z < 2.3) recently discovered in the CANDELS and CLASH Multi-Cycle Treasury programs using WFC3 on the Hubble Space Telescope. We combine these SNe Ia with a new compilation of 1050 SNe Ia, jointly calibrated and corrected for simulated survey biases to produce accurate distance measurements. We present unbiased constraints on the expansion rate at six redshifts in the range 0.07 < z < 1.5 based only on this combined SN Ia sample. The added leverage of our new sample at z > 1.5 leads to a factor of ~3 improvement in the determination of the expansion rate at z = 1.5, reducing its uncertainty to ~20%, a measurement of H(z=1.5)/H0=2.67 (+0.83,-0.52). We then demonstrate that these six measurements alone provide a nearly identical characterization of dark energy as the full SN sample, making them an efficient compression of the SN Ia data. The new sample of SNe Ia at z > 1 usefully distinguishes between alternative cosmological models and unmodeled evolution of the SN Ia distance indicators, placing empirical limits on the latter. Finally, employing a realistic simulation of a potential WFIRST SN survey observing strategy, we forecast optimistic future constraints on the expansion rate from SNe Ia.Comment: 14 pages, 5 figures, 7 tables; submitted to Ap

The Hubble Deep Field: Observations, Data Reduction, and Galaxy Photometry

The Hubble Deep Field (HDF) is a Director's Discretionary program on HST in Cycle 5 to image an undistinguished field at high Galactic latitude in four passbands as deeply as reasonably possible. These images provide the most detailed view to date of distant field galaxies and are likely to be important for a wide range of studies in galaxy evolution and cosmology. In order to optimize observing in the time available, a field in the northern continuous viewing zone was selected and images were taken for ten consecutive days, or approximately 150 orbits. Shorter 1-2 orbit images were obtained of the fields immediately adjacent to the primary HDF in order to facilitate spectroscopic follow-up by ground-based telescopes. The observations were made from 18 to 30 December 1995, and both raw and reduced data have been put in the public domain as a community service. We present a summary of the criteria for selecting the field, the rationale behind the filter selection and observing times in each band, and the strategies for planning the observations to maximize the exposure time while avoiding earth-scattered light. Data reduction procedures are outlined, and images of the combined frames in each band are presented. Objects detected in these images are listed in a catalog with their basic photometric parameters.Comment: 37 pages, XX PostScript figures, uses aaspp4.sty astrobib.sty. (Astrobib is available from http://www.stsci.edu/software/TeX.html .) To appear the Astronomical Journal. More info on the Hubble deep field can be found at http://www.stsci.edu/../ftp/observer/hdf/hdf.html . More figures (images) can be found at http://www.stsci.edu/../ftp/observer/hdf/references/williams/ and the full source catalog is available at http://www.stsci.edu/../ftp/observer/hdf/archive/v2catalog

The QUIJOTE-CMB experiment: studying the polarisation of the galactic and cosmological microwave emissions

The QUIJOTE (Q-U-I JOint Tenerife) CMB Experiment will operate at the Teide Observatory with the aim of characterizing the polarisation of the CMB and other processes of Galactic and extragalactic emission in the frequency range of 10-40GHz and at large and medium angular scales. The first of the two QUIJOTE telescopes and the first multi-frequency (10-30GHz) instrument are already built and have been tested in the laboratory. QUIJOTE-CMB will be a valuable complement at low frequencies for the Planck mission, and will have the required sensitivity to detect a primordial gravitational-wave component if the tensor-to-scalar ratio is larger than r = 0.05.The QUIJOTE-CMB experiment is being developed by the Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias (IAC), the Instituto de Fisica de Cantabria (IFCA), and the Universities of Cantabria, Manchester and Cambridge. Partial financial support is provided by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (MINECO) under the projects AYA2010-21766-C03 (01, 02 and 03), and also by the Consolider-Ingenio project CSD2010-00064 (EPI: Exploring the Physics of Inflation49)

Material Flows Accounting of Natural Resources, Products, and Residuals

Sponsored by the EPA, USGS, DOE, and NSF through the Committee on Earth Resources, the National Research Council\u27s Committee on Material Flows Accounting of Natural Resources, Products, and Residuals, created in August 2002, studied the value that material flows accounting, which can track the flow of a material from the time it is extracted to its ultimate disposal, may provide for making better integrated economic, social, and environmental policy decisions. This could be a crucial technology for the mining industry to incorporate. This paper will recount the statement of tasks, the study process, and the science-based conclusions and recommendations reached