Matching Items (78)
Filtering by

Clear all filters

154112-Thumbnail Image.png
Description
In this thesis, an approach to develop low-frequency accelerometer based on molecular electronic transducers (MET) in an electrochemical cell is presented. Molecular electronic transducers are a class of inertial sensors which are based on an electrochemical mechanism. Motion sensors based on MET technology consist of an electrochemical cell that

In this thesis, an approach to develop low-frequency accelerometer based on molecular electronic transducers (MET) in an electrochemical cell is presented. Molecular electronic transducers are a class of inertial sensors which are based on an electrochemical mechanism. Motion sensors based on MET technology consist of an electrochemical cell that can be used to detect the movement of liquid electrolyte between electrodes by converting it to an output current. Seismometers based on MET technology are attractive for planetary applications due to their high sensitivity, low noise, small size and independence on the direction of sensitivity axis. In addition, the fact that MET based sensors have a liquid inertial mass with no moving parts makes them rugged and shock tolerant (basic survivability has been demonstrated to >20 kG).

A Zn-Cu electrochemical cell (Galvanic cell) was applied in the low-frequency accelerometer. Experimental results show that external vibrations (range from 18 to 70 Hz) were successfully detected by this accelerometer as reactions Zn→〖Zn〗^(2+)+2e^- occurs around the anode and 〖Cu〗^(2+)+2e^-→Cu around the cathode. Accordingly, the sensitivity of this MET device design is to achieve 10.4 V/G at 18 Hz. And the sources of noise have been analyzed.
ContributorsZhao, Zuofeng (Author) / Yu, Hongyu (Thesis advisor) / Zhang, Junshan (Committee member) / Jiang, Hanqing (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2015
153941-Thumbnail Image.png
Description
Hydrogen embrittlement (HE) is a phenomenon that affects both the physical and chemical properties of several intrinsically ductile metals. Consequently, understanding the mechanisms behind HE has been of particular interest in both experimental and modeling research. Discrepancies between experimental observations and modeling results have led to various proposals for HE

Hydrogen embrittlement (HE) is a phenomenon that affects both the physical and chemical properties of several intrinsically ductile metals. Consequently, understanding the mechanisms behind HE has been of particular interest in both experimental and modeling research. Discrepancies between experimental observations and modeling results have led to various proposals for HE mechanisms. Therefore, to gain insights into HE mechanisms in iron, this dissertation aims to investigate several key issues involving HE such as: a) the incipient crack tip events; b) the cohesive strength of grain boundaries (GBs); c) the dislocation-GB interactions and d) the dislocation mobility.

The crack tip, which presents a preferential trap site for hydrogen segregation, was examined using atomistic methods and the continuum based Rice-Thompson criterion as sufficient concentration of hydrogen can alter the crack tip deformation mechanism. Results suggest that there is a plausible co-existence of the adsorption induced dislocation emission and hydrogen enhanced decohesion mechanisms. In the case of GB-hydrogen interaction, we observed that the segregation of hydrogen along the interface leads to a reduction in cohesive strength resulting in intergranular failure. A methodology was further developed to quantify the role of the GB structure on this behavior.

GBs play a fundamental role in determining the strengthening mechanisms acting as an impediment to the dislocation motion; however, the presence of an unsurmountable barrier for a dislocation can generate slip localization that could further lead to intergranular crack initiation. It was found that the presence of hydrogen increases the strain energy stored within the GB which could lead to a transition in failure mode. Finally, in the case of body centered cubic metals, understanding the complex screw dislocation motion is critical to the development of an accurate continuum description of the plastic behavior. Further, the presence of hydrogen has been shown to drastically alter the plastic deformation, but the precise role of hydrogen is still unclear. Thus, the role of hydrogen on the dislocation mobility was examined using density functional theory and atomistic simulations. Overall, this dissertation provides a novel atomic-scale understanding of the HE mechanism and development of multiscale tools for future endeavors.
ContributorsAdlakha, Ilaksh (Author) / Solanki, Kiran (Thesis advisor) / Mignolet, Marc (Committee member) / Chawla, Nikhilesh (Committee member) / Jiang, Hanqing (Committee member) / Liu, Yongming (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2015
153898-Thumbnail Image.png
Description
Soft magnetic materials have been studied extensively in the recent past due to their applications in micro-transformers, micro-inductors, spin dependent memories etc. The unique features of these materials are the high frequency operability and high magnetic anisotropy. High uniaxial anisotropy is one of the most important properties for these materials.

