This textbook consists primarily of notes by Iain Finnie who taught a popular course on fracture mechanics at the University of California at Berkeley. It presents a comprehensive and detailed exposition of fracture, the fundamentals of fracture mechanics and procedures for the safe design of engineering components made from metal alloys, brittle materials like glasses and ceramics, and composites. Interesting and practical problems are listed at the end of most chapters to give the student practice in applying the theory. A solutions manual is provided to the instructor. The text presents a unified perspective of fracture with a strong fundamental foundation and practical applications. In addition to its role as a text, this reference would be invaluable for the practicing engineer who is involved in the design and evaluation of components that are fracture critical. This book also: Presents details of derivations of the basic equations of fracture mechanics and the historical context of the development of fracture theory and methodology Treats linear and nonlinear fracture mechanics methodologies beginning with a review of the basic equations of solid mechanics followed by solutions useful in fracture prediction Illustrates the basis of linear elastic fracture mechanics (LEFM), practical applications of LEFM in the design of fracture-tolerant structural components Offers interesting, practical, classroom proven problems at the end of most chapters Includes instructor's solutions manual

This work focuses on the fundamentals of MMCs for engineers and designers. The new edition addresses new issues and developments in the areas of automotive, aerospace, electronics and consumer applications. These include continuous fiber reinforced MMCs for cables in power transmission, high temperature superconducting wires, particulate MMCs in civilian aircraft and automotive applications, and high volume fraction, high thermal conductivity substrates for electronic packaging. The coverage is thorough and cohesive, and emphasizes the synergistic relationships among processing, structure and properties of metal matrix composites.

The book includes high-quality papers presented at the 4th International Conference on Smart Learning Ecosystems and Regional Development at Universita Roma Tor Vergata, Italy, from 22 to 24 May, 2019. Providing insights into the relevance of smart learning ecosystems (schools, campuses, the workplace, informal learning contexts, etc.) for regional development and social innovation, it also discusses how citizens' involvement with smart ecosystems can be increased and made more effective.

Due to their high stiffness and strength and their good processing properties short fibre reinforced thermoplastics are well-established construction materials. Up to now, simulation of engineering parts consisting of short fibre reinforced thermoplastics has often been based on macroscopic phenomenological models, but deformations, damage and failure of composite materials strongly depend on their microstructure. The typical modes of failure of short fibre thermoplastics enriched with glass fibres are matrix failure, rupture of fibres and delamination, and pure macroscopic consideration is not sufficient to predict those effects. The typical predictive phenomenological models are complex and only available for very special failures. A quantitative prediction on how failure will change depending on the content and orientation of the fibres is generally not possible, and the direct involvement of the above effects in a numerical simulation requires multi-scale modelling. One the one hand, this makes it possible to take into account the properties of the matrix material and the fibre material, the microstructure of the composite in terms of fibre content, fibre orientation and shape as well as the properties of the interface between fibres and matrix. On the other hand, the multi-scale approach links these local properties to the global behaviour and forms the basis for the dimensioning and design of engineering components. Furthermore, multi-scale numerical simulations are required to allow efficient solution of the models when investigating three-dimensional problems of dimensioning engineering parts. Bringing together mathematical modelling, materials mechanics, numerical methods and experimental engineering, this book provides a unique overview of multi-scale modelling approaches, multi-scale simulations and experimental investigations of short fibre reinforced thermoplastics. The first chapters focus on two principal subjects: the mathematical and mechanical models governing composite properties and damage description. The subsequent chapters present numerical algorithms based on the Finite Element Method and the Boundary Element Method, both of which make explicit use of the composite's microstructure. Further, the results of the numerical simulations are shown and compared to experimental results. Lastly, the book investigates deformation and failure of composite materials experimentally, explaining the applied methods and presenting the results for different volume fractions of fibres. This book is a valuable resource for applied mathematics, theoretical and experimental mechanical engineers as well as engineers in industry dealing with modelling and simulation of short fibre reinforced composites.

