An experimental and theoretical investigation of plane-stress fracture of 2024-T351 aluminum alloy

Plane-stress fracture behavior of precracked aluminum alloy

Terästen hapettumiskoejärjestelyn herkkyysanalyysi

Tiivistelmä. Tässä työssä tutkittiin aihionkuumennuksen aikana tapahtuvaa hapettumista. Aihionkuumennuksen aikana teräksenpinta hapettuu ja pinnalle muodostuu oksidikerros. Työn tavoitteena oli selvittää, onko lämpötilalla vaikutusta muodostuvaan oksidikerrokseen. Aihionkuumennuksessa aihiot kuumennetaan lämpötilaan, jossa niitä voidaan muovata valssaimilla. Aihionkuumennus voidaan toteuttaa askelpalkki- ja läpityöntöuuneilla, jotka ovat tavallisesti kaasulämmitteisiä. Vaihtoehtoisia lämmitystapoja ovat sähkölämmitys ja vedyn käyttäminen polttoaineena. Työhön sisältyy hehkutuskokeet sekä valomikroskooppikuvat näytepaloista. Työn neljä hehkutuskoetta toteutettiin pystysuoralla putkiuunilla ja termovaa’alla. Lämpötilan vaikutusta hapettumiseen tarkasteltiin näytteen massanmuutoksen avulla ja oksidikerroksien paksuuksilla. Tuloksena huomattiin lämpötilan nostamisen kasvattavan näytteen massanmuutosnopeutta ja muodostuvan hilseen määrää. Valomikroskooppisuurennuksista nähtiin lämpötilan vaikutus muodostuneen oksidikerroksen paksuuteen

Radiation hardening and radiation-induced chromium depletion effects on intergranular stress corrosion cracking of austenitic stainless steels

Available data on neutron-irradiated materials have been analyzed and correlations developed between fluence, yield strength, grain boundary chromium concentration and cracking susceptibility in high-temperature water environments. Large heat-to-heat differences in critical fluence (0.2 to 2.5 n/cm{sup 2}) for IGSCC are documented.In many cases, this variability is consistent with yield strength differences among irradiated materials. IGSCC correlated better to yield strength than to fluence for most heats suggesting a possible role of the radiation-induced hardening (and microstructure) on cracking. However, isolatedheats reveal a wide range of yield strengths from 450 to 800 MPa necessary to promote IGSCC which cannot be understood by strength effects alone. Grain boundary Cr depletion explain differences in IGSCC susceptibility for irradiated stainless steels. Cr contents versus SCC shows that all materials showing IG cracking have some grain boundary depletion ({ge}2%). Grain boundary Cr concentrations for cracking (below {approximately}16 wt %) are in good agreement with similar SCC tests on unirradiated 304 SS with controlled depletion profiles. Heats that prompt variability in the yield strength correlation, are accounted for bydifferences in their interfacial Cr contents. Certain stainless steels are more resistant to cracking even though they have significant radiation-induced Cr depletion. It is proposed that Cr depletion is required for IASCC, but observed susceptibility is modified by other microchemical and microstructural components

Radiation hardening and radiation-induced chromium depletion effects on intergranular stress corrosion cracking of austenitic stainless steels

Available data on neutron-irradiated materials have been analyzed and correlations developed between fluence, yield strength, grain boundary chromium concentration and cracking susceptibility in high-temperature water environments. Large heat-to-heat differences in critical fluence (0.2 to 2.5 n/cm[sup 2]) for IGSCC are documented.In many cases, this variability is consistent with yield strength differences among irradiated materials. IGSCC correlated better to yield strength than to fluence for most heats suggesting a possible role of the radiation-induced hardening (and microstructure) on cracking. However, isolatedheats reveal a wide range of yield strengths from 450 to 800 MPa necessary to promote IGSCC which cannot be understood by strength effects alone. Grain boundary Cr depletion explain differences in IGSCC susceptibility for irradiated stainless steels. Cr contents versus SCC shows that all materials showing IG cracking have some grain boundary depletion ([ge]2%). Grain boundary Cr concentrations for cracking (below [approximately]16 wt %) are in good agreement with similar SCC tests on unirradiated 304 SS with controlled depletion profiles. Heats that prompt variability in the yield strength correlation, are accounted for bydifferences in their interfacial Cr contents. Certain stainless steels are more resistant to cracking even though they have significant radiation-induced Cr depletion. It is proposed that Cr depletion is required for IASCC, but observed susceptibility is modified by other microchemical and microstructural components

