Thermomechanical Modeling of Oxidation Effects in Porous Ultra-High Temperature Ceramics
| dc.contributor.author | Morris, Brenton Alexander | en |
| dc.contributor.committeechair | Seidel, Gary D. | en |
| dc.contributor.committeemember | Kapania, Rakesh K. | en |
| dc.contributor.committeemember | Tallon Galdeano, Carolina | en |
| dc.contributor.department | Aerospace and Ocean Engineering | en |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2022-12-16T07:00:15Z | en |
| dc.date.available | 2022-12-16T07:00:15Z | en |
| dc.date.issued | 2021-06-23 | en |
| dc.description.abstract | The effects of oxidation in the thermomechanical response of porous titanium diboride have been investigated. An in-house quasi-static material point method tool was used to perform two -dimensional plane strain simulations on unoxidized hexagonal representative volume elements (RVEs) with macroporosity volume fractions of 10%, 40% and 70% to establish a baseline for the response due to geometric effects. Compressive strains of up to 30% were applied at room temperature. The 10% and 40% RVEs showed shear banding and subsequent shear failure of the inter-pore struts, while shear banding in 70% RVE weakened the struts, which lead to buckling failure. A snapshot oxidation model was then applied to the hexagonal RVEs in place of a transient, diffusion-based oxidation solver. Compressive strain simulations were performed on RVEs with oxide layers ranging from 5 to 50 μm. In RVEs with porosity of 40% or higher, oxide percolation in the struts reduced the effective elastic modulus and compressive strength, though further oxidation beyond the percolation point did not have a significant impact. Ramped and cyclic thermal loads were applied and the damage due to thermal expansion coefficient mismatch at the oxide-substrate interface decreased as the oxide layer was increased. Finally, the snapshot oxidation modeling approach was applied to large porous RVEs derived from micro-computed tomography images of titanium diboride foam. The effective elastic modulus decreased by 47% when the 5 μm layer was applied due to many thin, flexible struts becoming fully oxidized. Subsequent oxidation did not have a significant impact on the thermomechanical response. | en |
| dc.description.abstractgeneral | Thermal loading experienced by hypersonic flight vehicles has posed significant design challenges in the development of platforms for military and re-entry applications. The advent of hypersonic strike weapons and waveriders has led to an interest in utilizing ceramics with melting points above 3000°C, called ultra-high temperature ceramics (UHTCs), that offer improved resistance to high-temperature oxidation. Beyond load-carrying applications, UHTCs imbued with macroscale porosity have been introduced as candidates for providing thermal insulation of sensitive on-board components. This thesis presents a first pass at modeling the coupled effects of oxidation and continuum damage in the thermomechanical response of such materials. Using an in-house material point method tool, two-dimensional compressive strain simulations were performed on hexagonal representative volume elements (RVEs) of titanium diboride foam with varying levels of macroporosity, along with large porous RVEs derived from micro-computed tomography images of titanium diboride foam. A snapshot oxidation model was applied to these RVEs in place of a transient, diffusion-based oxidation solver, then simulations with applied compressive strains of up to 30% were performed on RVEs with oxide layers ranging from 5 to 50 μm. Ramped and cyclic thermal loads were applied to explore the effects of thermal expansion mismatch between the substrate and oxide phases. The oxide layers were shown to reduce the effective stiffness, compressive strength, and thermal conductivity of the RVEs, with the oxidation state of the inter-pore struts having a large impact on the overall material response. | en |
| dc.description.degree | Master of Science | en |
| dc.format.medium | ETD | en |
| dc.identifier.other | vt_gsexam:31567 | en |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/10919/112917 | en |
| dc.publisher | Virginia Tech | en |
| dc.rights | In Copyright | en |
| dc.rights.uri | http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ | en |
| dc.subject | Oxidation | en |
| dc.subject | Ultra-High Temperature Ceramics | en |
| dc.subject | Macroporosity | en |
| dc.subject | Material Point Method | en |
| dc.subject | Titanium Diboride | en |
| dc.title | Thermomechanical Modeling of Oxidation Effects in Porous Ultra-High Temperature Ceramics | en |
| dc.type | Thesis | en |
| thesis.degree.discipline | Aerospace Engineering | en |
| thesis.degree.grantor | Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | en |
| thesis.degree.level | masters | en |
| thesis.degree.name | Master of Science | en |