1,720,977 research outputs found

    Residual stresses influence on the fatigue strength of structural components

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    Several production processes, both conventional and innovative, may result in residual stresses arising in critical areas of a component. The main issues include high distortion, reduced fatigue life, fracturing or delamination. In this context, standard fatigue design codes traditionally consider residual stresses through conservative assumptions, leading to either sub-optimal design or unexpected failures. Recently, innovative computational techniques have been developed to address residual stresses in a more comprehensive way. As a result, a more effective material utilisation and a more accurate fatigue life assessment can be achieved. The present work examines the influence of residual stresses on the fatigue endurance of S355JR structural steel components. Both welded and notched components were analysed, carrying out numerical and experimental analyses. In the case of welded components, residual stresses resulting from the welding process were numerically evaluated by means of an uncoupled thermal-structural simulation, while for notched specimens a preload causing limited yielding was used to induce a local residual stress field comparable to that obtained for welded specimens nearby the critical locations. Even if he work is still in progress, tests carried out with different specimens under different loading conditions allowed to understand the effect of residual stresses on the fatigue life

    Evaluation of heat sources for the simulation of the temperature distribution in gas metal arc welded joints

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    Residual stresses can affect both the static strength and the fatigue endurance of welded joints. Residual stresses can be assessed by numerical simulation; however, the simulation of the welding process is a complex task that requires knowledge of several parameters, many of which can only be estimated with some uncertainty. The reduction in the number of these parameters can lead to a more feasible and efficient study. In this work, the finite element method is used to assess the capability of different thermal methods used to simulate a single pass of the gas metal arc welding process in reproducing the temperature distribution around the weld. Results of the simulations are compared to experimental measurements of the surface temperature close to the welding area. The thermal techniques analyzed adopt different levels of complexity, from the basic implementation of a constant initial temperature assigned to a given material volume, to the more comprehensive and widespread Goldak’s double-ellipsoid model. The study shows that, close to the weld seam, very similar thermal behaviors can be achieved by employing each one of the analyzed methods. Secondly, considering the constant initial temperature method, the comparison between experimental measurements and numerical simulations showed a fairly good agreement, suggesting that a relatively simple method (i.e., requiring the setting of only one parameter) can be used to efficiently reproduce the thermal history of a welding process

    An efficient algorithm for critical plane factors evaluation

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    Fatigue of structural components is a widely discussed subject on which extensive research is still being carried out, both in the scientific and industrial communities. Fatigue damage still represents a major issue for both metallic and non-metallic components, sometimes leading to unforeseen failures for in-service parts. Among all the assessment methodologies, critical plane methods gained a lot of relevance, as they allow the identification of the component’s critical location and the direction of early crack propagation. However, the standard method employed for calculating critical plane factors is very time-consuming as it makes use of nested for/end loops and, for that reason, it is usually applied in a research context, or when the critical areas of the component are known. Very often, however, the critical regions cannot be identified, due to complex geometries, loads or constraints, or the fatigue assessment has to be carried out with tight time scheduling, which is typical of the industry. In this work, an efficient algorithm for calculating critical plane factors, useful to speed up the fatigue assessment process, is presented. The algorithm applies to all critical plane factors that require the maximization of a specific parameter based on stress and strain components or a combination of them. The methodology maximizes the parameter utilizing tensor invariants and coordinates transformation law. In order to validate the proposed methodology, without loosing generality, the Fatemi-Socie critical plane factor was considered. The new algorithm was tested on different geometries (i.e. hourglass, notched and welded joint geometries) under different loading conditions (i.e. proportional/non-proportional, uniaxial and multiaxial loading) and showed a significant reduction in computation time respect the standard plane scanning method, without any loss of solution accuracy

    How many critical planes? A perspective insight into structural integrity

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    The topic of material fatigue is a subject extensively investigated within both scientific and industrial worlds. Fatigue-induced damage remains a critical concern for a variety of components, encompassing both metallic and non-metallic materials, often leading to unexpected failures during their operational lifecycle. In cases necessitating the assessment of multiaxial fatigue, critical plane methodologies have emerged as a valuable approach. These methodologies offer the means to pinpoint the component's critical regions and anticipate early-stage crack propagation. Nevertheless, the conventional technique (i.e., plane scanning method) for computing critical plane factors is a time-intensive process, reliant on nested iterations, predominantly suited for research purposes. In numerous cases, where the critical area within a component is unknown in advance (i.e., primarily due to complex geometries and loading conditions) the method proves impractical. Furthermore, the plane scanning method does not provide a deep comprehension of the critical plane concept; indeed, it is just a numerical artifice for calculating stress and strain quantities on different planes. Recently, the authors introduced an efficient algorithm for evaluating critical plane factors. This algorithm is based on a closed form solution and is applicable to all instances where the maximization of a specific parameter, based on stress or strain components, is required. The methodology relies on tensor invariants and coordinates transformation principles thus enhancing the investigation of various critical plane methods. The paper addresses two formulations of the Fatemi-Socie critical plane factor and discusses how the number of critical planes depend on the loading conditions the component is subjected to. By the use of a closed form solution a deep insight of critical planes orientation can be achieved

    Experimental evaluation of relaxed strains in a pipe-to-plate welded joint by means of incremental cutting process

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    Residual stresses play a major role in the fatigue life and static strength of welded components. The high thermal gradient to which the material is subjected to during welding often leads to tensile residual stresses in critical notched regions. Residual stresses evaluation is crucial as they can cause unexpected failures or premature degradation of components, thus shortening the service life. Since determining their magnitude a priori is challenging, the experimental evaluation is fundamental when tensile residual stresses could be degrading for a component. The assessment of residual stresses can be performed through different techniques, all involving indirect measurements based on the detection of elastic deformation or displacement. In this context, a method belonging to the sectioning method category is proposed to calculate relaxed strains in a pipe-to-plate welded joint. The relaxed strains are determined by means of strain gauges placed on the upper surface of the plate nearby the weld bead. The results thus obtained represent strains measurements generated after an incremental hole cutting process performed on the bottom surface of the plate, opposite respect to the surface where the strain gauges were attached. Through this method, the calculated strains are related to the diameter and depth of the performed hole, as well as the location where the strain gauges are placed on the plate surface

    Frequency analysis of random fatigue: Setup for an experimental study

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    The frequency-domain approach to fatigue life estimation in random loading has been largely investigated due to its computational advantages, and several methods for the frequency translation of the most common time-domain methods have been proposed. Between the most known frequency methods, there are Bendat's method, valid for narrow-band signals, and Dirlik's formula, which ifis considered the best result for wide-band signals. However, a great part of the frequency methods takes the rainflow count as a reference time-domain method and uses the rainflow damage computation as the exact value to emulate. Therefore, very few experimental data for the fatigue life of mechanical components subject to random loads are available in the literature. This work presents the setup for a series of experimental tests for specimens subjected to random loads, aiming at achieving experimental data to compare with the results provided by frequency methods. After a brief description of the materials used for the setup, the two-step test concept is described: first, the specimen will be subjected to random loads obtained by a certain power spectral density for an amount of time which should nominally cause a 30% of damage; then, the fatigue test will be ended on a resonance testing machine to compute the actual residual fatigue life of the specimen; this two-step testing also allows to reduce the time requested for the tests. The test bench developed for the experimental investigation is described in the paper, together with the results of some preliminary tests, aimed at verifying the feasibility of the conceived procedure

    Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis

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    The present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed

    Variations on the Author

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    “Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship

    Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis

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    We provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
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