FOAMING AND MOISTURE CROSSLINKING OF VINYL TRIETHOXY SILANE GRAFTED ETHYLENE–PROPYLENE–DIENE TERPOLYMER

ABSTRACT Moisture crosslinking of polyolefins has attracted increasing attention because of its high efficiency, low cost, and easy processing. However, the crucial shortcoming of moisture crosslinking is that the side reaction of peroxide scorch (precrosslinking) simultaneously occurs in silane grafting. It has been recognized that making peroxide precrosslinking useful is an effective way to broaden the application of moisture crosslinking. A novel foaming process combined with moisture crosslinking is proposed. The matrix of ethylene–propylene–diene terpolymer grafted with silane vinyl triethoxysilane (EPDM-g-VTES) was prepared by melt grafting, with dicumyl peroxide as initiator. Foaming was then carried out with azodicarbonamide (AC) as the blowing agent by making use of precrosslinking. Subsequently, the EPDM-g-VTES foams were immersed in a water bath to achieve moisture crosslinking with dibutyl tin dilaurate as the catalyst. The results showed that VTES was grafted onto EPDM and the EPDM-g-VTES foams were successfully crosslinked by moisture. The EPDM-g-VTES compounds with AC obtained great cells by compression molding with the help of precrosslinking. The mechanical property of the EPDM-g-VTES foam was improved by moisture crosslinking. The moisture-cured foam with 4 wt% AC had an expansion ratio of about three times, which could bear large deformation and showed a high energy-absorption effect.

Numerical analysis of safety distances of reinforced concrete structures subjected to blast loading by Perform-3D

Purpose The purpose of this study is to develop the performance model of buildings designed by the seismic code 2800 against the explosion wave and determination of safety distance. Design/methodology/approach Analytical models of three-, five- and ten story structures that used moment frame system and also a ten-storey building with shaer wall designed based on the seismic code 2800 in term of design and nonlinear analysis were generated for use with Perform-3D software. Extensive parametric analysis is executed on different explosive loads with 100, 500, 1,000 and 5,000 Trinitrotoluene, soil types 2 and 3, models eqs and eqbs, the number of story buildings and the effect of shear wall to determine the safety distance based on collapse threshold performance (CP) level criterion. Findings The results indicate that by increasing the explosives mass from 100 to 5,000 kg and the number of the stories three and five induce increasing the safety distance of CP level in buildings to 4.5 meter and 3 meter times, respectively. Ten-story structures modeled on shear wall show very good performance because of stiffness rising and high energy absorption. In addition, by increasing the stories from five to ten, the amount of the safety distance reduces the CP level to 3.9 meter times. Originality/value The results of this work are meaningful for explosion-resistant design and damage assessments of reinforced concrete moment framed structures subjected to explosive explosion.

Effectiveness of Banana Trunk as Protection Wall from High Velocity Shrapnel During Detonation of Unexploded Ordnance (UXO)

This paper is to investigate banana trunk fibre to be constructed alternatively for the sand bag and high energy absorption. The aim of this study also for enhancing method of absorption velocity shrapnel during detonated of Unexploded Ordnance (UXO), Explosive Remnants of War (ERW) and Improvise Explosive Device (IED). The study involved blast test which is providing high energy impact based on the amount of explosive used. Type of explosive were used are Emulex 180 with velocity of detonation 4500m/s to 5700m/s, Explosive energy 4.17 MJ/kg, density 1.13g/cc to 1.21g/cc and initiation were used are No. 8 Detonator. The structure of specimen is analysed using Stereo Microscope Image Analyser (35x zoom) which is an optical instrument that can observe the structure of the fragments (banana fibre) after blast test. Results shows that banana trunk can become a protection wall as it can absorb the impact of blast from explosion.

Analysis of Nonlinear Cyclically Symmetric Isolation Sistem of a Cargo in a Container under Plane Harmonic Vibrations

The problem of calculating the system of a cylindrical shaped load transverse damping installed in a coaxial container is considered. This system has several annular belts of insulation with a cyclically symmetric arrangement of shock absorbers along the circumferential direction. A simple dynamic model of one insulation belt formed by polyurethane tunnel-type shock absorbers is investigated. Such shock absorbers have a high energy absorption coefficient and can operate at very high drafts comparable to their height, which is important when the space between the cargo and the container wall is limited. Within the proposed model framework, a harmonic nonlinear analysis of cargo plane oscillations under kinematic excitation coming from the container is considered. A method for reducing a nonlinear cyclically symmetric system with discrete elastic elements, which allows limiting the analysis to the calculation of a vibration isolation system with one degree of freedom, is proposed. Using the harmonic linearization procedure, the amplitude-frequency characteristics of oscillations and plots of vibration isolation coefficients of cargo at different values of excitation amplitude have been obtained. The results are verified by comparing the analytical solution with the results of numerical integration for a non-reduced nonlinear system with two degrees of freedom. The obtained solution allows choosing the vibration isolation belt parameters, in particular the number of shock absorbers and their stiffness, depending on the conditions of kinematic excitation and permissible overload

Soft-Landing Dynamic Analysis of a Manned Lunar Lander Em-Ploying Energy Absorption Materials of Carbon Nanotube Buckypaper