By establishing an alternative foundation of control theory, this thesis represents a significant advance in the theory of control systems, of interest to a broad range of scientists and engineers. While common control strategies for dynamical systems center on the system state as the object to be controlled, the approach developed here focuses on the state trajectory. The concept of precisely realizable trajectories identifies those trajectories that can be accurately achieved by applying appropriate control signals. The resulting simple expressions for the control signal lend themselves to immediate application in science and technology. The approach permits the generalization of many well-known results from the control theory of linear systems, e.g. the Kalman rank condition to nonlinear systems. The relationship between controllability, optimal control and trajectory tracking are clarified. Furthermore, the existence of linear structures underlying nonlinear optimal control is revealed, enabling the derivation of exact analytical solutions to an entire class of nonlinear optimal trajectory tracking problems. The clear and self-contained presentation focuses on a general and mathematically rigorous analysis of controlled dynamical systems. The concepts developed are visualized with the help of particular dynamical systems motivated by physics and chemistry.

This book covers the state-of-the-art technologies in dynamic balancing of mechanisms with minimum increase of mass and inertia. The synthesis of parallel robots based on the Decomposition and Integration concept is also covered in detail. The latest advances are described, including different balancing principles, design of reactionless mechanisms with minimum increase of mass and inertia, and synthesizing parallel robots. This is an ideal book for mechanical engineering students and researchers who are interested in the dynamic balancing of mechanisms and synthesizing of parallel robots. This book also: * Broadens reader understanding of the synthesis of parallel robots based on the Decomposition and Integration concept * Reinforces basic principles with detailed coverage of different balancing principles, including input torque balancing mechanisms * Reviews exhaustively the key recent research into the design of reactionless mechanisms with minimum increase of mass and inertia, such as the design of reactionless mechanisms with auxiliary parallelograms, the design of reactionless mechanisms with flywheels, and the design of reactionless mechanisms by symmetrical structure design.

The book presents homogeneous solutions in static and dynamical problems of anisotropic theory of elasticity, which are constructed for a hollow cylinder. It also offers an asymptotic process for finding frequencies of natural vibrations of a hollow cylinder, and establishes a qualitative study of several applied theories of the boundaries of applicability. Further the authors develop a general theory for a transversally isotropic spherical shell, which includes methods for constructing inhomogeneous and homogeneous solutions that allow the characteristic features of the stress-strain state of an anisotropic spherical shell to be revealed. Lastly, the book introduces an asymptotic method for integrating the equations of anisotropic theory of elasticity in variable thickness plates and shells. Based on the results of the author and researchers at Baku State University and the Institute of Mathematics and Mechanics, ANAS, the book is intended for specialists in the field of theory of elasticity, theory of plates and shells, and applied mathematics.

The field of stress analysis has gained its momentum from the widespread applications in industry and technology and has now become an important part of materials science. Various destructive as well as nondestructive methods have been developed for the determination of stresses. This timely book provides a comprehensive review of the nondestructive techniques for strain evaluation written by experts in their respective fields.

The main part of the book deals with X-ray stress analysis (XSA), focussing on measurement and evaluation methods which can help to solve the problems of today, the numerous applications of metallic, polymeric and ceramic materials as well as of thin-film-substrate composites and of advanced microcomponents. Furthermore it contains data, results, hints and recommendations that are valuable to laboratories for the certification and accreditation of their stress analysis.

Stress analysis is an active field in which many questions remain unsettled. Accordingly, unsolved problems and conflicting results are discussed as well. The assessment of the experimentally determined residual and structural stress states on the static and dynamic behavior of materials and components is handled in a separate chapter.

Students and engineers of materials science and scientists working in laboratories and industries will find this book invaluable.

