Preparation and Characterization of Electrosprayed Aerogel/Polytetrafluoroethylene Microporous Materials

This paper presents the preparation of aerogel/polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) microporous materials via needleless electrospray technique, by using an aqueous dispersion of polytetrafluoroethylene as the basic spinning liquid. Different contents of aerogel powders were applied to the spinning liquid for electrospraying to investigate the effect on the structural characteristics and various properties of the materials. Cross-section, surface morphology, and particle size distribution of the electrosprayed materials were examined. Surface roughness, hydrophobicity, and thermal conductivity were evaluated and discussed. The results showed that the electrosprayed aerogel/PTFE layers were compact and disordered stacking structures composed of spherical particles with a rough surface. As the aerogel content increased, the electrosprayed materials demonstrated increased surface roughness and improved surface hydrophobicity with a contact angle up to 147.88°. In addition, the successful achievement of thermal conductivity as low as 0.024 (W m−1 K−1) indicated a superior ability of the prepared aerogel/PTFE composites to prevent heat transfer. This study contributes to the field of development of aerogel/PTFE composites via electrospray technique, providing enhanced final performance for potential use as thermal and moisture barriers in textiles or electronic devices.

Criterion for the occurrence of the macro destruction and formation of breaking during metal deformation

When generalizing the geometrically nonlinear law of Murnaghan elasticity to plasticity, a formally mathematical criterion was introduced for deformational macrofracture (macrocrack appearance) associated with an increase in elastic and plastic anisotropy as a failure cause. The use of the double potentiality of the governing equations in stresses and their velocities made it possible to obtain the reliable information on the structure of the deviatory section of the yield surface, the existence of which is a classical hypothesis in solid mechanics. The normal vector to the surface of the deviatory section is selected from two mutually orthogonal eigenvectors of the constructed operator. There are two families of regular concave surfaces, and a section surface is formed by joining the parts of two representatives of the families at singular points. To select normal vectors, the obtained ratio for them is used for isotropy. In connection with the considered problem of a double simple shift, it is established that multiple eigenvalues appear for the both normal vectors. To unambiguously determine the normal vector at a regular point, it is necessary to exclude the presence of multiple eigenvalues for the both normal vectors at the same time. At a singular point, the appearance of a multiple eigenvalue of one of the normal vectors is still unacceptable. These two conditions are necessary and sufficient to validate the governing equations of the generalized Murnaghan model. Otherwise, a macrocrack occurs. The theoretical construction is supported by the developed software complexes.

Introduction to this special section: Surface-wave applications

The use of surface waves can be found at all levels of seismology, from the near surface to exploration to earthquakes. Once the scourge of reflection processing, the need to remove this coherent noise source led to a variety of in-field techniques to minimize its impact, including the application of geophone arrays, low-cut analog filters, and high-frequency geophones, not to mention the multitude of processing schemes devised to reduce surface-wave amplitudes after data collection. Although commonly labeled as noise, surface waves have proven to be versatile and resilient over the years, lending themselves to engineering applications in the shallow subsurface and developing velocity models to improve complex imaging in the oil and gas sector. This special section includes six papers that are equally representative, running the gamut from the first few meters of the surface to hundreds of meters deep. It includes examples of active and passive acquisition, modeling and field data, as well as geophones and fiber-optic sensors.

Experimental Evidence of Specimen-Size Effects on EN-AW6082 Aluminum Alloy in VHCF Regime

The present paper investigates the influence of the specimen size of EN-AW6082 wrought aluminium alloy subjected to very high cycle fatigue (VHCF) tests. The hourglass specimens were tested under fully reversed loading condition, up to 109 cycles, by means of the ultrasonic fatigue testing machine developed by Italsigma® (Italy). Three specimens groups were considered, with a diameter in the middle cross-section ranging from 3 mm up to 12 mm. The stress field in the specimens was determined numerically and by strain gauge measurements in correspondence of the cross-section surface. The dispersion of experimental results has been accounted for, and data are reported in P-S-N diagrams. The decrease in fatigue resistance with increasing specimen size is evident. Theoretical explanation for the observed specimen-size effect is provided, based on Fractal Geometry concepts, allowing to obtain scale independent P-S*-N curves. The fatigue life expectation in the VHCF regime of the EN-AW6082 aluminium alloy full-scale components is rather overestimated if it is assessed only from standard small specimens of 3 mm in diameter. Experimental tests carried out on larger specimens, and a proper extrapolation, are required to assure safe structural design.

