Martin Bäker

A finite element model of high speed metal cutting with adiabatic shearing

A finite element model of a two-dimensional orthogonal cutting process is developed. The simulation uses standard finite element software together with a special mesh generator that is able to mesh the chip completely with regular quadrilateral elements and a strong mesh refinement in the shear zone for continuous and segmented chips. The techniques of remeshing and to ensure convergence of the implicit calculation is described. Results for the formation of segmented chips are presented and the segmentation process is studied. Of special interest is the occurrence of split shear bands. The influence of the elastic properties and of the cutting speed is also discussed.

Stress state and failure mechanisms of thermal barrier coatings: role of creep in thermally grown oxide

Abstract The mechanical loading of the thermal barrier coating (TBC)/thermally grown oxide (TGO)/bond coat interface region is calculated for a TBC coated superalloy specimen using a finite element model. It is shown that the evolving stress state depends crucially on the ratio of the loading rate caused by growth and swelling of the oxide layer and the unloading rate by creep relaxation. For grain sizes below 1 μm, creep of the oxide layer cannot be neglected. From this calculations, possible damage scenarios are inferred and implications for future design of TBC layers are considered. Tailoring the TGO creep properties, for example by reducing its grain size or designing a multilayer TGO scale, is identified as the most relevant aspect.

A theoretical concept for the design of high-temperature materials by dual-scale particle strengthening

The creep behavior of dual scale particle strengthened (DSPS) metals containing particles of two different size scales, namely nanometer size dispersoids and reinforcements with typical dimensions in the micrometer to millimeter range, is analyzed theoretically. Based on the concept of thermally activated dislocation detachment from dispersoid particles as rate-controlling mechanism in dispersion hardened matrices, a new creep equation for this advanced material class is developed. Analysis of the model leads to the prediction that creep strength levels far superior to todays best dispersion or reinforcement strengthened high temperature materials can be achieved by using dispersion and reinforcement hardening in combination and following certain design guidelines, related to the selected particle parameters. In particular, it is shown that a volume fraction mix of about 3/4 reinforcements with about 1/4 dispersoids is ideal in many cases provided reinforcements with sufficient aspect ratio and size are selected.

Constraint-based exclusion of limb poses for reconstructing theropod dinosaur locomotion

ABSTRACT Plausible poses were identified for the hind limb of Tyrannosaurus rex and three other non-avian theropod dinosaurs at mid-stance of locomotion using constraint-based exclusion. This new method, validated by analysis of two species of birds, involves applying demonstrably realistic geometric and kinetic (force-based) constraints from extant animals to exclude, rather than include, potential poses. Starting with a “configuration space” of millions of candidate poses, we used a step-wise series of criteria to constrict the volume to a small subset of solutions, which can serve as starting points for reconstructing complete stride cycles. It was found that the maximum relative mid-stance limb force, as well as the relative number of configurations at lower forces, decreased with increasing body size. Constraint-based exclusion restricted Tyrannosaurus to a narrow region of neither very columnar nor very flexed poses that may have allowed relatively slow running, but no reasonable combinations of input parameters and pose produce forces large enough for high speeds. This analysis shows that skeletal information alone has limited value for discerning mid-stance poses. Despite additional assumptions, unpreserved parameters such as masses, forces, and moments are required to study a fossil as a functioning animal, rather than as a moving set of bones. Constraint-based exclusion is a transparent, reproducible framework for evaluating functional hypotheses in dinosaurs and other taxa.

The influence of thermal conductivity on segmented chip formation

A two-dimensional finite element model of the machining process is presented. After a short discussion of the modelling technique and the remeshing algorithm used, the influence of thermal conductivity on the chip segmentation process is studied. Increasing thermal conductivity leads to a decreasing degree of segmentation and to an increase in the cutting force. The influence of the thermal conductivity on the width of the shear bands and on maximum temperatures is also discussed.

Stresses in ultrasonically assisted bone cutting

B one cutting is a frequently used procedure in the orthopaedic surgery. Modern cutting techniques, such as ultrasonic assisted drilling, enable surgeons to perform precision operations in facial and spinal surgeries. Advanced understanding of the mechanics of bone cutting assisted by ultrasonic vibration is required to minimise bone fractures and to optimise the technique performance. The paper presents results of finite element simulations on ultrasonic and conventional bone cutting analysing the effects of ultrasonic vibration on cutting forces and stress distribution. The developed model is used to study the effects of cutting and vibration parameters (e.g. amplitude and frequency) on the stress distributions in the cutting region.