Soft magnetic materials have been studied extensively in the recent past due to their applications in micro-transformers, micro-inductors, spin dependent memories etc. The unique features of these materials are the high frequency operability and high magnetic anisotropy. High uniaxial anisotropy is one of the most important properties for these materials. There are many methods to achieve high anisotropy energy (Hk) which include sputtering with presence of magnetic field, exchange bias and oblique angle sputtering.

This research project focuses on analyzing different growth techniques of thin films of Cobalt, Zirconium Tantalum Boron (CZTB) and the quality of the films resulted. The measurements include magnetic moment measurements using a Vibrating Sample Magnetometer, electrical measurements using 4 point resistivity methods and structural characterization using Scanning Electron Microscopy. Subtle changes in the growth mechanism result in different properties of these films and they are most suited for certain applications.

The growth methods presented in this research are oblique angled sputtering with localized magnetic field and oblique sputtering without presence of magnetic field. The uniaxial anisotropy can be controlled by changing the angle during sputtering. The resulting film of CZTB is tested for magnetic anisotropy and soft magnetism at room temperature by using Lakeshore 7500 Vibrating Sample Magnetometer. The results are presented, analyzed and explained using characterization techniques. Future work includes magnetic field presence during deposition, magnetic devices of this film with giga hertz range operating frequencies.
ContributorsTummalapalli, Sridutt (Author) / Yu, Hongbin (Thesis advisor) / Jiang, Hanqing (Committee member) / Yu, Shimeng (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2015
156144-Thumbnail Image.png
Description
This dissertation will investigate two of the most promising high-capacity anode

materials for lithium-based batteries: silicon (Si) and metal lithium (Li). It will focus on

studying the mechanical behaviors of the two materials during charge and discharge and

understanding how these mechanical behaviors may affect their electrochemical

performance.

In

This dissertation will investigate two of the most promising high-capacity anode

materials for lithium-based batteries: silicon (Si) and metal lithium (Li). It will focus on

studying the mechanical behaviors of the two materials during charge and discharge and

understanding how these mechanical behaviors may affect their electrochemical

performance.

In the first part, amorphous Si anode will be studied. Despite many existing studies

on silicon (Si) anodes for lithium ion batteries (LIBs), many essential questions still exist

on compound formation, composition, and properties. Here it is shown that some

previously accepted findings do not truthfully reflect the actual lithiation mechanisms in

realistic battery configurations. Furthermore the correlation between structure and

mechanical properties in these materials has not been properly established. Here, a rigorous

and thorough study is performed to comprehensively understand the electrochemical

reaction mechanisms of amorphous-Si (a-Si) in a realistic LIB configuration. In-depth

microstructural characterization was performed and correlations were established between

Li-Si composition, volumetric expansion, and modulus/hardness. It is found that the

lithiation process of a-Si in a real battery setup is a single-phase reaction rather than the

accepted two-phase reaction obtained from in-situ TEM experiments. The findings in this

dissertation establish a reference to quantitatively explain many key metrics for lithiated a

Si as anodes in real LIBs, and can be used to rationally design a-Si based high-performance

LIBs guided by high-fidelity modeling and simulations.

In the second part, Li metal anode will be investigated. Problems related to dendrite

growth on lithium metal anodes such as capacity loss and short circuit present major

barriers to the next-generation high-energy-density batteries. The development of

successful mitigation strategies is impeded by the incomplete understanding of the Li

dendrite growth mechanisms. Here the enabling role of plating residual stress in dendrite

initiation through novel experiments of Li electrodeposition on soft substrates is confirmed,

and the observations is explained with a stress-driven dendrite growth model. Dendrite

growth is mitigated on such soft substrates through surface-wrinkling-induced stress

relaxation in deposited Li film. It is demonstrated that this new dendrite mitigation

mechanism can be utilized synergistically with other existing approaches in the form of

three-dimensional (3D) soft scaffolds for Li plating, which achieves superior coulombic

efficiency over conventional hard copper current collectors under large current density.
ContributorsWang, Xu (Author) / Jiang, Hanqing (Thesis advisor) / Yu, Hongbin (Thesis advisor) / Chan, Candace (Committee member) / Wang, Liping (Committee member) / Qiong, Nian (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2018
156146-Thumbnail Image.png
Description
Energy harvesting from ambient is important to configuring Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) for environmental data collecting. In this work, highly flexible thermoelectric generators (TEGs) have been studied and fabricated to supply power to the wireless sensor notes used for data collecting in hot spring environment. The fabricated flexible TEGs can