This book focuses on structure-preserving numerical methods for flexible multibody dynamics, including nonlinear elastodynamics and geometrically exact models for beams and shells. It also deals with the newly emerging class of variational integrators as well as Lie-group integrators. It discusses two alternative approaches to the discretization in space of nonlinear beams and shells. Firstly, geometrically exact formulations, which are typically used in the finite element community and, secondly, the absolute nodal coordinate formulation, which is popular in the multibody dynamics community. Concerning the discretization in time, the energy-momentum method and its energy-decaying variants are discussed. It also addresses a number of issues that have arisen in the wake of the structure-preserving discretization in space. Among them are the parameterization of finite rotations, the incorporation of algebraic constraints and the computer implementation of the various numerical methods. The practical application of structure-preserving methods is illustrated by a number of examples dealing with, among others, nonlinear beams and shells, large deformation problems, long-term simulations and coupled thermo-mechanical multibody systems. In addition it links novel time integration methods to frequently used methods in industrial multibody system simulation.

Dynamical Systems: Discontinuous, Stochasticity and Time-Delay provides an overview of the most recent developments in nonlinear dynamics, vibration and control. This book focuses on the most recent advances in all three areas, with particular emphasis on recent analytical, numerical and experimental research and its results. Real dynamical system problems, such as the behavior of suspension systems of railways, nonlinear vibration and applied control in coal manufacturing, along with the multifractal spectrum of LAN traffic, are discussed at length, giving the reader a sense of real-world instances where these theories are applied. Dynamical Systems: Discontinuous, Stochasticity and Time-Delay also contains material on time-delay systems as they relate to linear switching, dynamics of complex networks, and machine tools with multiple boundaries. It is the ideal book for engineers and academic researchers working in areas like mechanical and control engineering, as well as applied mathematics.

This book presents essential studies and applications in the context of sliding mode control, highlighting the latest findings from interdisciplinary theoretical studies, ranging from computational algorithm development to representative applications. Readers will learn how to easily tailor the techniques to accommodate their ad hoc applications. To make the content as accessible as possible, the book employs a clear route in each paper, moving from background to motivation, to quantitative development (equations), and lastly to case studies/illustrations/tutorials (simulations, experiences, curves, tables, etc.). Though primarily intended for graduate students, professors and researchers from related fields, the book will also benefit engineers and scientists from industry.

Our understanding of the rheological and seismic properties of the Earth's interior relies on interpreting geophysical observations using mineral physics data. The complexity of natural materials complicates these interpretations, but here the key features of such materials in controlling the attenuation of seismic waves are determined by a set of careful experiments. This thesis clearly explains how dynamic mechanical spectroscopy has been used to determine the visco-elastic properties of igneous and sedimentary rocks containing geological fluids. These experiments highlight, for the first time, the importance of mineral and rock microstructures as controls on geophysical properties of solids, particularly near the melting point. The results have impacts in areas ranging from volcanic processes, through the structure of the deep Earth, to fluid-saturated porous media.

This book highlights the symmetry properties of acoustic fields and describes the gauge invariance approach, which can be used to reveal those properties. Symmetry is the key theoretical framework of metamaterials, as has been demonstrated by the successful fabrication of acoustical metamaterials. The book first provides the necessary theoretical background, which includes the covariant derivative, the vector potential, and invariance in coordinate transformation. This is followed by descriptions of global gauge invariance (isotropy), and of local gauge invariance (anisotropy). Sections on time reversal symmetry, reflection invariance, and invariance of finite amplitude waves round out the coverage.

The fuel consumption of a modern combustion engine is one of the most important purchase criteria in contemporary society. Increasing oil prices and exhaust emissions taxes force the automotive industry to continuously improve the vehicle engines. The fuel consumption is closely related to the frictional losses of an engine. New material pairings or constructive modifications of the piston group can reduce such losses. Another innovative concept to lower the frictional forces is the micro-structuring of thermo-mechanically highly stressed surfaces. Within an interdisciplinary research group sponsored by the German Research Foundation, scientists at the Leibniz Universitat Hannover and Universitat Kassel have been working together to investigate this research topic. This final report presents their findings and offers scope for further discussion.

