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The purpose of this paper is to determine the ultra-high cycle fatigue behavior and ultra-slow crack propagation behavior of selective laser melting (SLM) AlSi7Mg alloy under as-built conditions.

Constant amplitude and two-step variable amplitude fatigue tests were carried out using ultrasonic fatigue equipment. The fracture surface of the failure specimen was quantitatively analyzed by scanning electron microscope (SEM).

The results show that the competition of surface and interior crack initiation modes leads to a duplex S–N curve. Both manufacturing defects (such as the lack of fusion) and inclusions can act as initially fatal fatigue microcracks, and the fatigue sensitivity level decreases with the location, size and type of the maximum defects.

The research results play a certain role in understanding the ultra-high cycle fatigue behavior of additive manufacturing aluminum alloys. It can provide reference for improving the process parameters of SLM technology.

This paper comprehensively addresses the influence of chopped strand mat glass fiber-reinforced polymer (GFRP) patch configurations such as geometry, dimensions, position and the number of layers of patches, whether a single or double patch is used and how well debonding the area under the patch improves the strength of the cracked aluminum plates with different crack lengths.

Single-edge cracked aluminum specimens of 150 mm in length and 50 mm in width were tested using the tensile test. The cracked aluminum specimens were then repaired using GFRP patches with various configurations. A three-dimensional (3D) finite element method (FEM) was adopted to simulate the repaired cracked aluminum plates using composite patches to obtain the stress intensity factor (SIF). The numerical modeling and validation of ABAQUS software and the contour integral method for SIF calculations provide a valuable tool for further investigation and design optimization.

The width of the GFRP patches affected the efficiency of the rehabilitated cracked aluminum plate. Increasing patch width WP from 5 mm to 15 mm increases the peak load by 9.7 and 17.5%, respectively, if compared with the specimen without the patch. The efficiency of the GFRP patch in reducing the SIF increased as the number of layers increased, i.e. the maximum load was enhanced by 5%.

This study assessed repairing metallic structures using the chopped strand mat GFRP. Furthermore, it demonstrated the superiority of rectangular patches over semicircular ones, along with the benefit of using double patches for out-of-plane bending prevention and it emphasizes the detrimental effect of defects in the bonding area between the patch and the cracked component. This underlines the importance of proper surface preparation and bonding techniques for successful repair.

This study aims to investigate the thermal fracture mechanism of moisture-preconditioned SAC305 ball grid array (BGA) solder joints subjected to multiple reflow and thermal cycling.

The BGA package samples are subjected to JEDEC Level 1 accelerated moisture treatment (85 °C/85%RH/168 h) with five times reflow at 270 °C. This is followed by multiple thermal cycling from 0 °C to 100 °C for 40 min per cycle, per IPC-7351B standards. For fracture investigation, the cross-sections of the samples are examined and analysed using the dye-and-pry technique and backscattered scanning electron microscopy. The packages' microstructures are characterized using an energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy approach. Also, the package assembly is investigated using the Darveaux numerical simulation method.

The study found that critical strain density is exhibited at the component pad/solder interface of the solder joint located at the most distant point from the axes of symmetry of the package assembly. The fracture mechanism is a crack fracture formed at the solder's exterior edges and grows across the joint's transverse section. It was established that Au content in the formed intermetallic compound greatly impacts fracture growth in the solder joint interface, with a composition above 5 Wt.% Au regarded as an unsafe level for reliability. The elongation of the crack is aided by the brittle nature of the Au-Sn interface through which the crack propagates. It is inferred that refining the solder matrix elemental compound can strengthen and improve the reliability of solder joints.

Inspection lead time and additional manufacturing expenses spent on investigating reliability issues in BGA solder joints can be reduced using the study's findings on understanding the solder joint fracture mechanism.

Limited studies exist on the thermal fracture mechanism of moisture-preconditioned BGA solder joints exposed to both multiple reflow and thermal cycling. This study applied both numerical and experimental techniques to examine the reliability issue.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of NaCl solution with different concentrations on impact-sliding fretting corrosion behavior of Inconel 690TT steam generator heat transfer tubes.