Development of a CuNiCrAl Bond Coat for Thermal Barrier Coatings in Rocket Combustion Chambers

AbstractThe lifetime of rocket combustion chambers can be increased by applying thermal barrier coatings. The standard coating systems usually used in gas turbines or aero engines will fail at the bond coat/substrate interface due to the chemical difference as well as the different thermal expansion between the copper liner and the applied NiCrAlY bond coat. A new bond coat alloy for rocket engine applications was designed previously with a chemical composition and coefficient of thermal expansion more similar to the copper substrate. Since a comparable material has not been applied by thermal spraying before, coating tests have to be carried out. In this work, the new Ni-30%Cu-6%Al-5%Cr bond coat alloy is applied via high velocity oxygen fuel spraying. In a first step, the influence of different coating parameters on, e.g., porosity, amount of unmolten particles, and coating roughness is investigated and a suitable parameter set for further studies is chosen. In a second step, copper substrates are coated with the chosen parameters to test the feasibility of the process. The high-temperature behavior and adhesion is tested with laser cycling experiments. The new coatings showed good adhesion even at temperatures beyond the maximum test temperatures of the NiCrAlY bond coat in previous studies.

Mitigating the Goldilocks effect: the effects of different substrate models on track formation potential

In ichnology, the Goldilocks effect describes a scenario in which a substrate must be ‘just right’ in order for tracks to form—too soft, the animal will be unable to traverse the area, and too firm, the substrate will not deform. Any given substrate can therefore only preserve a range of tracks from those animals which exert an underfoot pressure at approximately the yield strength of the sediment. However, rarely are substrates vertically homogeneous for any great depth, varying either due to heterogeneity across sediment layers, or from mechanical behaviour such as strain hardening. Here, we explore the specificity of the Goldilocks effect in a number of virtual substrates simulated using finite-element analysis. We find that the inclusion of strain hardening into the model increases the potential range of trackmaker sizes somewhat, compared with a simple elastic–perfectly plastic model. The simulation of a vertically heterogeneous, strain hardening substrate showed a much larger range of potential trackmakers than strain hardening alone. We therefore show that the Goldilocks effect is lessened to varying degrees by the inclusion of more realistic soil parameters, though there still remains an upper and lower limit to the size of trackmaker able to traverse the area while leaving footprints.

Inverse Identification of Johnson-Cook Material Parameters from Machining Simulations

A material model is a prerequisite to the modelling of machining processes. Owing to its versatility, the Johnson-Cook model is commonly used for machining simulations. Determination of the model parameters from experiments is challenging due to the large variations of strains, strain-rates and temperatures which lead to several problems. State-of-the-art experimental methods have to rely on data obtained from much lower strains and strain-rates than those encountered during machining. In this paper, an inverse method of identifying Johnson-Cook parameters from machining experiments is described. A fnite-element model of the machining process was created and a particular Johnson-Cook parameter set was taken from literature for the simulation. The Levenberg-Marquardt Algorithm was used to re-identify the material parameters by looking at the Chip-morphology and the Cutting force evolution. It is shown that the optimisation parameters and error function must be chosen carefully in order to achieve better solutions at lower computational expense.

The influence of creep properties on crack propagation in thermal barrier coatings

Thermal barrier coatings are used to protect turbine blades from the high temperature of the process gas inside a turbine. They consist of a metallic bond coat and of a ceramic top coat with low thermal conductivity. During service, an additional oxide layer forms between bond coat and top coat that eventually causes failure. Finite element simulations show that the roughness of the interface between top and bond coat is crucial for determining the stress state. Lifetime models have been inferred that assume that cracks form in the peak positions at small oxide thickness and propagate when the oxide layer grows and the stress field shifts. A two-dimensional finite element model of crack propagation in the TBC layer is presented. Since the cracks propagate near a material interface and since plasticity may occur in the bond coat, standard tools of fracture mechanics for predicting the crack propagation direction are difficult to apply. This problem is circumvented in a very simple way by propagating short test cracks in different directions and optimising to find the crack direction with the maximum energy release rate. It is shown that the energy release rate and the crack propagation direction are sensitive to the details of the stress state and especially to the creep properties of the materials. Implications for failure models are discussed.