Energy harvesting from ambient is important to configuring Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) for environmental data collecting. In this work, highly flexible thermoelectric generators (TEGs) have been studied and fabricated to supply power to the wireless sensor notes used for data collecting in hot spring environment. The fabricated flexible TEGs can be easily deployed on the uneven surface of heated rocks at the rim of hot springs. By employing the temperature gradient between the hot rock surface and the air, these TEGs can generate power to extend the battery lifetime of the sensor notes and therefore reduce multiple batteries changes where the environment is usually harsh in hot springs. Also, they show great promise for self-powered wireless sensor notes. Traditional thermoelectric material bismuth telluride (Bi2Te3) and advanced MEMS (Microelectromechanical systems) thin film techniques were used for the fabrication. Test results show that when a flexible TEG array with an area of 3.4cm2 was placed on the hot plate surface of 80°C in the air under room temperature, it had an open circuit voltage output of 17.6mV and a short circuit current output of 0.53mA. The generated power was approximately 7mW/m2.

On the other hand, high pressure, temperatures that can reach boiling, and the pH of different hot springs ranging from <2 to >9 make hot spring ecosystem a unique environment that is difficult to study. WSN allows many scientific studies in harsh environments that are not feasible with traditional instrumentation. However, wireless pH sensing for long time in situ data collection is still challenging for two reasons. First, the existing commercial-off-the-shelf pH meters are frequent calibration dependent; second, biofouling causes significant measurement error and drift. In this work, 2-dimentional graphene pH sensors were studied and calibration free graphene pH sensor prototypes were fabricated. Test result shows the resistance of the fabricated device changes linearly with the pH values (in the range of 3-11) in the surrounding liquid environment. Field tests show graphene layer greatly prevented the microbial fouling. Therefore, graphene pH sensors are promising candidates that can be effectively used for wireless pH sensing in exploration of hot spring ecosystems.
ContributorsHan, Ruirui (Author) / Yu, Hongyu (Thesis advisor) / Jiang, Hanqing (Committee member) / Yu, Hongbin (Committee member) / Garnero, Edward (Committee member) / Li, Mingming (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2018
156272-Thumbnail Image.png
Description
With the maturity of advanced composites as feasible structural materials for various applications there is a critical need to solve the challenge of designing these material systems for optimal performance. However, determining superior design methods requires a deep understanding of the material-structure properties at various length scales. Due to the

With the maturity of advanced composites as feasible structural materials for various applications there is a critical need to solve the challenge of designing these material systems for optimal performance. However, determining superior design methods requires a deep understanding of the material-structure properties at various length scales. Due to the length-scale dependent behavior of advanced composites, multiscale modeling techniques may be used to describe the dominant mechanisms of damage and failure in these material systems. With polymer matrix fiber composites and nanocomposites it becomes essential to include even the atomic length scale, where the resin-hardener-nanofiller molecules interact, in the multiscale modeling framework. Additionally, sources of variability are also critical to be included in these models due to the important role of uncertainty in advance composite behavior. Such a methodology should be able to describe length scale dependent mechanisms in a computationally efficient manner for the analysis of practical composite structures.

In the research presented in this dissertation, a comprehensive nano to macro multiscale framework is developed for the mechanical and multifunctional analysis of advanced composite materials and structures. An atomistically informed statistical multiscale model is developed for linear problems, to estimate and scale elastic properties of carbon fiber reinforced polymer composites (CFRPs) and carbon nanotube (CNT) enhanced CFRPs using information from molecular dynamics simulation of the resin-hardener-nanofiller nanoscale system. For modeling inelastic processes, an atomistically informed coupled damage-plasticity model is developed using the framework of continuum damage mechanics, where fundamental nanoscale covalent bond disassociation information is scaled up as a continuum scale damage identifying parameter. This damage model is coupled with a nanocomposite microstructure generation algorithm to study the sub-microscale damage mechanisms in CNT/CFRP microstructures. It is further integrated in a generalized method of cells (GMC) micromechanics model to create a low-fidelity computationally efficient nonlinear multiscale method with imperfect interfaces between the fiber and matrix, where the interface behavior is adopted from nanoscale MD simulations. This algorithm is used to understand damage mechanisms in adhesively bonded composite joints as a case study for the comprehensive nano to macroscale structural analysis of practical composites structures. At each length scale sources of variability are identified, characterized, and included in the multiscale modeling framework.
ContributorsRai, Ashwin (Author) / Chattopadhyay, Aditi (Thesis advisor) / Dai, Lenore (Committee member) / Jiang, Hanqing (Committee member) / Rajadas, John (Committee member) / Fard, Masoud Yekani (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2018
156788-Thumbnail Image.png
Description
Multiaxial mechanical fatigue of heterogeneous materials has been a significant cause of concern in the aerospace, civil and automobile industries for decades, limiting the service life of structural components while increasing time and costs associated with inspection and maintenance. Fiber reinforced composites and light-weight aluminum alloys are widely used in

