We study the buckling of a one fiber composite whose matrix stiffness is slightly dependent on the compressive force. We show that the equilibrium curves of the system exhibit a limit load when the induced stiffness parameter gets bigger than a threshold. This limit load increases when increasing the stiffness parameter and is related to a possible localized path in the post-buckling domain. Such a change in the maximum load may be very desirable from a structural stand point.
Deformations of liquid interfaces by the optical radiation pressure of a focused laser wave were generally expected to display similar behavior, whatever the direction of propagation of the incident beam. Recent experiments showed that the invariance of interface deformations with respect to the direction of propagation of the incident wave is broken at high laser intensities. In the case of a beam propagating from the liquid of smaller refractive index to that of larger one, the interface remains stable, forming a nipple-like shape, while for the opposite direction of propagation, an instability occurs, leading to a long needle-like deformation emitting micro-droplets. While an analytical model successfully predicts the equilibrium shape of weakly deformed interface, very few work has been accomplished in the regime of large interface deformations. In this work, we use the Boundary Integral Element Method (BIEM) to compute the evolution of the shape of a fluid-fluid interface under the effect of a continuous laser wave, and we compare our numerical simulations to experimental data in the regime of large deformations for both upward and downward beam propagation. We confirm the invariance breakdown observed experimentally and find good agreement between predicted and experimental interface hump heights below the instability threshold.
A flexible fiber model based on the discrete element method (DEM) is presented and validated for the simulation of uniaxial compression of flexible fibers in a cylindrical container. It is found that the contact force models in the DEM simulations have a significant impact on compressive forces exerted on the fiber bed. Only when the geometry-dependent normal contact force model and the static friction model are employed, the simulation results are in good agreement with experimental results. Systematic simulation studies show that the compressive force initially increases and eventually saturates with an increase in the fiber-fiber friction coefficient, and the fiber-fiber contact forces follow a similar trend. The compressive force and lateral shear-to-normal stress ratio increase linearly with increasing fiber-wall friction coefficient. In uniaxial compression of frictional fibers, more static friction contacts occur than dynamic friction contacts with static friction becoming more predominant as the fiber-fiber friction coefficient increases.
Stability of coarse particles against gravity is an important issue in dense suspensions (fresh concrete, foodstuff, etc.). On the one hand, it is known that they are stable at rest when the interstitial paste has a high enough yield stress; on the other hand, it is not yet possible to predict if a given material will remain homogeneous during a flow. Using MRI techniques, we study the time evolution of the particle volume fraction during the flows in a Couette geometry of model density-mismatched suspensions of noncolloidal particles in yield stress fluids. We observe that shear induces sedimentation of the particles in all systems, which are stable at rest. The sedimentation velocity is observed to increase with increasing shear rate and particle diameter, and to decrease with increasing yield stress of the interstitial fluid. At low shear rate (plastic regime), we show that this phenomenon can be modelled by considering that the interstitial fluid behaves like a viscous fluid -- of viscosity equal to the apparent viscosity of the sheared fluid -- in the direction orthogonal to shear. The behavior at higher shear rates, when viscous effects start to be important, is also discussed. We finally study the dependence of the sedimentation velocity on the particle volume fraction, and show that its modelling requires estimating the local shear rate in the interstitial fluid.
Digital stiffness programmability is fulfilled with a heterogeneous mechanical metamaterial. The prototype consists of an elastomer matrix containing tessellations of diamond shaped cavities selectively confined with semi-rigid plastic beam inserts along their diagonals. Unit-cell perturbations by placing or removing each insert reshape the global constitutive relation whose lower and upper bounds corresponding to the configurations with all holes empty and all inserts in place, respectively, are significantly distant from each other thanks to a gap between the moduli of the elastomer and the inserts. Bidirectional operation is achieved by mixing insert orientations where longitudinal inserts enhance the macroscopic stiffness in compression and transverse ones tension. Arranged digital representations of such local insert states form the explicit encoding of global patterns so that systematic stiffness programming with minimal changes in mass is enabled both statically and in situ. These characteristics establish a new paradigm in actively tuning vibration isolation systems according to shifts in the resonance of base structures.
We study flows and interface deformations produced by the scattering of a laser beam propagating through non-absorbing turbid fluids. Light scattering produces a force density resulting from the transfer of linear momentum from the laser to the scatterers. The flow induced in the direction of the beam propagation, called optical streaming, is also able to deform the interface separating the two liquid phases and to produce wide humps. The viscous flow taking place in these two liquid layers is solved analytically, in one of the two liquid layers with a stream function formulation, as well as numerically in both fluids using a boundary integral element method. Quantitative comparisons are shown between the numerical and analytical flow patterns. Moreover, we present predictive simulations regarding the effects of the geometry, of the scattering strength and of the viscosities, on both the flow pattern and the deformation of the interface. Finally, theoretical arguments are put forth to explain the robustness of the emergence of secondary flows in a two-layer fluid system.