With the rapid development of the aerospace field, traditional energy absorption materials are becoming more and more inadequate and cannot meet the requirements of having a light weight, high energy absorption efficiency, and high energy absorption density. Since existing studies have shown that carbon nanotube (CNT) buckypaper is a promising candidate for energy absorption, owing to its extremely high energy absorption efficiency and remarkable mass density of energy absorption, this study explores the application of buckypaper as the landing buffer material in a manned lunar lander. Firstly, coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations were implemented to investigate the compression stress-strain relationships of buckypapers with different densities and the effect of the compression rate within the range of the landing velocity. Then, based on a self-designed manned lunar lander, buckypapers of appropriate densities were selected to be the energy absorption materials within the landing mechanisms of the lander. For comparison, suitable aluminum honeycomb materials, the most common energy absorption materials in lunar landers, were determined for the same landing mechanisms. Afterwards, the two soft-landing multibody dynamic models are established, respectively, and their soft-landing performances under three severe landing cases are analyzed, respectively. The results depicted that the landers, respectively, adopting the two energy absorption materials well, satisfy the soft-landing performance requirements in all the cases. It is worth mentioning that the lander employing the buckypaper is proved to demonstrate a better soft-landing performance, mainly reflected in reducing the mass of the energy absorption element by 8.14 kg and lowing the maximum center-of-mass overload of the lander by 0.54 g.

Development of an Aluminum-Based Hybrid Billet Material for the Process-Integrated Foaming of Hollow Co-Extrusions

Metal foams are attractive for lightweight construction in the automotive sector since they provide high-energy absorption and good damping properties, which is crucial, e.g., for crash structures. Currently, however, foams are produced separately and then pasted into the components. Consequently, the overall mechanical properties depend significantly on the quality of the adhesive bond between the foam and the structural component. A new process route for the manufacture of hybrid foamed hollow aluminum profiles is proposed. In this approach, a foamable precursor material is directly integrated into the extrusion process of the hollow structural profile. To this end, special low-melting alloys were developed in this study to enable foaming inside the aluminum profile. The melting intervals of these alloys were examined using differential scanning calorimetry. One of the promising AlZnSi alloys was atomized, mixed with a foaming agent and then compacted into semi-finished products for subsequent co-extrusion. The foaming behavior, which was investigated by means of X-ray microscopy, is shown to depend primarily on the mass fraction of the foaming agent as well as the heat treatment parameters. The results demonstrate that both the melting interval and the foaming behavior of AlZn22Si6 make this particular alloy a suitable candidate for the desired process chain.

Connection between Sinc Approximation for High-Energy Absorption Cross Section and Shadow of Black Holes

This letter aims to show the connection between the sinc approximation for high-energy absorption cross section and the shadow radius of the spherically symmetric black hole. This connection can give a physical interpretation of the absorption cross section in the eikonal limit parameters. Moreover, the use of this alternative way, one can extract its shadow radius from the absorption cross section in high energy limits to gain more information about the black hole spacetime. Our results indicate that the increasing the value of the shadow radius of the black hole, exponentially increase the the absorption cross section of the black hole in high-energy limits which can be captured by the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) collaboration.

Twist and lock: nutshell structures for high strength and energy absorption

Nutshells achieve remarkable properties by optimizing structure and chemistry at different hierarchical levels. Probing nutshells from the cellular down to the nano- and molecular level by microchemical and nanomechanical imaging techniques reveals insights into nature's packing concepts. In walnut and pistachio shells, carbohydrate and lignin polymers assemble to form thick-walled puzzle cells, which interlock three-dimensionally and show high tissue strength. Pistachio additionally achieves high-energy absorption by numerous lobes interconnected via ball-joint-like structures. By contrast, the three times more lignified walnut shells show brittle LEGO-brick failure, often along the numerous pit channels. In both species, cell walls (CWs) show distinct lamellar structures. These lamellae involve a helicoidal arrangement of cellulose macrofibrils as a recurring motif. Between the two nutshell species, these lamellae show differences in thickness and pitch angle, which can explain the different mechanical properties on the nanolevel. Our in-depth study of the two nutshell tissues highlights the role of cell form and their interlocking as well as plant CW composition and structure for mechanical protection. Understanding these plant shell concepts might inspire biomimetic material developments as well as using walnut and pistachio shell waste as sustainable raw material in future applications.

Dynamic Performance Evaluation of Concrete Building Using Low-Yield Point Steel Shear Panels

Steel shear walls are a novel component in the field of construction. It has been of special interest to structural engineers for the reinforcement of steel buildings for the recent decades. Its unique features have attracted more attention, and its features are economical, easy to implement, light weight compared to similar systems, high ductility, fast installation, high energy absorption, and a significant reduction in residual stress in the structure. All the reasons made researchers think about studying its use in the repair of concrete buildings. Because this system has a low weight, it does not add extra load to the structure, and even with its connections, it strengthens the beams and columns around it. The design of this system in concrete buildings does not seem to be economical except in the case of restoration. In this paper, preliminary explanations of the steel shear wall are presented for more familiarity, and in the following sections, the study of reinforcement and repair of concrete structures will be studied and its difference with the low-yield point will be considered. Finally, the test results will be reviewed. The results of this study show that LYP steel shear panels cause a lot of energy loss and absorption, which is very useful in the safety of buildings exposed to severe earthquakes.

Mechanical Properties of Cemented Particulate Composite: A 3D Micromechanical Model

Cemented particulate composite is a kind of composite material with high strength, high energy absorption, and multifunctional characteristics, which is widely used in engineering practice. The calculation of the mechanical properties of granular composites based on theoretical methods has always been a topic of discussion. A micromechanical model with a three-dimensional rigid beam-spring network (3D-RBSN) is proposed here. The stiffness matrix of the model was calculated theoretically. The model was applied to the analysis of the mechanical properties of composites material with glass beads and epoxy resin. The results indicate that the 3D-RBSN model can effectively predict the mechanical properties of composite materials, such as Young’s modulus and Poisson’s ratio. Furthermore, the damage evolution process of cemented particulate composite with initial defects was analyzed based on the 3D-RBSN model.