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The new devices and missions to achieve the aims of NASA's Science Mission Directorate (SMD) are creating increasingly demanding thermal environments and applications. In particular, the low conductance of metal-to-metal interfaces used in the thermal switches lengthen the cool-down phase and resource usage for spacecraft instruments. During this work, we developed and tested a vacuum-compatible, durable, heat-conduction interface that employs carbon nanotube (CNT) arrays directly anchored on the mating metal surfaces via microwave plasma-enhanced, chemical vapor deposition (PECVD). We demonstrated that CNT-based thermal interface materials have the potential to exceed the performance of currently available options for thermal switches and other applications.

This paper presents in-process monitoring and control based on a novel ultrasonic sensing technique. The developed ultrasonic system provides non-contact measurement of surface roughness, which is applicable to wet machining environments. The utility and robustness of the technique are demonstrated through applications to different processes and materials. In-process surface roughness monitoring capability of the system is also shown along with its potential to monitor flank wear conditions. The result of in-process surface roughness control implementation based on the developed technique shows the control scheme is able to maintain consistent surface roughness values regardless of the tool wear state.

An analysis of the vehicle braking, combining with the linear relation between wear and frictional work already investigated, was used to establish a wear equation. Initial braking velocity, the number of brakings per 1 km and pad thickness loss per 1000 km were determined by using taxis with identical car types and identical pad qualities. Based on the averaged experimental results and some normal braking conditions, the calculated average apparent specific wear rate through the equation was unexpectedly found to decrease firstly and then increase with the increase of average initial braking velocity. The pad friction properties relevant to the equation analysis were tested by using a dynamometer, followed by measuring wear as a function of temperature at three different initial velocities that equal the average initial braking velocities respectively.

The ever increasing popularity of electric vehicles and higher requirement on safety and comfort has led heat pump air conditioning system indispensable in electric vehicle. Many studies have shown that the addition of nano particles contributes to great improvement on thermal conductivity than that of conventional refrigerants. Therefore, the application of the magnetic nanorefrigerant in heat pump air conditioning system has massive potential to heighten the heat transfer efficiency. This paper aims at studying the magnetic nanorefrigerant comprised of the magnetic nano powder Fe3O4 and refrigerant R134a. According to the relevant theoretical analyses and empirical formula, the heat transfer coefficient, density, viscosity, and other physical parameters are calculated approximately. In the heat pump air conditioning system of a certain type of electric vehicle, the special working condition parameters are selected to carry out calculation analysis with numerical analysis software.

Aiming at the problem of middle and low frequency noise absorption, a combined sound-absorbing structure is designed based on porous material and a coiled-up cavity resonance structure. Combined with the sound absorption principle of porous materials and coiled-up cavities, a theoretical analytical model was established. By the finite element method, the sound absorption coefficient curve of the combined structure in a frequency range of 500-2000Hz is calculated, and the correctness of the analytical calculation and the finite element simulation calculation was verified in the impedance tube experiment. The results show that the combined structure has good sound absorption performance in the 500Hz-2000Hz frequency band, and the sound absorption peak appears near the 1108Hz frequency, reaching nearly perfect sound absorption. Compared with a single porous material, the sound absorption performance of the combined structure is better.

Uniaxial fatigue tests of rubber dumbbell specimens under different mean and amplitude of strain are carried out. An Extreme Learning Machine (ELM) model optimized by Dragonfly Algorithm (DA) is proposed to predict the fatigue life of rubber based on measured rubber fatigue life data. Mean and amplitude of strain and measured rubber fatigue life are taken as input variables and output variables respectively in DA-ELM model. For comparison, genetic algorithm (GA) and particle swarm optimization (PSO) are used to optimize ELM parameters, and GA-ELM and PSO-ELM models are established. The comparison results show that DA-ELM model performs better in predicting the fatigue life of rubber with least dispersion. The coefficients of determination for the training set and test set are 99.47% and 99.12%, respectively. In addition, a life prediction model equivalent strain amplitude as damage parameter is introduced to further highlight the superiority of DA-ELM model.

In order to enhance the efficiency of durability testing of automobile parts, a time-frequency domain accelerated editing method of road load time series of rubber mount on powertrain was discussed. Based on Stockwell Transform method and Accumulative Power Spectral Density, a new time-frequency domain accelerated editing method (ST-APSD) was proposed. The accumulative power spectral density was obtained by ST of the load time series signal of automobile powertrain rubber mounting force which is acquired by the real vehicle in the test field. Based on the accumulative power spectral density, the threshold value was proposed to identify and delete the small damage load fragments, and then the acceleration spectrum was obtained.