This book discusses the thermal-elastic mechanics problems of concrete rectangular thin plate. Using theoretical derivation combined with numerical examples, it explains in detail the analytical solution of the deflection, bending moment, thermal vibration and thermal buckling of concrete rectangular thin plate. To facilitate application, the book also includes deflection and bending moment calculation tables of concrete rectangular thin plate with four edges supported and with free boundary conditions.

This thesis studies the effects of superplasticizers, polyacrylate latexes and asphalt emulsions, which differ in molecular/particle size from nanometers to microns, on the rheological properties of fresh cement pastes (FCPs), as well as the action mechanisms involved. It systematically investigates the rheological properties and microstructure of cement-based materials, and elucidates the adsorption behaviors of polycarboxylate polymers with different functional groups and their effects on cement hydration. Moreover, it reveals how the working mechanism of naphthalene sulfonate formaldehyde (NSF) differs from that of polycarboxylate ether-based (PCE) superplasticizers. Lastly, it develops a conceptual microstructure model and two rheological equations. These findings lend theoretical support to the development of new chemical admixtures and new, higher-performance, cement-based composites.

This book presents a comprehensive and unifying approach to articular contact mechanics with an emphasis on frictionless contact interaction of thin cartilage layers. The first part of the book (Chapters 1-4) reviews the results of asymptotic analysis of the deformational behavior of thin elastic and viscoelastic layers. A comprehensive review of the literature is combined with the authors' original contributions. The compressible and incompressible cases are treated separately with a focus on exact solutions for asymptotic models of frictionless contact for thin transversely isotropic layers bonded to rigid substrates shaped like elliptic paraboloids. The second part (Chapters 5, 6, and 7) deals with the non-axisymmetric contact of thin transversely isotropic biphasic layers and presents the asymptotic modelling methodology for tibio-femoral contact. The third part of the book consists of Chapter 8, which covers contact problems for thin bonded inhomogeneous transversely isotropic elastic layers and Chapter 9, which addresses various perturbational aspects in contact problems and introduces the sensitivity of articular contact mechanics. This book is intended for advanced undergraduate and graduate students, researchers in the area of biomechanics, and engineers interested and involved in the analysis and design of thin-layer structures.

This book presents research results of PowerWeb, TU Delft's consortium for interdisciplinary research on intelligent, integrated energy systems and their role in markets and institutions. In operation since 2012, it acts as a host and information platform for a growing number of projects, ranging from single PhD student projects up to large integrated and international research programs. The group acts in an inter-faculty fashion and brings together experts from electrical engineering, computer science, mathematics, mechanical engineering, technology and policy management, control engineering, civil engineering, architecture, aerospace engineering, and industrial design. The interdisciplinary projects of PowerWeb are typically associated with either of three problem domains: Grid Technology, Intelligence and Society. PowerWeb is not limited to electricity: it bridges heat, gas, and other types of energy with markets, industrial processes, transport, and the built environment, serving as a singular entry point for industry to the University's knowledge. Via its Industry Advisory Board, a steady link to business owners, manufacturers, and energy system operators is provided.

This volume contains the Proceedings of the First International Conference of IFToMM Italy (IFIT2016), held at the University of Padova, Vicenza, Italy, on December 1-2, 2016. The book contains contributions on the latest advances on Mechanism and Machine Science. The fifty-nine papers deal with such topics as biomechanical engineering, history of mechanism and machine science, linkages and mechanical controls, multi-body dynamics, reliability, robotics and mechatronics, transportation machinery, tribology, and vibrations.