Mechanistic issues for modeling radiation-induced segregation

Model calculations of radiation-induced chromium depletion and radiation-induced nickel enrichment at grain boundaries are compared to measured depletions and enrichments. The model is calibrated to fit chromium depletion in commercial purity 304 stainless steel irradiated in boiling water reactor (BWR) environments. Predicted chromium depletion profiles and the dose dependence of chromium concentration at grain boundaries are in accord with measured trends. Evaluation of chromium and nickel profiles in three neutron, and two ion, irradiation environments reveal significant inconsistencies between measurements and predictions

Effect of maternal weight during pregnancy on offspring muscle strength response to resistance training in late adulthood

Purpose: Maternal obesity can unfavorably influence offspring body composition, muscle strength, and possibly muscle's adaptability to training, but the human studies are scarce. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the effect of maternal obesity on offspring muscle strength responses to resistance training intervention in elderly frail women. Materials/methods: Recruited participants were elderly frail women offspring of lean/normal weight mothers (n = 19, mean body mass index (BMI): 22.8 kg/m2, range: 19.9-24.5) or overweight/obese mothers (n = 16, mean BMI: 29.7 kg/m2, range: 28.2-34.2). Information on maternal BMI immediately prior to delivery was collected from the birth registers. All women participated in a 4-month supervised progressive resistance training intervention three times a week for 60 min. Predicted 1-RM of abdominal crunch, hip abduction, leg curl, leg press, seated row, and total strength were measured at baseline and after each month of training. Results: According to rANOVA, strength increased significantly in both groups (p for time 0.072). On average, muscle strength of the women offspring of overweight/obese mothers tended to be lower than in women offspring of lean/normal weight mothers, but the only significant difference was found in leg curl (p = 0.006). No significant differences between the groups were found in relative strength changes from baseline to 4-months. Conclusions: Muscle strength response to supervised resistance training is not modulated by maternal adiposity in late pregnancy in elderly frail female offspring.Peer reviewe

Association between dog ownership and type 2 diabetes in later life : the Helsinki birth cohort study

Dog ownership has been reported to have beneficial effects on physical activity and emotional well-being, both known to reduce the risk for type 2 diabetes (T2D). The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between dog ownership during the whole life course and having T2D in later life. The study subjects consisted of 731 people (307 men and 424 women) from the Helsinki Birth Cohort Study. We assessed dog ownership with questionnaires, for every decade of life as well as current dog ownership. We investigated the associations between dog ownership and T2D with generalised estimating equation models and with generalised linear models. At a mean age of 71.0 (standard deviation [SD] 2.6) years, 13% of the participants had T2D. Dog ownership prior to the clinical examination was not associated with T2D (p >= 0.51). In men, but not in women, current dog owners had greater odds of having T2D compared with the non-owners when adjusted for age when clinically examined, socio-economic status, smoking, leisure-time physical activity, chronic diseases (OR = 3.32, 95% confidence interval 1.25-8.79, p = 0.016). In the age group of people around 70 years, dog ownership is not associated with reduced odds for developing T2D.Peer reviewe

Fabrication Flaw Density and Distribution In Repairs to Reactor Pressure Vessel and Piping Welds