The optical 3D profiler was used to measure the wear profile and calculated the wear volume. Corrosion behavior was studied using open circuit potential monitoring and potentiodynamic polarization testing. The morphologies and elemental distributions of wear scars were analyzed using scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive spectroscopy. The synergism of wear and corrosion was analyzed according to the ASTM G119 standard.

The corrosion tendency reflected by OCP and the corrosion current calculated by Tafel both increased with the increase of NaCl concentration. The total volume loss of the material increased with concentration, and it was known from the synergism that the volume loss caused by corrosion-enhanced wear accounted for the largest proportion, while the wear-enhanced corrosion also made a greater contribution to volume loss than tangential fretting corrosion. Through the analysis of the material morphologies and synergism of wear and corrosion, the damage mechanism was elucidated.

The research findings can provide reference for impact-sliding fretting corrosion behavior of Inconel 690TT heat transfer tubes in NaCl solution with different concentrations.

This study aims to investigate the possible defects and their root causes in a soft-termination multilayered ceramic capacitor (MLCC) when subjected to a thermal reflow process.

Specimens of the capacitor assembly were subjected to JEDEC level 1 preconditioning (85 °C/85%RH/168 h) with 5× reflow at 270°C peak temperature. Then, they were inspected using a 2 µm scanning electron microscope to investigate the evidence of defects. The reliability test was also numerically simulated and analyzed using the extended finite element method implemented in ABAQUS.

Excellent agreements were observed between the SEM inspections and the simulation results. The findings showed evidence of discontinuities along the Cu and the Cu-epoxy layers and interfacial delamination crack at the Cu/Cu-epoxy interface. The possible root causes are thermal mismatch between the Cu and Cu-epoxy layers, moisture contamination and weak Cu/Cu-epoxy interface. The maximum crack length observed in the experimentally reflowed capacitor was measured as 75 µm, a 2.59% difference compared to the numerical prediction of 77.2 µm.

This work's contribution is expected to reduce the additional manufacturing cost and lead time in investigating reliability issues in MLCCs.

Despite the significant number of works on the reliability assessment of surface mount capacitors, work on crack growth in soft-termination MLCC is limited. Also, the combined experimental and numerical investigation of reflow-induced reliability issues in soft-termination MLCC is limited. These cited gaps are the novelties of this study.

This study investigates the fitting techniques for notch fatigue curves, seeking a more reliable method to predict the lifespan of welded structures.

Building on the fatigue test results of butt and cruciform joints, this research delves into the selection of fitting methods for the notch fatigue curve of welded joints. Both empirical formula and finite element methods (FEMs) were employed to assess the notch stress concentration factor at the toe and root of the two types of welded joints. Considering the mean stress correction and weld misalignment coefficients, the notch fatigue life curves were established using both direct and indirect methods.

An engineering example was employed to discern the differences between the direct and indirect approaches. The findings highlight the enhanced reliability of the indirect method for fitting the fatigue life curve.

While the notch stress approach is extensively adopted due to its accurate prediction of component fatigue life, most scholars have overlooked the importance of its curve fitting methods. Existing literature scantily addresses the establishment of these curves. This paper offers a focused examination of fatigue curve fitting techniques, delivering valuable perspectives on method selection.

The aim of the work is to investigate structural behaviour of reinforced concrete (RF) beam retrofitted with basalt fibre (BF) fabric. The incorporation of BF showed enhancement in bending strength, to increase confinement and to repair damages caused by cracking. In the early decades, using BF for composite materials shaped BF as an excellent physical substance with necessary mechanical properties, highlighting the significant procedures ability.

Specimens were casted with U-wrapped BF and then evaluated based on flexural tests. In the test carried over for flexural fortifying assessment, BF reinforcements demonstrated a definitive quality improvement in the case of the subjected control sample; ultimately, the end impacts depend upon the applied test parameters. From the outcomes introduced in this comparison, for the double-wrapped sample, the modifications improved by 12% than that of the single-wrapped beam, which is identified to subsist for a better strengthening of new-age retrofitting designs.

