Thermal cracking of phenolic-nylon pyrolysis products on passing through a heated char
Thermal cracking of phenolic-nylon pyrolysis products analyzed on passing through heated char
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Thermal cracking of phenolic-nylon pyrolysis products analyzed on passing through heated char
Improved technique for attaching aluminum flange to aramid/epoxy duct prevents subsequent development of cracks in joint during thermal stress. Flange butted against cylindrical mold on which duct is fabricated. Flange has tapered neck so will nest in duct opening. Epoxy-impregnated aramid tape wrapped around mold so tape overlaps flange. While tape is wrapped, pressure applied to it and inside of flange as heated uniformly to maximum expected operating temperature. Heat and pressure maintained until aramid/epoxy laminations have cured.
Thermal fatigue has been observed to cause matrix cracking in laminated composite materials. A method is presented to predict transverse matrix cracks in composite laminates subjected to cyclic thermal load. Shear lag stress approximations and a simple energy-based fracture criteria are used to predict crack densities as a function of temperature. Prediction of crack densities as a function of thermal cycling is accomplished by assuming that fatigue degrades the material's inherent resistance to cracking. The method is implemented as a computer program. A simple experiment provides data on progressive cracking of a laminate with decreasing temperature. Existing data on thermal fatigue is also used. Correlations of the analytical predictions to the data are very good. A parametric study using the analytical method is presented which provides insight into material behavior under cyclical thermal loads.
Five engine tests were conducted to definitely establish the failure mechanism of leading-edge cracking and to determine which conditions of engine operation cause the failures. Five groups of S-616 and M-252 buckets from master lots were run consecutively in the same J47-25 engine. The tests included a steady-state run at full-power conditions, rapid cycling between idle and rated speed, and three different start-stop tests. The first start-stop test consisted of cycles of start and stop with 5 minutes of idle speed before each stop; the second included cycles of start and stop but with 15 minutes of rated speed before each stop; the third consisted of cycles of gradual starts and normal stops with 5 minutes at idle speed before each stop. The test results demonstrated that the primary cause of leading-edge cracking was thermal fatigue produced by repeated engine starts. The leading edge of the bucket experiences plastic flow in compression during starts and consequently is subjected to a tensile stress when the remainder of the bucket becomes heated and expands. Crack initiation was accelerated when rated-speed operation was added to each normal start-stop cycle. This acceleration of crack formation was attributed to localized creep damage and perhaps to embrittlement resulting from overaging. It was demonstrated that leading-edge cracking can be prevented simply by starting the engine gradually.
Thermal stress and displacement fields in elastic solid weakened by crack outside of circular region, noting plastic zone size and energy dissipation
Test rig for predicting thermal stress cracking in turbine stator or rotor blades
Oxidation resistance and thermal fatigue cracking of nickel and cobalt base alloys in transonic gas streams
Two different vendor rubber formulations have been used to produce the silica-filled NBR insulators for the BSM of each of the two Solid Rocket Boosters (SRBs) on the Space Shuttle. Each cured insulator is bonded to the BSM aluminum aft closure with an epoxy adhesive, and some of the curved areas in the rubber may have significant residual stresses. A number of recently bonded NBR insulators have shown fine surface cracks, and stressed insulator areas may be aging at a faster rate than unstressed areas, thus hastening the surface cracking. Thermal analysis data on both vendor insulators by Dynamic Mechanical Analysis (DMA) through a temperature/frequency sweep from 24 to 74 C have shown a higher flexural storage modulus and Arrhenius activation energy for the stressed area than for the unstressed area. Other thermal analysis techniques are being used to study the insulator surface vs. bulk interior for better understanding this anomaly.
The morphology, distribution, geologic environment and relative age of large-scale polygonal trough systems on Mars are examined. The troughs are steep-walled, flat-floored, sinuous depressions typically 200-800 m wide, 20-120 m deep and spaced 5-10 km apart. The mechanics of formation of tension cracks is reviewed to identify the factors controlling the scale of tension crack systems; special emphasis is placed on thermal cracking in permafrost. It is shown that because of the extremely large scale of the Martian fracture systems, they could not have formed by thermal cracking in permafrost, dessication cracking in sediments or contraction cracking in cooling lava. On the basis of photogeologic evidence and analog studies, it is proposed that polygonal troughs on the northern plains of Mars are grabens.