Multiaxial mechanical fatigue of heterogeneous materials has been a significant cause of concern in the aerospace, civil and automobile industries for decades, limiting the service life of structural components while increasing time and costs associated with inspection and maintenance. Fiber reinforced composites and light-weight aluminum alloys are widely used in aerospace structures that require high specific strength and fatigue resistance. However, studying the fundamental crack growth behavior at the micro- and macroscale as a function of loading history is essential to accurately predict the residual fatigue life of components and achieve damage tolerant designs. The issue of mechanical fatigue can be tackled by developing reliable in-situ damage quantification methodologies and by comprehensively understanding fatigue damage mechanisms under a variety of complex loading conditions. Although a multitude of uniaxial fatigue loading studies have been conducted on light-weight metallic materials and composites, many service failures occur from components being subjected to variable amplitude, mixed-mode multiaxial fatigue loadings. In this research, a systematic approach is undertaken to address the issue of fatigue damage evolution in aerospace materials by:

(i) Comprehensive investigation of micro- and macroscale crack growth behavior in aerospace grade Al 7075 T651 alloy under complex biaxial fatigue loading conditions. The effects of variable amplitude biaxial loading on crack growth characteristics such as crack acceleration and retardation were studied in detail by exclusively analyzing the influence of individual mode-I, mixed-mode and mode-II overload and underload fatigue cycles in an otherwise constant amplitude mode-I baseline load spectrum. The micromechanisms governing crack growth behavior under the complex biaxial loading conditions were identified and correlated with the crack growth behavior and fracture surface morphology through quantitative fractography.

(ii) Development of novel multifunctional nanocomposite materials with improved fatigue resistance and in-situ fatigue damage detection and quantification capabilities. A state-of-the-art processing method was developed for producing sizable carbon nanotube (CNT) membranes for multifunctional composites. The CNT membranes were embedded in glass fiber laminates and in-situ strain sensing and damage quantification was achieved by exploiting the piezoresistive property of the CNT membrane. In addition, improved resistance to fatigue crack growth was observed due to the embedded CNT membrane.
ContributorsDatta, Siddhant (Author) / Chattopadhyay, Aditi (Thesis advisor) / Liu, Yongming (Committee member) / Jiang, Hanqing (Committee member) / Marvi, Hamidreza (Committee member) / Tang, Pingbo (Committee member) / Yekani Fard, Masoud (Committee member) / Iyyer, Nagaraja (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2018
157108-Thumbnail Image.png
Description
This dissertation presents the development of structural health monitoring and prognostic health management methodologies for complex structures and systems in the field of mechanical engineering. To overcome various challenges historically associated with complex structures and systems such as complicated sensing mechanisms, noisy information, and large-size datasets, a hybrid monitoring framework

This dissertation presents the development of structural health monitoring and prognostic health management methodologies for complex structures and systems in the field of mechanical engineering. To overcome various challenges historically associated with complex structures and systems such as complicated sensing mechanisms, noisy information, and large-size datasets, a hybrid monitoring framework comprising of solid mechanics concepts and data mining technologies is developed. In such a framework, the solid mechanics simulations provide additional intuitions to data mining techniques reducing the dependence of accuracy on the training set, while the data mining approaches fuse and interpret information from the targeted system enabling the capability for real-time monitoring with efficient computation.

In the case of structural health monitoring, ultrasonic guided waves are utilized for damage identification and localization in complex composite structures. Signal processing and data mining techniques are integrated into the damage localization framework, and the converted wave modes, which are induced by the thickness variation due to the presence of delamination, are used as damage indicators. This framework has been validated through experiments and has shown sufficient accuracy in locating delamination in X-COR sandwich composites without the need of baseline information. Besides the localization of internal damage, the Gaussian process machine learning technique is integrated with finite element method as an online-offline prediction model to predict crack propagation with overloads under biaxial loading conditions; such a probabilistic prognosis model, with limited number of training examples, has shown increased accuracy over state-of-the-art techniques in predicting crack retardation behaviors induced by overloads. In the case of system level management, a monitoring framework built using a multivariate Gaussian model as basis is developed to evaluate the anomalous condition of commercial aircrafts. This method has been validated using commercial airline data and has shown high sensitivity to variations in aircraft dynamics and pilot operations. Moreover, this framework was also tested on simulated aircraft faults and its feasibility for real-time monitoring was demonstrated with sufficient computation efficiency.

