Fracture experiments on through wall cracked elbows under in-plane bending moment: Test results and theoretical/numerical analyses

Fracture assessment of pipe bends or elbows with postulated through wall crack is very essential for leak-before-break qualification of primary heat transport system piping of nuclear power plants. The methodology for fracture assessment of cracked elbows is still in developing stage. Any new development in theoretical aspect requires experimental validation. However, fracture test data on cracked elbows is not so abundant as straight pipes. The earlier experiments on cracked elbows were focused mainly on the determination of limit load. Other fracture parameters e.g. crack growth, crack initiation load or crack opening displacement were not reported in the open literature. Against this backdrop, a comprehensive experimental and theoretical program on component integrity has been initiated at Reactor Safety Division (RSD) of Bhabha Atomic Research Center (BARC), India. Under this program, a number of fracture tests have been carried out on elbows with through wall circumferential/axial cracks subjected to in-plane closing/opening bending moment. These test data are then thoroughly analysed numerically through non-linear finite element analyses, analytically through limit load comparison and also through comparison of crack initiation loads by finite element and R6 methods. These test data may be utilized in future for validation of new theoretical developments in the integrity assessment of through wall cracked elbows.     

Three dimensional virtual crack closure-integral method (VCCM) with skewed and non-symmetric mesh arrangement at the crack front

In this paper, an extension of virtual crack closure-integral method (VCCM) for three dimensional linear fracture mechanics analysis using hexahedron finite elements is presented. In conventional three dimensional VCCM, there are some inherent requirements on the finite element model. They are (i) the faces of finite elements across the crack front have the same areas and (ii) they must be arranged symmetrically across the crack front. In present study, we developed a three dimensional VCCM without such requirements by considering work required to open one element face area whose shape is arbitrary. Though we assume the use of an ordinary 20 node serendipity element, present approach can be applied to other types of hexahedron elements.     

Edge cracks in a transversely isotropic hollow cylinder

The analytical solution for the linear elastic, axisymmetric problem of inner and outer edge cracks in a transversely isotropic infinitely long hollow cylinder is considered. The z = 0 plane on which the crack lies is a plane of symmetry. The loading is uniform crack surface pressure. The mixed boundary value problem is reduced to a singular integral equation where the unknown is the derivative of the crack surface displacement. An asymptotic analysis is done to derive the generalized Cauchy kernel associated with edge cracks. It is shown that the stress intensity factor is a function of three material parameters. The singular integral equation is solved numerically. Stress intensity factors are presented for various values of material and geometric parameters.     

Structural shape optimization using equivalent static loads transformed from dynamic loads

In structural optimization, static loads are generally utilized although real external forces are dynamic. Dynamic loads have been considered only in small‐scale problems. Recently, an algorithm for dynamic response optimization using transformation of dynamic loads into equivalent static loads has been proposed. The transformation is conducted to match the displacement fields from dynamic and static analyses. This algorithm can be applied to large‐scale problems. However, the application has been limited to size optimization. The present study applies the algorithm to shape optimization. Because the number of degrees of freedom of finite element models is usually very large in shape optimization, it is difficult to conduct dynamic response optimization with conventional methods that directly treat dynamic response in the time domain. The optimization process is carried out by interfacing an optimization system and an analysis system for structural dynamics. Various examples are solved to verify the algorithm. The results are compared to the results from static loads. It is found that the algorithm using static loads transformed from dynamic loads based on displacement is valid for very large‐scale shape optimization problems. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Long‐term Reliability Prediction of 935 nm LEDs Using Failure Laws and Low Acceleration Factor Ageing Tests

Numerous papers have already reported various results on electrical and optical performances of GaAs‐based materials for optoelectronic applications. Other papers have proposed some methodologies for a classical estimation of reliability of GaAs compounds using life testing methods on a few thousand samples over 10 000 hours of testing. In contrast, fewer papers have studied the complete relation between degradation laws in relation to failure mechanisms and the estimation of lifetime distribution using accelerated ageing tests considering a short test duration, low acceleration factor and analytical extrapolation. In this paper, we report the results for commercial InGaAs/GaAs 935 nm packaged light emitting diodes (LEDs) using electrical and optical measurements versus ageing time. Cumulative failure distributions are calculated using degradation laws and process distribution data of optical power. A complete methodology is described proposing an accurate reliability model from experimental determination of the failure mechanisms (defect diffusion) for this technology. Electrical and optical characterizations are used with temperature dependence, short‐duration accelerated tests (less than 1500 h) with an increase in bias current (up to 50%), a small number of samples (less than 20) and weak acceleration factors (up to 240). Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Cracked Brazilian disc specimen subjected to mode II deformation

The centrally cracked Brazilian disc specimen has been used by many researchers to study mode I and mode II brittle fracture in different materials. However, the experimental results obtained in the past from this specimen indicate that the fracture toughness ratio (K_IIc/K_Ic) is always significantly higher than the theoretical predictions. It is shown in this paper that the increase in the ratio K_IIc/K_Ic can be predicted if a modified maximum tangential stress (MTS) criterion is used. The modified criterion takes into account the effect of T-stress in addition to the conventional singular stresses. The fracture toughness ratio K_IIc/K_Ic is calculated for two brittle materials using the modified criterion and is compared with the relevant published experimental results obtained from fracture tests on the cracked Brazilian disc specimen. A very good agreement is shown to exist between the theoretical predictions and the experimental results.     

高等院校师生道德失范的成因及对策

近几年来，由于社会环境因素和高等院校内部自身的原因，在部分教师和学生中存在着道德失范问题。要解决高等院校师生的道德失范问题，必须从内、外两个方面着手，紧紧抓住以德育人这一中心，加强法制建设和思想政治教育，从制度上规范广大师生的道德行为，使高等院校的道德建设取得令人满意的成果。     

并联型有源电力滤波器的控制

分析了并联型有源电力滤波器的常规控制方法，提出了并联型有源电力滤波器的新的控制策略及具体的控制方法，并对所提出的控制方法进行了计算机仿真，仿真结果证明了该方法的正确性。以80C196MC单片机为核心，设计了一套实验装置，实验结果证实了该方法在实际中的可行性以及并联型有源电力滤波器所具有的良好的补偿特性。     

碎石桩复合地基稳定性塑性极限分析法

基于塑性力学极限分析上限定理，建立了复合地基平移、转动相结合的破坏机构．根据外部作用荷载和土体自重所做的外功率等于地基变形所消耗的内部能量耗损率，求得了碎石桩复合地基稳定安全系数计算公式．工程算例分析表明，该方法对于碎石桩复合地基的稳定性分析具有一定实际意义．     

基于自适应收缩因子的SAR图像去噪

针对合成孔径雷达 (SAR)图像固有的斑点噪声 ,提出了基于自适应收缩因子的去噪方法 .该方法首先将图像分解至平稳小波域 ,利用与信号相关小波系数的空间及尺度相关性 ,自适应地得到收缩因子 ,修正小波系数 .与基于Mallat分解的阈值去噪及Wiener滤波相比 ,该方法在有效抑制SAR图像噪声的同时 ,较好地保持了图像边缘细节 ,达到了理想的去噪效果