Measurements of the p-wave and s-wave internal friction quality factors (Q) and velocities of samples of a moderately outgassed terrestrial analog of lunar basalt exposed simultaneously to temperatures and hydrostatic confining pressures in accordance with the best available estimates of the lunar selenotherm are presented. Q values and velocities are found to increase with simulated depth, and an extrapolation of the Q value to a thoroughly outgassed states provides a Q value in reasonable agreement with those derived from lunar seismic data, suggesting a very dry lunar crust. Results also imply that similar seismic determinations for Mars would be able to distinguish between a dry crust and a crust containing water trapped beneath a layer of ice. Results of thermal cracking tests which demonstrate that high degrees of cracking associated with thermal cycling, as during the lunar day, are not inconsistent with high Q in a dry environment are presented, and it is shown that volatiles with diple moments comparable to H2O can greatly affect Q. Possible attenuation mechanisms are then considered, and velocity measurements on a synthetic anorthosite are presented.
Thermo-oxidative stability (TOS) test results are significantly influenced by the formation and growth or presence of interlaminar and interlaminar cracks in the cut edges of all carbon-fiber-crosslinked high-temperature polymer matrix composites(exp 1-5) (i.e., unidirectional, crossplied, angle-plied, and fabric composites). The thermo-oxidative degradation of these composites is heavily dependent on the surface area that is exposed to the harmful environment and on the surface-to-volume ratio of the structure under study. Since the growth of cracks and voids on the composite surfaces significantly increases the exposed surface areas, it is imperative that the interaction between the aging process and the formation of new surface area as the aging time progresses be understood.
Thermally induced transverse cracking in T300/5208 graphite-epoxy cross-ply laminates was investigated experimentally and theoretically. The six laminate configurations studied were: 0/90(3)s, 0(2)/90(2)s, 0(3)/90s, 90/0(3)s, 90(2)/0(2)s, and 90(3)/0s. The thermal load required to initiate transverse cracking was determined experimentally and compared to a theoretical prediction. Experimental results for the accumulation of transverse cracks under cyclic thermal loading between - 250 and 250 F for up to 500 thermal cycles are presented. The calculated in situ transverse-lamina strength was determined to be at least 1.9 times the unidirectional-lamina transverse tensile strength. All laminate configurations exhibited an increase in crack density with increasing thermal cycles.
The characteristics of thermally induced transverse cracks in T300/5208 graphite-epoxy cross-ply and quasi-isotropic laminates were investigated both experimentally and analytically. The formation of transverse cracks and the subsequent crack spacing present during cool down to -250 F (116K) and thermal cycling between 250 and -250 F (116 and 394K) was investigated. The state of stress in the vicinity of a transverse crack and the influence of transverse cracking on the laminate coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) was predicted using a generalized plane strain finite element analysis and a modified shear lag analysis. A majority of the cross-ply laminates experienced transverse cracking during the initial cool down to -250 F whereas the quasi-isotropic laminates remained uncracked. The in situ transverse strength of the 90 degree layers was more than 1.9 times greater than the transverse strength of the unidirectional 90 degree material for all laminates investigated.
Thermal-mechanical fatigue crack growth (TMFCG) was studied in a gamma-gamma' nickel base superalloy Inconel X-750 under controlled load amplitude in the temperature range from 300 to 650 C. In-phase (T sub max at sigma sub max), out-of-phase (T sub min at sigma sub max), and isothermal tests at 650 C were performed on single-edge notch bars under fully reversed cyclic conditions. A dc electrical potential method was used to measure crack length. The electrical potential response obtained for each cycle of a given wave form and R value yields information on crack closure and crack extension per cycle. The macroscopic crack growth rates are reported as a function of delta k and the relative magnitude of the TMFCG are discussed in the light of the potential drop information and of the fractographic observations.