Experimental Evidence of Specimen-Size Effects on EN-AW6082 Aluminum Alloy in VHCF Regime

The present paper investigates the influence of the specimen size of EN-AW6082 wrought aluminium alloy subjected to very high cycle fatigue (VHCF) tests. The hourglass specimens were tested under fully reversed loading condition, up to 10^9 cycles, by means of the ultrasonic fatigue testing machine developed by Italsigma® (Italy). Three specimens groups were considered, with a diameter in the middle cross-section ranging from 3 mm up to 12 mm. The stress field in the specimens was determined numerically and by strain gauge measurements in correspondence of the cross-section surface. The dispersion of experimental results has been accounted for, and data are reported in P-S-N diagrams. The decrease in fatigue resistance with increasing specimen size is evident. Theoretical explanation for the observed specimen-size effect is provided, based on Fractal Geometry concepts, allowing to obtain scale independent P-S*-N curves. The fatigue life expectation in the VHCF regime of the EN-AW6082 aluminium alloy full-scale components is rather overestimated if it is assessed only from standard small specimens of 3 mm in diameter. Experimental tests carried out on larger specimen, and a proper extrapolation, are required to assure safe structural design.

Multiple-Phase Biometric Relationships and Sexual Maturity in the Atlantic Bluefin Tuna, Thunnus thynnus (Osteichthyes: Scombridae)

Most fish undergo distinct growth phases during ontogenesis. An extremely important passage from the juvenile to adult phase occurs at the onset of sexual maturity, which shows in body proportion and/or growth rate changes. These can be detected as change-points in biometric relationships. In this paper, the Atlantic bluefin tuna was analyzed to verify whether its somatic proportions show any sign of discontinuity during growth, i.e., whether any change-points may be detected in its somatic proportions. This fish has never been examined in this respect, and single-phase models, which are indeed easier to both compute and apply, are used in stock analyses. The following somatic relationships were analyzed in Atlantic bluefin tuna captured in the Mediterranean Sea between 1998 and 2010: “fork length–weight” regression, the von Bertalanffy growth equation, and “first dorsal spine cross section surface–fork length” regression. All of the examined relationships were found to be best modelled by multiple-phase regression equations, and all of them showed a change-point within the range of 101–110 cm fork length, which corresponds to 3–4 years of age. The present results, based on reproductive state-independent analyses, corroborate the disputed hypothesis that Atlantic bluefin tuna from the eastern stock in fact reproduce for the first time at this age.

Easy Trends to Analyse Structural Profiles: Lumped Capacitance Vs Simplified Equation

This work presents the calculation of the temperature in different cross-sections of structural profiles (IPE, HEM, L and UAP) using the lumped capacitance method and the simplified equation from Eurocode 3 part 1-2. The lumped capacitance method allows the temperature calculation of the solid body at any time instant during the heat transient process, as a constant and uniform value. The simplified equation from Eurocode 3 part 1-2 is a simple model for heat transfer based on the uniformly distributed temperature over the cross-section surface and directly proportional to section factor of the element. Steel profiles have as almost thermal behaviour uniform during the heat transfer process when submitted to fire conditions and the lumped capacitance method allows a great simplification to estimate the temperature field in the element and may be used when Biot number is lower than unity. Therefore, thermal analysis of solids with high thermal conductivity using this method is adequate. For the studied steel profiles, a thermal analysis was also performed using the simplified equation from the Eurocode 3 part 1-2 in order to validate the obtained results from the lumped capacitance method. The results from both methods are presented for discussion and analysis.