This compact monograph is focused on disturbance attenuation in nonsmooth dynamic systems, developing an H approach in the nonsmooth setting. Similar to the standard nonlinear H approach, the proposed nonsmooth design guarantees both the internal asymptotic stability of a nominal closed-loop system and the dissipativity inequality, which states that the size of an error signal is uniformly bounded with respect to the worst-case size of an external disturbance signal. This guarantee is achieved by constructing an energy or storage function that satisfies the dissipativity inequality and is then utilized as a Lyapunov function to ensure the internal stability requirements. Advanced H Control is unique in the literature for its treatment of disturbance attenuation in nonsmooth systems. It synthesizes various tools, including Hamilton-Jacobi-Isaacs partial differential inequalities as well as Linear Matrix Inequalities. Along with the finite-dimensional treatment, the synthesis is extended to infinite-dimensional setting, involving time-delay and distributed parameter systems. To help illustrate this synthesis, the book focuses on electromechanical applications with nonsmooth phenomena caused by dry friction, backlash, and sampled-data measurements. Special attention is devoted to implementation issues. Requiring familiarity with nonlinear systems theory, this book will be accessible to g raduate students interested in systems analysis and design, and is a welcome addition to the literature for researchers and practitioners in these areas.

These are the Proceedings of the 6th International Symposium on Multibody Systems and Mechatronics (MUSME 2017) which was held in Florianopolis, Brazil, October 24-28, 2017. Topics addressed include analysis and synthesis of mechanisms; dynamics of multibody systems; design algorithms for mechatronic systems; simulation procedures and results; prototypes and their performance; robots and micromachines; experimental validations; theory of mechatronic simulation; mechatronic systems; and control of mechatronic systems. The MUSME 2017 Symposium was one of the activities of the FEIbIM Commission for Mechatronics and IFToMM technical Committees for Multibody Dynamics, Robotics and Mechatronics.

"Principle of Reinforced Concrete" introduces the main properties of structural concrete and its mechanical behavior under various conditions as well as all aspects of the combined function of reinforcement and concrete. Based on the experimental investigation, the variation regularity of mechanical behavior, working mechanism, and calculation method are presented for the structural member under various internal forces. After examining the basic principle and analysis method of reinforced concrete, the book covers some extreme circumstances, including fatigue load, earthquake, explosion, high temperature (fire accident), and durability damage, and the special responses and analysis methods of its member under these conditions.

This work is valuable as a textbook for post-graduates, and can be used as a reference for university teachers and under-graduates in the structural engineering field. It is also useful for structural engineers engaged in scientific research, design, or construction.
Focuses on the principles of reinforced concrete, providing professional and academic readers with a single
volume reference
Experimental data enables readers to make full use of the theory presented
The mechanical behavior of both concrete and reinforcement materials, plus the combined function of both are
covered, enabling readers to understand the behaviors of reinforced concrete structures and their members
Covers behavior of the materials and members under normal and extreme conditions.

This book covers the principles and applications of vehicle handling dynamics from an advanced perspective in depth. The methods required to analyze and optimize vehicle handling dynamics are presented, including tire compound dynamics, vehicle planar dynamics, vehicle roll dynamics, full vehicle dynamics, and in-wheel motor vehicle dynamics. The provided vehicle dynamic model is capable of investigating drift, sliding, and other over-limit vehicle maneuvers. This is an ideal book for postgraduate and research students and engineers in mechanical, automotive, transportation, and ground vehicle engineering.

This book presents the proceedings of one of the major conferences in fatigue, fracture and structural integrity (NT2F). The papers are organized and divided in five different themes: fatigue and fracture mechanics of structures and advanced materials; fatigue and fracture in pressure vessels and pipelines: mechanical behavior and structural integrity of welded, bonded and bolted joints; residual stress and environmental effects on the fatigue behavior; and simulation methods, analytical and computation models in fatigue and fracture.

This book commemorates the 80th birthday of Prof. W. Pietraszkiewicz, a prominent specialist in the field of general shell theory. Reflecting Prof. Pietraszkiewicz's focus, the respective papers address a range of current problems in the theory of shells. In addition, they present other structural mechanics problems involving dimension-reduced models. Lastly, several applications are discussed, including material models for such dimension-reduced structures.