The Pacific Northwest National Laboratory is developing a generalized fabrication flaw distribution for the population of nuclear reactor pressure vessels and for piping welds in U.S. operating reactors. The purpose of the generalized flaw distribution is to predict component-specific flaw densities. The estimates of fabrication flaws are intended for use in fracture mechanics structural integrity assessments. Structural integrity assessments, such as estimating the frequency of loss-of-coolant accidents, are performed by computer codes that require, as input, accurate estimates of flaw densities. Welds from four different reactor pressure vessels and a collection of archived pipes have been studied to develop empirical estimates of fabrication flaw densities. This report describes the fabrication flaw distribution and characterization in the repair weld metal of vessels and piping. This work indicates that large flaws occur in these repairs. These results show that repair flaws are complex in composition and sometimes include cracks on the ends of the repair cavities. Parametric analysis using an exponential fit is performed on the data. The relevance of construction records is established for describing fabrication processes and product forms. An analysis of these records shows there was a significant change in repair frequency over the years when these components were fabricated. A description of repair flaw morphology is provided with a discussion of fracture mechanics significance. Fabrication flaws in repairs are characterized using optimized-access, high-sensitivity nondestructive ultrasonic testing. Flaw characterizations are then validated by other nondestructive evaluation techniques and complemented by destructive testing

Irradiation-assisted stress corrosion cracking considerations at temperatures below 288{degree}C

Irradiation-assisted stress corrosion cracking (IASCC) occurs above a critical neutron fluence in light-water reactor (LWR) water environments at 288 C, but very little information exists to indicate susceptibility as temperatures are reduced. Potential low-temperature behavior is assessed based on the temperature dependencies of intergranular (IG) SCC in the absence of irradiation, radiation-induced segregation (RIS) at grain boundaries and micromechanical deformation mechanisms. IGSCC of sensitized SS in the absence of irradiation exhibits high growth rates at temperatures down to 200 C under conditions of anodic dissolution control, while analysis of hydrogen-induced cracking suggests a peak crack growth rate near 100 C. Hence from environmental considerations, IASCC susceptibility appears to remain likely as water temperatures are decreased. Irradiation experiments and model predictions indicate that RIS also persists to low temperatures. Chromium depletion may be significant at temperatures below 100C for irradiation doses greater than 10 displacements per atom (dpa). Macromechanical effects of irradiation on strength and ductility are not strongly dependent on temperature below 288 C. However, temperature does significantly affect radiation effects on SS microstructure and micromechanical deformation mechanisms. The critical conditions for material susceptibility to IASCC at low temperatures may be controlled by radiation-induced grain boundary microchemistry, strain localization due to irradiation microstructure and irradiation creep processes. 39 refs

Amiodarone disrupts cholesterol biosynthesis pathway and causes accumulation of circulating desmosterol by inhibiting 24-dehydrocholesterol reductase

Background We have earlier reported that amiodarone, a potent and commonly used antiarrhythmic drug increases serum desmosterol, the last precursor of cholesterol, in 20 cardiac patients by an unknown mechanism. Objective Here, we extended our study to a large number of cardiac patients of heterogeneous diagnoses, evaluated the effects of combining amiodarone and statins (inhibitors of cholesterol synthesis at the rate-limiting step of hydroxy-methyl-glutaryl CoA reductase) on desmosterol levels and investigated the mechanism(s) by which amiodarone interferes with the metabolism of desmosterol using in vitro studies. Methods and Results We report in a clinical case-control setting of 236 cardiac patients (126 with and 110 without amiodarone treatment) that amiodarone medication is accompanied by a robust increase in serum desmosterol levels independently of gender, age, body mass index, cardiac and other diseases, and the use of statins. Lipid analyses in patient samples taken before and after initiation of amiodarone therapy showed a systematic increase of desmosterol upon drug administration, strongly arguing for a direct causal link between amiodarone and desmosterol accumulation. Mechanistically, we found that amiodarone resulted in desmosterol accumulation in cultured human cells and that the compound directly inhibited the 24-dehydrocholesterol reductase (DHCR24) enzyme activity. Conclusion These novel findings demonstrate that amiodarone blocks the cholesterol synthesis pathway by inhibiting DHCR24, causing a robust accumulation of cellular desmosterol in cells and in the sera of amiodarone-treated patients. It is conceivable that the antiarrhythmic potential and side effects of amiodarone may in part result from inhibition of the cholesterol synthesis pathway.Peer reviewe