Volume 25, Issue 3-4

For a better approximation of ring-shaped and toroidal cracks, a new eccentric annular crack model is proposed and an analytical approach for determination of the corresponding stress intensity factors is given. The crack is subjected to arbitrary mode I loading. A rigorous solution is provided by mapping the eccentric annular crack to a concentric annular crack. The analysis leads to two decoupled Fredholm integral equations of the second kind. For the sake of verification, the problem of a conventional annular crack is examined. Furthermore, for various crack configurations of an eccentric annular crack under uniform tension, the stress intensity factors pertaining to the inner and outer crack edges are delineated in dimensionless plots.

An exact expression is obtained for a path-dependent J-integral for finite strains of an elliptical hole subject to remote tensile tractions under the Tresca deformation theory for a thin plate composed of non-work hardening material. Possible applications include an analytical resistance curve for the initial stage of crack propagation due to crack tip blunting.

The modest goal of this short note is to shed some light on the correct interpretation of micro/nanopillar compression experiments. We propose a modification of the way the stress-strain response in such experiments is calculated, aiming at answering open questions pertaining to discrepancies between the elastic moduli values calculated through micropillar compression experiments with those of the bulk materials, as well as the brittle-to-ductile transition in bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) when the size of the pillars is reduced below a certain threshold value.

Friction stir welded (FSWed) joints of aluminum alloys exhibited a hardness drop in both the advancing side (AS) and retreating side (RS) of the thermo-mechanically affected zone (TMAZ) due to the thermal cycle involved in the FSW process. In this investigation, an attempt has been made to overcome this problem by post weld heat treatment (PWHT) methods. FSW butt (FSWB) joints of Al-Cu (AA2014-T6) alloy were PWHT by two methods such as simple artificial aging (AA) and solution treatment followed by artificial aging (STA). Of these two treatments, STA was found to be more beneficial than the simple aging treatment to improve the tensile properties of the FSW joints of AA2014 aluminum alloy.

In friction stir processing (FSP), tool rotational speed (TRS) and tool traverse speed (TTS) are the two important parameters, known to produce significant changes in the properties of the processed material. Increasing the TRS and TTS beyond a certain level would produce undesirable results. The heat generation will increase with an increase in the TRS and decrease in TTS. Excessive heat generation results in the formation of coarse grains exhibiting poor mechanical properties. The heat generation will decrease with decrease in the TRS and increase in TTS. Low heat generation will lead to inadequate plasticization and improper material flow. Hence a perfect combination of TRS and TTS is required to attain desirable properties in FSPed material. In this investigation FSP was carried out on aluminum based metal matrix composite (LM25AA+5%SiCp) material using five different tool velocity ratios (TVR: TRS/TTS). The FSP was subjected to microstructural characterization and tensile properties, evaluation. The results revealed that the TVR of 2.6 yielded superior tensile properties compared to other conditions.

Good mechanical properties combined with outstanding corrosion-resistance properties of cast nickel-aluminum bronze (NAB) alloy lead to be a specific material for many marine applications, including ship propellers. However, the erosion-corrosion resistance of cast-NAB alloy is not as good as wrought NAB alloy. Hence, in this investigation, an attempt has been made to improve the erosion-corrosion resistance of cast NAB alloy by depositing wrought (extruded) NAB alloy applying the friction surfacing (FS) technique. Erosion-corrosion tests were carried out in slurries composed of sand particles of 3.5% NaCl solution. Silica sand having a nominal size range of 250–355 μm is used as an erodent. Specimens were tested at 30° and 90° impingement angles. It is observed that the erosion and erosion-corrosion resistance of friction surfaced NAB alloy exhibited an improvement as compared to cast NAB alloy. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) analysis showed that the erosion tracks developed on the cast NAB alloy were wider and deeper than those formed on the friction surfaced extruded NAB alloy.

This study discusses the dispersion equation for SH waves in a non-homogeneous monoclinic layer over a semi-infinite isotropic medium. The wave velocity equation has been obtained. In the isotropic case, when the non-homogeneity is absent, the dispersion equation reduces to a standard SH wave equation. The dispersion curves are depicted by means of graphs for different values of non-homogeneity parameters for the layer and semi-infinite medium.

In this paper, we perform statistical analysis of time series deriving from four neurodegenerative disorders, namely epilepsy, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Parkinson’s disease (PD), Huntington’s disease (HD). The time series are concerned with electroencephalograms (EEGs) of healthy and epileptic states, as well as gait dynamics (in particular stride intervals) of the ALS, PD and HDs. We study data concerning one subject for each neurodegenerative disorder and one healthy control. The analysis is based on Tsallis non-extensive statistical mechanics and in particular on the estimation of Tsallis q -triplet, namely { q stat , q sen , q rel }. The deviation of Tsallis q -triplet from unity indicates non-Gaussian statistics and long-range dependencies for all time series considered. In addition, the results reveal the efficiency of Tsallis statistics in capturing differences in brain dynamics between healthy and epileptic states, as well as differences between ALS, PD, HDs from healthy control subjects. The results indicate that estimations of Tsallis q -indices could be used as possible biomarkers, along with others, for improving classification and prediction of epileptic seizures, as well as for studying the gait complex dynamics of various diseases providing new insights into severity, medications and fall risk, improving therapeutic interventions.