The current research deals with the retrofitting of RC beam by conducting a comparative experiment on wrapping of BF (single or double BF wrapping) in improving the mechanical behavior of concrete.

It can be shown from the experimental results that increasing the number of layers has significant effect on basalt strengthened beams.

The purpose of this paper is to assess the hydrogen embrittlement sensitivity of carbon gradient heterostructure materials and to verify the reliability of the scratch method.

The surface-modified layer of 18CrNiMo7-6 alloy steel was delaminated to study its hydrogen embrittlement characteristics via hydrogen permeation, electrochemical hydrogen charging and scratch experiments.

The results showed that the diffusion coefficients of hydrogen in the surface and matrix layers are 3.28 × 10⁻⁷ and 16.67 × 10⁻⁷ cm²/s, respectively. The diffusible-hydrogen concentration of the material increases with increasing hydrogen-charging current density. For a given hydrogen-charging current density, the diffusible-hydrogen concentration gradually decreases with increasing depth in the surface-modified layer. Fracture toughness decreases with increasing diffusible-hydrogen concentration, so the susceptibility to hydrogen embrittlement decreases with increasing depth in the surface-modified layer.

The reliability of the scratch method in evaluating the fracture toughness of the surface-modified layer material is verified. An empirical formula is given for fracture toughness as a function of diffused-hydrogen concentration.

This paper aims to develop a stable gel-type lubricant emulating commercial conditions. This encompassed rheological and tribological assessments, alongside field trials on the Medellín tram system.

The gel-type lubricant with graphite and aluminum powder is synthesized. Rheological tests, viscosity measurements and linear viscoelastic regime assessments are conducted. Subsequently, tribological analyses encompassing four-ball and twin disc methods are executed. Finally, real-world testing is performed on the Medellín tram system.

An achieved lubricant met the stipulated criteria, yielding innovative insights into the interaction of graphite and aluminum powder additives under varying tests.

Novel findings are unveiled regarding the interaction of graphite and aluminum powder additives in tribological, rheological and real-world trials. In addition, the wear behavior of polymers is observed, along with the potential utilization of such additives in tramway systems.

This study aims to investigate the corrosion behavior of cold-rolled Fe₃₅Ni₂₀C_r12Mn_(28-x)Al_x high-entropy alloys (HEAs) using the potentiodynamic polarization technique in 1 M H₂SO₄ acid. Additionally, the influence of molybdenum (Mo) additions as inhibitors and the effect of variations in cold rolling reduction ratios and Al content on corrosion behavior are examined.

Two cold rolling reduction ratios, namely, 50% (R50) and 90% (R90), were examined for the cold-rolled Fe₃₅Ni₂₀Cr₁₂Mn₂₈Al₅ (Al₅) and Fe₃₅Ni₂₀Cr₁₂Mn₂₃Al₁₀ (Al₁₀) HEAs. Mo inhibitor additions were introduced at varying concentrations of 0.3, 0.6 and 0.9 Wt.%. The potentiodynamic polarization technique was used to evaluate the corrosion rates (CRs) under different experimental conditions.

The results indicate that the addition of 0.3 Wt.% Mo in 1 M H₂SO₄ yielded the lowest CR for both R50 and R90, irrespective of the Al content in the HEAs. However, the highest CR was observed at 0.6 Wt.% Mo addition. Furthermore, increasing the concentration of Al resulted in a corresponding rise in the CR. Comparatively, the CR decreased significantly when the cold rolling reduction ratio increased from R50 to R90.

This research provides valuable insights into the intricate relationship between Mo inhibitors, cold rolling reduction ratio, Al content and the resulting corrosion behavior of Fe₃₅Ni₂₀Cr₁₂Mn_(28-x)Al_x HEAs. The comprehensive analysis of corroded HEAs, including surface morphology, compositions and elemental distribution mapping, contributes to the understanding of the corrosion mechanisms and offers potential strategies for enhancing the corrosion behavior of HEAs.