In the field of low-frequency noise control, the acoustic metamaterials have received extensive attention from researchers. However, the existing work mainly focuses on small structures with fixed boundaries, which is quite different from engineering applications. Based on the membrane-type acoustic metamaterials, this paper uses a rigid thin plate to replace the tensioned membrane, design and manufacture of two new types of local resonance structure and studies their sound insulation properties. First, the metamaterial samples with a small size of 100mm in diameter and a large-size square with a side length of 506mm were produced, and the sound TL of the two was tested through the impedance tube and the reverberation chamber-anechoic chamber, respectively. The results show that the new structure can form an obvious sound insulation frequency band at low frequencies. Based on the finite element method, a metamaterial acoustic transmission loss calculation model is established.

This paper describes research to analyze widespread fatigue damage in lap joints. The particular objective is to determine when large numbers of small cracks could degrade the joint strength to an unacceptable level. A deterministic model is described to compute fatigue crack growth and residual strength of riveted panels that contain multiple cracks. Fatigue crack growth tests conducted to evaluate the predictive model are summarized, and indicate good agreement between experimental and numerical results. Monte Carlo simulations are then performed to determine the influence of statistical variability on various analysis parameters.

Throughout the industry, organizations struggle with the task of implementing effective human factors programs aimed at reducing maintenance errors. Almost universally, many barriers have frustrated these efforts. In 1998 and 1999, the National Transportation Safety Board sponsored two workshops designed at identifying barriers to the implementation of human factors programs and to explore what was working and what was not working among the many industry efforts. This paper explores the findings of these workshops. In addition, it will report findings of Purdue University studies that reveal a rapid deterioration of even the most successful human factors programs. The research findings disclose several “disconnects” within most organizations which rapidly negate the positive effects of successful human factors and error management training and nullify many proactive human factors programs.

The elliptically shaped bearing (ESB) with a rigid, elliptical inner race and a flexible, thin-walled outer race is the most easily damaged core component of harmonic drive. The ESB rotates under cycle load of alternating stress due to its special elliptic structure. Hence, the fault features of ESB such as fatigue spalling and pitting are apt to be concealed by the excitation of impulses caused by alternating between major axis and minor axis. In order to diagnose the fault on raceway surfaces of ESB, a new method of CMWT-FH based on Continuous Morlet Wavelet Transform (CMWT) and FFT-based Hilbert (FH) spectrum analysis is proposed to extract the fault feature.

The formation of ice on aircraft is a highly dynamic process during which ice will expand and contract upon freezing and undergoing changes in temperature. Finite element analysis (FEA) simulations were performed investigating the stress/strain response of an idealized ice sample bonded to an acrylic substrate subjected to a uniform temperature change. The FEA predictions were used to guide the placement of strain gages on custom-built acrylic and aluminum specimens. Tee rosettes were placed in two configurations adjacent to thermocouple sensors. The specimens were then placed in icing conditions such that ice was grown on top of the specimen. It was hypothesized that the ice would expand on freezing and contract as the temperature of the interface returned to the equilibrium conditions.

The breaking torque is an essential property that identifies the strength of driveshafts under high torque loads. In the breaking torsion test, the constant velocity joint of the driveshafts is usually loaded slowly at a very slow rotating speed under a specific joint angle until it breaks. Under different joint angles, the Rzeppa type constant velocity joint, namely ball joints (BJ), will break at different positions and with different torques. Common results of fracture position include the shaft of the outer race, the shell of the outer race, and the cage column. Simultaneously, the plastic deformation caused by compressive stress occurs at the specific position of the ball track and the cage. In order to analyze the failure reason of the ball joint under a larger joint angle, the quasi-static finite element simulations and test methods are used to analyze the damage caused by stress distribution based on material properties.

Fatigue damage prediction approaches in both time and frequency domains have been developed to simulate the operational life of mechanical structures under random loads. Fatigue assessment of mechanical structures and components subjected to those random loads is increasingly being addressed by frequency domain approaches because of time and cost savings. Current frequency-based fatigue prediction methods focus on stationary random loadings (stationary Power Spectral Density), but many machine components, such as jet engines, rotating machines, and tracked vehicles are subjected to non-stationary PSD conditions under real service loadings. This paper describes a new fatigue damage modeling approach capable of predicting fatigue damage for structures exposed to non-stationary (evolutionary) PSD loading conditions where the PSD frequency content is time-varying.

