Gomez Antonio, Pires Robert, Yambao Alyssa, La Saponara Valeria
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of California, Davis.
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of California, Davis;
J Vis Exp. 2014 Dec 11(94):52464. doi: 10.3791/52464.
The durability of polymers and fiber-reinforced polymer composites under service condition is a critical aspect to be addressed for their robust designs and condition-based maintenance. These materials are adopted in a wide range of engineering applications, from aircraft and ship structures, to bridges, wind turbine blades, biomaterials and biomedical implants. Polymers are viscoelastic materials, and their response may be highly nonlinear and thus make it challenging to predict and monitor their in-service performance. The laboratory-scale testing platform presented herein assists the investigation of the influence of concurrent mechanical loadings and environmental conditions on these materials. The platform was designed to be low-cost and user-friendly. Its chemically resistant materials make the platform adaptable to studies of chemical degradation due to in-service exposure to fluids. An example of experiment was conducted at RT on closed-cell polyurethane foam samples loaded with a weight corresponding to ~50% of their ultimate static and dry load. Results show that the testing apparatus is appropriate for these studies. Results also highlight the larger vulnerability of the polymer under concurrent loading, based on the higher mid-point displacements and lower residual failure loads. Recommendations are made for additional improvements to the testing apparatus.
聚合物及纤维增强聚合物复合材料在服役条件下的耐久性是其稳健设计和基于状态的维护中需要解决的关键问题。这些材料被广泛应用于各种工程领域，从飞机和船舶结构到桥梁、风力涡轮机叶片、生物材料和生物医学植入物。聚合物是粘弹性材料，其响应可能高度非线性，因此预测和监测其服役性能具有挑战性。本文介绍的实验室规模测试平台有助于研究同时作用的机械载荷和环境条件对这些材料的影响。该平台设计为低成本且用户友好型。其耐化学材料使该平台适用于研究因服役期间接触流体而导致的化学降解。在室温下对闭孔聚氨酯泡沫样品进行了一个实验示例，样品上加载的重量相当于其极限静态和干燥载荷的约50%。结果表明该测试装置适用于这些研究。结果还表明，基于更高的中点位移和更低的残余破坏载荷，聚合物在同时加载下更易受损。针对测试装置的进一步改进提出了建议。
