Elastic electron scattering with CH2Br2 and CCl2Br2: The role of the polarization effects

We present elastic electron scattering cross sections with holmethane molecules CH2Br2 and CCl2Br2 in the low energy region ranging from 0.01 to 20 eV. The calculations are performed with R-matrix method in static-exchange plus polarization (SEP) and close-coupling (CC) approximations. The integral, differential, and momentum transfer cross sections are calculated. The convergence of the obtained cross sections is checked at four different levels of SEP approximation. The predicted positions of the resonances agree well with available results. The precise resonance parameters are found to be sensitive to the treatment of polarization effects employed. We found that the polarization has a substantial effect on the cross sections, and this effect becomes even more important for lower impact energies.

Ab Initio Study of Single- and Double-Electron Capture Processes in Collisions of He2+ Ions and Ne Atoms

The single- and double-electron capture (SEC, DEC) processes of He2+ ions colliding with Ne atoms are studied by utilizing the full quantum-mechanical molecular-orbital close-coupling method. Total and state-selective SEC and DEC cross sections are presented in the energy region of 2 eV/u to 20 keV/u. Results show that the dominant reaction channel is Ne+(2s2p 6 2 S) + He+(1s) in the considered energy region due to strong couplings with the initial state Ne(2s 22p 6 1 S) + He2+ around the internuclear distance of 4.6 a.u. In our calculations, the SEC cross sections decrease initially and then increase whereby, the minimum point is around 0.38 keV/u with the increase of collision energies. After considering the effects of the electron translation factor (ETF), the SEC cross sections are increased by 15%–25% nearby the energy region of keV/u and agree better with the available results. The DEC cross sections are smaller than those of SEC because of the larger energy gaps and no strong couplings with the initial state. Due to the Demkov-type couplings between DEC channel Ne2+(2s22p 4 1 S) + He(1s 2) and the dominating SEC channel Ne+(2s2p 6 2 S) + He+(1s), the DEC cross sections increase with increasing impact energies. Good consistency can also be found between the present DEC and the experimental measurements in the overlapping energy region.

Unexpected benzene oxidation in collisions with superoxide anions

Superoxide anions colliding with benzene molecules at impact energies from 200 to 900 eV are reported for the first time to form massive complexes. With the aid of quantum chemistry calculations, we propose a mechanism in which a sudden double ionization of benzene and the subsequent electrostatic attraction between the dication and the anion form a stable covalently bonded C6H6O2+ molecule, that evolves towards the formation of benzene-diol conformers. These findings lend support to a model presenting a new high energy anion-driven chemistry as an alternative way to form complex molecules.

Relativistic B-Spline R-Matrix Calculations for Electron Scattering from Thallium Atoms

The Dirac B-spline R-matrix (DBSR) method is employed to treat low-energy electron collisions with thallium atoms. Special emphasis is placed on spin polarization phenomena that are investigated through calculations of the differential cross-section and the spin asymmetry function. Overall, good agreement between the present calculations and the available experimental measurements is found. The contributions of electron exchange to the spin asymmetry cannot be ignored at low impact energies, while the spin–orbit interaction plays an increasingly significant role as the impact energy rises.

Dropped Object Impact Analysis Considering Frequency and Consequence for LNG-FPSO Topside Module

Recently, quantitative risk assessment (QRA) has been widely used as a decision-making tool in the offshore industry. This study focused on analyzing dropped objects in the design of a modern offshore platform. A modified QRA procedure was developed for assessing production module protection against accidental external loads. Frequency and consequence analyses were performed using the developed QRA procedure. An exceedance curve was plotted, and a high-risk management item was derived through this process. In particular, simulations and experiments were used to verify the difference between the potential and impact energies according to drop orientation. When the object dropped in a specific orientation, the impact energy was confirmed to be up to 4.7 times greater than the potential energy. To reflect the QRA results in structural design, the proposed procedure should be used to calculate the maximum impact energy. The proposed procedure provides a step-by-step guide to assess the damage capacity of a production area as well as the damage frequency and consequences.

