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This paper presents the results of laboratory tests of CFRP (carbon fiber-reinforced polymer) laminates, which allowed the development of numerical material models. The obtained data were used in a further stage to perform numerical simulations of four variants of medical tabletops, differing, among other features, in the shape of the cross-section. Maximum deflections and effort in the composite material were analyzed. The final step was to perform a laboratory test for one of the tabletop versions, the results of which confirmed the correctness of the numerical calculations. This work is aimed at both researchers and designers involved in the practical application of fiber-reinforced polymer matrix composites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract WC/Co composite is a standard hard material used for the production of cutting tools. It has both very good thermo-mechanical and wear properties. During the cutting, process tools are subjected to impact loading and gradual degradation due to high-stress concentrations. This loading induced deterioration is complex process still not well investigated and explained. Up till now the dynamic response of the WC/Co composite was analysed under dynamic impulse compressive loading [1]. However, the behaviour of the above two-phase composite under impacts conditions was not investigated in details. In the presented micromechanical approach the real material structure geometry of the internal structure can be performed including spatial distribution of: (1) WC grains and their dimensions, (2) volume content of plastic Co binder with their thickness, (3) system of grain/binder interfaces and (4) cracks initiated and developed during impulse loading, (5) possible brittle grains rotation. The results reveal the dependence of the microcracking processes and the stress distribution on impact velocity and presence of discontinuities in the Co binder and the interface zone between the binders and the grains. The microcracks system was evaluated by the damage parameter according to Kachanov, 1986 [62]. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Cutting tools are manufactured among others from cermet (e.g. WC/Co) having excellent mechanical properties. Geometry of the internal microstructure is complex and mechanical response due to quasi-static or dynamic loading is difficult to be described. Particularly, the dynamic loading is not investigated enough precise up till now. Experimental evidences, e.g. Siegl and Fischmester (1988), Ravichandran (1994), indicate that the fracture energy of WC/Co is expended through ductile failure of the Co: (1) near the binder/tungsten carbide interface or by (2) dimple rupture across the interphase. Concentrations of stresses around grain boundaries lead to initiation of microcrack system, which is dispersed for dynamic loading. The aim of the paper is to extend the previously formulated models (Sadowski et al., 2005, 2006, 2007, Dębski and Sadowski, 2014, 2017) of the polycrystalline composite towards more advanced finite element formulation, applicable for description of the cermet behavior under dynamic pulses. The model takes into account: (1) spatial distribution of the cermet constituents, (2) system of grain boundaries/binder interfaces modeled by interface elements, (3) rotation of brittle grains. The obtained results show that stress distributions and gradual microcracking processes are quite different for quasi-static and dynamic loadings. It was revealed by damage parameter indicating concentration of microcracks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] The XFEM and the R&T techniques were exploited in damage analysis of the WC/Co microstructure. [•] Damage propagation analysis was performed with 2-D numerical models. [•] The Gurson–Tvergaard material porosity was used for the description of the Co interface. [•] Traction–Separation and Ductile Damage Criterions were used to model the WC/Co composite damage process. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: In the fabrication process of ceramic composite materials or in service interface cracks could appear in one of the constituents. This work reports the stress intensity factors solution of a kinked crack whose corner is on the interface of two bonded dissimilar ceramic materials subjected to tension parallel to the interface and to tension normal to the interface. The finite element method was used to calculate the stress intensity factors at the tips of the crack. The effects of the material properties of the ceramic composite constituents, the kinked crack length, the interface crack length, and the kinked angle were investigated. A convergence study was carried out in order to find the proper distance r for collecting the displacement data for the crack flank displacement method. Results for the modulus of the complex stress intensity factors for the bi-material combinations with the homogeneous case, based on Suo and Hutchinson approach show consistent agreement for a range of interface crack lengths, kinked crack lengths and kinked angles. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Stress intensity factors for a kinked crack originating at interface of two bonded dissimilar materials subjected to normal tension are found by the finite element method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

WC/Co metal-matrix ceramic composites (MMCs) are used for manufacturing cutting and drilling tools, surgical tools, mill inserts, jet engines, and other high-responsibility structures. The combination of a phase of hard wolfram carbide (WC) grains with a metallic ductile interface of cobalt (Co) yields a complex microstructure with significantly different mechanical properties of the phases. The aim of this study is to investigate the thermomechanical behavior of the MMC polycrystalline material with ductile binders under impact conditions. An adiabatic and coupled thermomechanical analysis of the WC/Co composite under impact loading is performed using FEM. The heat conduction is considered in the analysis in order to capture heat transfer in the polycrystalline structure, i.e. between the grains and the grain boundaries (GBs). The Johnson-Cook yield function is used in the constitutive model of the ductile Co interface, while the WC phase is linear elastic. The motivation comes from the observation that the heat conductivity effect is often omitted, even in recent papers **[75]. Significant differences between temperatures and plastic strains in the adiabatic and coupled solutions are observed, which leads to the main conclusion that the adiabatic solution should not be used for assessing the impact response of the composite material. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Metal-ceramic composite (MCC) materials can be used for manufacturing high-responsibility structures such as jet engines or cutting tools. One example of these materials is a two-phase wolfram carbide (WC) and cobalt (Co) composite. This MCC is a combination of hard WC grains with a Co metallic ductile binder. The resulting microstructure is a combination of two phases with significantly different mechanical behaviors. In this study, we investigate impact conditions, starting with an illustrative example of the Taylor impact bar where—although the process is very rapid—the equivalent plastic strain and temperature are higher in the adiabatic solution than those in the coupled solution. On exposing the WC/Co composite with a metallic binder to impact loading, heat is generated by plastic deformation. If the process is fast enough, the problem can be treated as adiabatic. However, a more common situation is that the process is slower, and the heat is generated in the ductile metallic binders. As a result, the associated grains are heated due to the conduction effect. Consequently, the process should be treated as coupled. When the impact is applied over a short time period, maximum temperatures are significantly lower if the process is analyzed as coupled rather than as adiabatic. The grains are immediately affected by temperature increase in the binders. Therefore, the heat conduction effect should not be omitted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]