Tortuosity, viscous characteristic length and thermal characteristic length are three important parameters for estimating the acoustic performance of porous materials, and it is usually measured by ultrasonic measurement technology, which is costly. In this paper, a method for identifying the tortuosity, viscous characteristic length and thermal characteristic length for the porous fiber materials mixed with kapok fiber and two kinds of other fiber materials is proposed. The tortuosity is calculated by using the porosity and high-frequency normal sound absorption coefficient of porous materials. According to the normal sound absorption coefficient curve of porous materials under plane wave incidence, viscous characteristic length and thermal characteristic length are identified through the Johnson-Champoux-Allard-Lafarge (JCAL) model and genetic algorithm by using the measured parameters, the calculated tortuosity and static thermal permeability.

To reduce the noise in the frequency range of 100Hz~1000Hz, a metamaterial structure composed of lightweight frame, hard membrane-like material and added mass is proposed in this paper. The advantage of this structure is that it is lightweight and the membrane-like material does not need to be stressed in advance. Finite element method (FEM) and experiment are used to investigate the sound transmission loss (STL) performance of the metamaterial structure. The results show that the peak STL is caused by the local resonance of the added mass and the membrane-like material. The valley versus frequency results from the resonance frequencies of metamaterial structure, and it is divided into three resonance frequencies: resonance frequencies from added mass, membrane-like material and frame.

As the power of electric vehicles (EVs), lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) are subjected to a variety of mechanical loads during electrochemical operation. Under this operating environment, lithium-ion batteries are at risk of internal short circuit, thermal runaway and even fire, threatening the safety of electric vehicles. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the mechanical behaviors and failure mechanisms of the battery separator to improve the safety of lithium-ion batteries under mechanical loads. In this study, uniaxial tensile, through-thickness compression and biaxial punch tests were performed to characterize two types of separators, dry-processed polypropylene (PP) separators and wet-processed ceramic-coated separators, and to analyze and compare their mechanical properties and failure modes. The comprehensive mechanical tests show that the failure modes of the different separator types are different, with the more anisotropic separator having more complex failure modes.

The objective of this study was to subject small female and large male cadavers to simulated rear impact, document soft-tissue injuries to the neck, determine the kinematics, forces and moments at the occipital condyles, and evaluate neck injury risks using peak force, peak tension and normalized tension-extension criteria. Five unembalmed intact human cadavers (four small females and one large male) were prepared using accelerometers and targets at the head, T1, iliac crest, and sacrum. The specimens were placed on a custom- designed seat without head restraint and subjected to rear impact using sled equipment. High-speed cameras were used for kinematic coverage. After the test, x-rays were obtained, computed tomography scans were taken, and anatomical sections were obtained using a cryomicrotome. Two female specimens were tested at 4.3 m/s (mean) and the other two were tested at 6.8 m/s (mean), and one large male specimen was subjected to 6.6 m/s velocity.

Automobile rubber isolator was subjected to random load cycle for a long time in the service process, and its main rubber material for vibration isolation was prone to fatigue failure. Since the traditional Miner damage theory overlooked the load randomness, it had a prediction error problem. In order to improve the prediction accuracy of rubber fatigue life, the traditional Miner damage theory was modified by random uncertainty theory to predict the rubber fatigue life under random load. Firstly, the rubber dumbbell-shaped test column, which was vulcanized from rubber materials commonly used in vibration isolators, was taken as the research object. The uniaxial fatigue test of rubber under different strain amplitudes and strain mean values was carried out. Then the fatigue characteristic curve of rubber with equivalent strain amplitude as the damage parameter was established.

Driveline and suspension notched components of off-road ground vehicles often experience multiaxial fatigue failures along notch locations. Large nominal load histories may induce local elasto-plastic stress and strain responses at the critical notch locations. Fatigue life prediction of such notched components requires detailed knowledge of local stresses and strains at notch regions. The notched components that are often subject to multiaxial loadings in services, experience complex stress and strain responses. Fatigue life assessment of the components utilizing non-linear Finite Element Analysis (FEA) require unfeasibly inefficient computation times and large data. The lack of more efficient and effective methods of elasto-plastic stress-strain calculation may lead to the overdesign or earlier failures of the components or costly experiments and inefficient non-linear FEA.