Combined thermal and bending fatigue of high-temperature metal-matrix composites: Computational simulation

The nonlinear behavior of a high-temperature metal-matrix composite (HT-MMC) was simulated by using the metal matrix composite analyzer (METCAN) computer code. The simulation started with the fabrication process, proceeded to thermomechanical cyclic loading, and ended with the application of a monotonic load. Classical laminate theory and composite micromechanics and macromechanics are used in METCAN, along with a multifactor interaction model for the constituents behavior. The simulation of the stress-strain behavior from the macromechanical and the micromechanical points of view, as well as the initiation and final failure of the constituents and the plies in the composite, were examined in detail. It was shown that, when the fibers and the matrix were perfectly bonded, the fracture started in the matrix and then propagated with increasing load to the fibers. After the fibers fractured, the composite lost its capacity to carry additional load and fractured

Structural optimization of thin shells using finite element method

The objective of the present work was the structural optimization of thin shell structures that are subjected to stress and displacement constraints. In order to accomplish this, the structural optimization computer program DESAP1 was modified and improved. In the static analysis part of the DESAP1 computer program the torsional spring elements, which are used to analyze thin, shallow shell structures, were eliminated by modifying the membrane stiffness matrix of the triangular elements in the local coordinate system and adding a fictitious rotational stiffness matrix. This simplified the DESAP1 program input, improved the accuracy of the analysis, and saved computation time. In the optimization part of the DESAP1 program the stress ratio formula, which redesigns the thickness of each finite element of the structure, was solved by an analytical method. This scheme replaced the iterative solution that was previously used in the DESAP1 program, thus increasing the accuracy and speed of the design. The modified program was used to design a thin, cylindrical shell structure with optimum weight, and the results are reported in this paper

Microfracture in high temperature metal matrix laminates

Computational simulation procedures are described to evaluate the composite microfracture behavior, establish the hierarchy/sequence of fracture modes, and the influence of compliant layers and partial debonding on composite properties and microfracture initiation. These procedures are based upon three-dimensional finite element analysis and composite micromechanics equations. Typical results for the effects of compliant layers and partial debonding, microfracture initiation, and propagation and the thermomechanical cyclic loading on a SiC/Ti15 composite system are presented and discussed. The results show that interfacial debonding follows fiber or matrix fracture, and the thermomechanical cyclic loading severely degrades the composite integrity

Quantum criticality in a double quantum-dot system

We discuss the realization of the quantum-critical non-Fermi liquid state, originally discovered within the two-impurity Kondo model, in double quantum-dot systems. Contrary to the common belief, the corresponding fixed point is robust against particle-hole and various other asymmetries, and is only unstable to charge transfer between the two dots. We propose an experimental set-up where such charge transfer processes are suppressed, allowing a controlled approach to the quantum critical state. We also discuss transport and scaling properties in the vicinity of the critical point.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figs; (v2) final version as publishe

Understanding DNA based Nanostructures

We use molecular dynamics (MD) simulations to understand the structure, and stability of various Paranemic crossover (PX) DNA molecules and their topoisomer JX molecules, synthesized recently by Seeman and coworkers at New York University (NYU). Our studies include all atoms (4432 to 6215) of the PX structures with an explicit description of solvent and ions (for a total of up to 42,000 atoms) with periodic boundary conditions. We report the effect of divalent counterions Mg(+2) on the structural and thermodynamic properties of these molecules and compare them to our previously reported results in presence of monovalent Na+ ions. The dynamic structures averaged over the 3-nanosecond simulations preserves the Watson-Crick hydrogen bonding as well as the helical structure. We find that PX65 is the most stable structure both in Na+ and Mg(+2) in accordance with the experimental results. PX65 has helical twist and other helical structural parameters close to the values for normal B-DNA of similar length and sequence. Our strain energy calculations demonstrate that stability of the crossover structure increases with the increase in crossover points