Elucidating the mechanisms of damage in foam core sandwich composites under impact loading and low temperatures

Recent interest in Arctic exploration has brought new challenges concerning the mechanical behavior of lightweight materials for offshore structures. Exposure to seawater and cold temperatures are known to degrade the mechanical properties of several materials, thus, compromising the safety of personnel and structures. This study aims to investigate the low-velocity impact behavior of woven carbon/vinyl ester sandwich composites with Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) foam core at low temperatures for marine applications. The tests were performed in a drop tower impact system with an in-built environmental chamber. Impact responses, such as the contact force, displacement and absorbed energy, at four impact energies of 7.5 J, 15 J, 30 J, and 60 J were determined at four in-situ temperatures of 25°C, 0°C, −25°C and −50°C. Results showed that temperature has a significant influence on the dynamic impact behavior of sandwich composites. The sandwich composites were rendered stiff and brittle as the temperature decreased, which has a detrimental effect on their residual strength and durability. At 7.5 J at all temperatures, the samples experienced matrix cracking, fiber fracture, and delamination at the top face sheet. The samples impacted at 15 J at all temperatures experienced fiber fracture, matrix cracking, and delamination at the top facesheet and localized core crushing/fracture. At 30 J for all the temperatures, the samples exhibited perforation of the top facesheet and penetration into the core. As the temperature decreased, the penetration of the striker into the core increased. At 60 J for all temperatures, the samples experienced perforation of the top facesheet and core, and the back facesheet exhibited varying extent of damage. At −25°C and −50°C, the sandwich composite samples were almost completely perforated. In general, low temperatures rendered the sandwich composites stiff and brittle, resulting in an increase in the degree of damage and more pronounced damage modes. At all impact energies, the sandwich composites were rendered stiff and brittle as the temperature decreased, which has a detrimental effect on their residual strength and durability.

The initiation and progression of damage in composite overwrapped pressure vessels subjected to contact loads

In order to investigate the residual strength of composite overwrapped pressure vessels subjected to impact loads, an extensive experimental study has been performed. The vessels are loaded up to different mechanical work levels (quasi-static) or with various impact energies (dynamic). After loading, the emerged damage in the pressure vessel is examined using computed tomography scans. The tests of vessels up to various energies enable us to visualize the initiation and progressive growth of damage. The overall influence of the damage is subsequently quantified by means of a burst pressure test. Accordingly, the reduction of burst pressure can be used to evaluate the global severity of the observed damage in the computed tomography scan. From the experiments, it is concluded that the first failure mechanisms, that is, delaminations, do not cause a meaningful reduction of the burst pressure. Shear bands, on the other hand, which are formed thereafter, do induce a significant decrease of the residual strength.

Effects of particulate reinforcements on the hardness, impact and tensile strengths of AA 6061-T6 friction stir weldments

Due to loss of structural strengthening at temperatures beyond 250°C, heat-treated aluminium alloys (e.g. AA 6061-T6) weldments are usually characterized with poor mechanical properties including hardness, tensile and impact strengths. In this work, friction stir weldments of AA 6061-T6 reinforced with the additions of SiC, B4C and Al2O3 particles at the joints were produced and investigated for improved hardness, tensile strength and impact strength over the unreinforced weldment. The results showed that the entire reinforced welded joint exhibited improved hardness because of the enhanced metal matrix grain refinement and inherent high hardness of the reinforcement particles. B4C particle addition produced hardest joint of about 81% of the base metal hardness (∼114 HV0.3). The impact energies of the SiC (16.9 J), B4C (16.5) and Al2O3 (12.2 J) reinforced weldments are closer to that of the base metal (18.6 J) compared with the unreinforced weldment (9.6 J). The reinforced weldments showed no significant improvement over the tensile strength of the unreinforced weldment. B4C and SiC reinforcements produced the highest improvements in the hardness (at the joint) and impact strength of the AA 6061-T6 friction stir weldments, respectively.

Abrasion regimes in fluvial bedrock incision

River incision into bedrock drives landscape evolution and couples surface changes to climate and tectonics in uplands. Mechanistic bedrock erosion modeling has focused on plucking—the hydraulic removal of large loosened rock fragments—and on abrasion—the slower fracturing-driven removal of rock due to impacts of transported sediment—which produces sand- or silt-sized fragments at the mineral grain scale (i.e., wear). An abrasion subregime (macro-abrasion) has been hypothesized to exist under high impact energies typical of cobble or boulder transport in mountain rivers, in which larger bedrock fragments can be generated. We conducted dry impact abrasion experiments across a wide range of impact energies and found that gravel-sized fragments were generated when the impact energy divided by squared impactor diameter exceeded 1 kJ/m2. However, the total abraded volume followed the same kinetic-energy scaling regardless of fragment size, holding over 13 orders of magnitude in impact energy and supporting a general abrasion law. Application to natural bedrock rivers shows that many of them likely can generate large fragments, especially in steep mountain streams and during large floods, transporting boulders in excess of 0.6 m diameter. In this regime, even single impacts can cause changes in riverbed topography that may drive morphodynamic feedbacks.