Thermal-mechanical fatigue crack growth (TMFCG) was studied in a 'gamma-gamma' nickel base superalloy Inconel X-750 under controlled load amplitude in the temperature range from 300 to 650 C. In-phase (T sub max at sigma sub max), out-of-phase (T sub min at sigma sub max), and isothermal tests at 650 C were performed on single-edge notch bars under fully reversed cyclic conditions. A dc electrical potential method was used to measure crack length. The electrical potential response obtained for each cycle of a given wave form and R value yields information on crack closure and crack extension per cycle. The macroscopic crack growth rates are reported as a function of delta k and the relative magnitude of the TMFCG are discussed in the light of the potential drop information and of the fractographic observations.
Thermal-mechanical fatigue crack growth (TMFCG) rates in B-1900+Hf were measured under strain-controlled conditions in the temperature range 400-925 C. A poor correlation between isothermal and TMFCG rates under elastic and fully plastic conditions was observed when test data were analyzed using a strain-based approach. A stress-based approach taking into account the hardening and softening behavior of the material and load shedding provided an adequate description of the isothermal and TMFCG rates. Also, the isothermal crack growth rates at minimum and maximum temperatures provided upper and lower bounds, respectively, on the TMFCG rates.
A computerized testing system to measure fatigue crack growth under thermal-mechanical fatigue conditions is described. Built around a servohydraulic machine, the system is capable of a push-pull test under stress-controlled or strain-controlled conditions in the temperature range of 25 to 1050 C. Temperature and mechanical strain are independently controlled by the closed-loop system to simulate the complex inservice strain-temperature relationship. A d-c electrical potential method is used to measure crack growth rates. The correction procedure of the potential signal to take into account powerline and RF-induced noises and thermal changes is described. It is shown that the potential drop technique can be used for physical mechanism studies and for modelling crack tip processes.
In the early development of jet engines, it was occasionally found that excessive amounts of coke or other carbonaceous deposits were formed in the combustion chamber. Sometimes a considerable amount of smoke was noted in the-exhaust gases. Excessive coke deposits may adversely affect jet-engine performance in several ways. The formation of excessive amounts of coke on or just downstream of a fuel nozzle (figs. 116(a) and (b)) changes the fuel-spray pattern and possibly affects combustor life and performance. Similar effects on performance can result from the deposition of coke on primary-air entry ports (fig. 116(c)). Sea-level or altitude starting may be impaired by the deposition of coke on spark-plug electrodes (fig. 116(b)), deposits either grounding the electrodes completely or causing the spark to occur at positions other than the intended gap. For some time it was thought that large deposits of coke in turbojet combustion chambers (fig. 116(a)) might break away and damage turbine blades; however, experience has indicated that for metal blades this problem is insignificant. (Cermet turbine blades may be damaged by loose coke deposits.) Finally, the deposition of coke may cause high-temperature areas, which promote liner warping and cracking (fig. 116(d)) from excessive temperature gradients and variations in thermal-expansion rates. Smoke in the exhaust gases does not generally impair engine performance but may be undesirable from a tactical or a nuisance standpoint. Appendix B of reference 1 and references 2 to 4 present data obtained from full-scale engines operated on test stands and from flight tests that indicate some effects on performance caused by coke deposits and smoke. Some information about the mechanism of coke formation is given in reference 5 and chapter IX. The data indicate that (1) high-boiling fuel residuals and partly polymerized products may be mixed with a large amount of smoke formed in the gas phase to account for the consistency, structure, and chemical composition of the soft coke in the dome and (2) the hard deposits on the liner are similar to petroleum coke and may result from the liquid-phase thermal cracking of the fuel. During the early development period of jet engines, it was noted that the excessive coke deposits and exhaust smoke were generally obtained when fuel-oil-type fuels were used. Engines using gasoline-type fuels were relatively free from the deposits and smoke. These results indicated that some type of quality control would be needed in fuel specifications. Also noted was the effect of engine operating conditions on coke deposition. It is possible that, even with a clean-burning fuel, an excessive amount of coke could be formed at some operating conditions. In this case, combustor redesign could possibly reduce the coke to a tolerable level. This chapter is a summary of the various coke-deposition and exhaust-smoke problems connected- with the turbojet combustor. Included are (1) the effect of coke deposition on combustor life or durability and performance; (2) the effect of combustor design, operating conditions, inlet variables, and fuel characteristics on coke deposition; (3) elimination of coke deposits; (4) the effect of operating conditions and fuel characteristics on formation of exhaust smoke; and (5) various bench test methods proposed for determining and controlling fuel quality.