This research is expected to serve as a practical addition to the existing literature while possessing the potential to be adopted in realistic engineering applications.
ContributorsLi, Guoyi (Ph.D.) (Author) / Chattopadhyay, Aditi (Thesis advisor) / Mignolet, Marc (Committee member) / Papandreou-Suppappola, Antonia (Committee member) / Yekani Fard, Masoud (Committee member) / Jiang, Hanqing (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2019
157301-Thumbnail Image.png
Description
This investigation focuses on the development of uncertainty modeling methods applicable to both the structural and thermal models of heated structures as part of an effort to enable the design under uncertainty of hypersonic vehicles. The maximum entropy-based nonparametric stochastic modeling approach is used within the context of coupled structural-thermal

This investigation focuses on the development of uncertainty modeling methods applicable to both the structural and thermal models of heated structures as part of an effort to enable the design under uncertainty of hypersonic vehicles. The maximum entropy-based nonparametric stochastic modeling approach is used within the context of coupled structural-thermal Reduced Order Models (ROMs). Not only does this strategy allow for a computationally efficient generation of samples of the structural and thermal responses but the maximum entropy approach allows to introduce both aleatoric and some epistemic uncertainty into the system.

While the nonparametric approach has a long history of applications to structural models, the present investigation was the first one to consider it for the heat conduction problem. In this process, it was recognized that the nonparametric approach had to be modified to maintain the localization of the temperature near the heat source, which was successfully achieved.

The introduction of uncertainty in coupled structural-thermal ROMs of heated structures was addressed next. It was first recognized that the structural stiffness coefficients (linear, quadratic, and cubic) and the parameters quantifying the effects of the temperature distribution on the structural response can be regrouped into a matrix that is symmetric and positive definite. The nonparametric approach was then applied to this matrix allowing the assessment of the effects of uncertainty on the resulting temperature distributions and structural response.

The third part of this document focuses on introducing uncertainty using the Maximum Entropy Method at the level of finite element by randomizing elemental matrices, for instance, elemental stiffness, mass and conductance matrices. This approach brings some epistemic uncertainty not present in the parametric approach (e.g., by randomizing the elasticity tensor) while retaining more local character than the operation in ROM level.

The last part of this document focuses on the development of “reduced ROMs” (RROMs) which are reduced order models with small bases constructed in a data-driven process from a “full” ROM with a much larger basis. The development of the RROM methodology is motivated by the desire to optimally reduce the computational cost especially in multi-physics situations where a lack of prior understanding/knowledge of the solution typically leads to the selection of ROM bases that are excessively broad to ensure the necessary accuracy in representing the response. It is additionally emphasized that the ROM reduction process can be carried out adaptively, i.e., differently over different ranges of loading conditions.
ContributorsSong, Pengchao (Author) / Mignolet, Marc P (Thesis advisor) / Smarslok, Benjamin (Committee member) / Chattopadhyay, Aditi (Committee member) / Liu, Yongming (Committee member) / Jiang, Hanqing (Committee member) / Berman, Spring (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2019
156984-Thumbnail Image.png
Description
Polymer fibers have broad applications in wearable electronics, bulletproof vests, batteries, fuel cells, filters, electrodes, conductive wires, and biomedical materials. Polymer fibers display light density and flexibility but are mostly weak and compliant. The ceramic, metallic, and carbon nanoparticles have been frequently included in polymers for fabricating continuous, durable, and

Polymer fibers have broad applications in wearable electronics, bulletproof vests, batteries, fuel cells, filters, electrodes, conductive wires, and biomedical materials. Polymer fibers display light density and flexibility but are mostly weak and compliant. The ceramic, metallic, and carbon nanoparticles have been frequently included in polymers for fabricating continuous, durable, and functional composite fibers. Nanoparticles display large specific areas, low defect density and can transfer their superior properties to polymer matrices. The main focus of this thesis is to design, fabricate and characterize the polymer
anocarbon composite fibers with unique microstructures and improved mechanical/thermal performance. The dispersions and morphologies of graphene nanoplatelets (GNPs), the interactions with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) molecules and their influences on fiber properties are studied. The fibers were fabricated using a dry-jet wet spinning method with engineered spinneret design. Three different structured fibers were fabricated, namely, one-phase polymer fiber (1-phase), two-phase core-shell composite fiber (2-phase), and three-phase co-axial composite fiber (3-phase). These polymer or composite fibers were processed at three stages with drawing temperatures of 100˚C, 150˚C, and 200˚C. Different techniques including the mechanical tester, wide-angle X-Ray diffraction (WAXD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) have been used to characterize the fiber microstructures and properties.
ContributorsVerma, Rahul (Author) / Song, Kenan (Thesis advisor) / Jiang, Hanqing (Committee member) / Nian, Qiong (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2018