This work investigated the effect of adding ceria-stabilized tetragonal zirconia (Ce-TZP) on the fatigue behavior of alumina-based ceramic composites. Alumina powder (control group) and mixtures containing 5 wt.% (group A) and 20 wt.% (group B) of a commercial m-ZrO2/Al2O3/CeO2 powder mixture were milled/homogenized, compacted, sintered at 1600°C-2h, and submitted to hydrothermal degradation. The samples were characterized by relative density, microstructure, crystalline phases, and static mechanical properties. The cyclic fatigue strength was determined using the modified staircase method in 4-point bending tests. The results indicate that adding the m-ZrO2/Al2O3/CeO2 powder mixture to the Al2O3-matrix increases the tetragonal-ZrO2 grains (Ce-TZP) content, presenting 2.9 wt.% of Ce-TZP and 11.9 wt.% of Ce-TZP for group A and group B, respectively. Furthermore, the addition of Ce-TZP improves densification (98.5% → 99.1%) with a slight reduction in hardness and modulus of elasticity and a significant KIC increase of the composite (KIC = 6.7 MPa.m1/2, group B) when compared to monolithic alumina (KIC=2.4 MPa.m1/2). The fatigue strength limit of the control group was around 100 MPa, while the composites (groups A and B) presented the values of 279 MPa and 239 MPa, respectively. The results indicated that the incorporation of Ce-TZP significantly improves the fracture toughness of alumina-based ceramics. On the other hand, regarding the fatigue behavior, there was an increase in fatigue resistance in group A, resulting from the benefits of the t→m Ce-TZP grains transformation, which occurs during cyclic loading, producing a zone shielding that involves the tip of the crack, slowing its growth. The increase in the amount of Ce-TZP (group B) leads to an increase in the internal residual stresses between the phases due to anisotropy and difference in the thermal expansion coefficients, which accelerates the phase transformation and formation of microcracks at grain boundaries, reducing the fatigue strength of composites of group B.

RESUMO Com a necessidade de aperfeiçoamento do processo de transmissão e distribuição de energia elétrica, as indústrias e concessionárias desse setor estão em busca de componentes mais otimizados para suas linhas de transmissão. Em consequência, há a necessidade de aprimorar a formação do cabo condutor, que é o elemento mais oneroso das linhas elétricas. Nestas circunstâncias, condutores formados apenas por fios de alumínio aparentam ser mais vantajosos em relação aos cabos com alma de aço, obtendo melhores índices de ampacidade/peso, diminuindo assim, o custo de transmissão. Neste cenário, o objetivo deste artigo, foi verificar a influência do fenômeno de fadiga por fretting sob condições controladas, nos fios de liga de alumínio AA 6201 T81 e AA 1120 H19, que formam os condutores CAL 900 MCM e CAL 823 MCM, respectivamente. Para alcançar tal fim, criou-se um programa experimental capaz de adquirir os dados sobre a resistência à fadiga dos cabos condutores e dos fios de forma separada, a fim de analisar a influência do fretting sob o parâmetro de carga normal de contato de 750 N. Ao examinar os resultados, o condutor CAL 900 MCM obteve a menor resistência à fadiga, apesar de ser constituído por uma liga com melhores propriedades mecânicas. O mesmo resultado foi obtido nos ensaios de fadiga por fretting nos fios, deste modo, pôde-se inferir que a liga AA 6201 T81, embora possua melhor resistência à fadiga, ela é mais suscetível a falha na presença de fretting quando comparada a liga AA 1120 H19.

ABSTRACT The electric transmission and distribution industries and utilities are looking for the most optimized components for their transmission lines. Thus, there is a need to improve the formation of the overhead conductor, which is the costliest element of electric transmission lines. Under these circumstances, conductors formed solely of aluminum wires appear to be more advantageous over aluminum conductor steel reinforced, obtaining better ampacity/weight ratios, thus lowering the transmission cost. The objective of this article was to verify the influence of the fretting fatigue phenomenon under controlled conditions, on the AA 6201 T81 and AA 1120 H19 aluminum alloy wires, which form the overhead conductors CAL 900 MCM and CAL 823 MCM, respectively. To achieve these goals, an experimental program was created capable of acquiring the data on the fatigue life of the overhead conductors and the wires separately, in order to verify the influence of fretting under a 750 N normal contact load parameter. In the results, the CAL 900 MCM achieved the lowest fatigue life, despite it made of an alloy with better mechanical properties. The same result was obtained in the fretting fatigue tests on wires, so it can be inferred that the AA 6201 T81 alloy, although it has better fatigue resistance, is more susceptible to failure in the presence of fretting when compared to AA 1120 H19 alloy.

ABSTRACT This study aimed to use a simulated vehicle to asses quantitatively the head and neck injuries of the occupants, in a frontal car crash, when the driver has only one hand on the steering wheel, such as while using a cell phone when driving. First, we conducted a survey of NHTSA reports on real laboratory tests of frontal collisions involving sedans. The effects of these collisions on the neck of a Hybrid III 50th percentile male crash test dummy were measured in terms of average head acceleration and force along the X, Z, and Y-axes. These acceleration, force and torque values obtained from the NHTSA database were used to validate the simulated model. The results obtained were compared with case E, the standard dummy position used in frontal collision tests. The results obtained in the simulation of the four cases of driving with only one hand demonstrate a probability of more than 67% that the driver will sustain AIS+2 injuries during a frontal crash. In all the cases, the skull fracture percentage was the most representative, occurring between 89 and 94% of cases where the driver had only one hand on the steering wheel.

En este trabajo fueron obtenidos electrólitos sólidos de circonia totalmente estabilizada, para uso en sensores de oxigeno y/o celdas combustibles, con dopado de 10 e 12 % mol de Re2O3 (óxidos mixtos de tierras raras). Los cuerpos de prueba fueron confeccionados por prensado uniaxial y sinterizados usando dos cronogramas de calentamiento, S1 y S2. Diagramas de impedancia revelan que tanto las fases cristalinas presentes cuanto el tamaño de grano tienen influencia sobre el comportamiento eléctrico de las cerámicas. La muestra más conductora fue obtenida con 10% mol de dopado y sinterizada con la curva S1. El valor de conductividad total de esta muestra fue de 2,85x10-3 omega-1.cm-1 (tomada en 600°C). Al realizar una comparación directa de estos valores de conductividad con los reportados en la literatura, se identifica semejanza con el sistema tradicional circonia-ítria, el sistema más usado comercialmente como electrólito en sensores de oxígeno y celdas combustibles, confirmando el potencial uso de los óxidos mixtos de tierras raras para estas aplicaciones específicas

In this work was obtained solid electrolytes of fully stabilized zircônia with doped of 10 and 12 mol% of Re2O3 (mixed oxides rare earth), for use in oxygen sensors and or fuel cells. The specimens were prepared by uniaxial pressing and sintered using two heating schedules, S1 and S2. Impedance diagrams show that the crystalline phases and the grain size change the electrical behavior of the ceramics. The sample with the best electrical performance was obtained with 10 mol% doped and was sintered with the curve S1. The value of the total conductivity of this sample was 2,85x10-3 omega-1.cm-1 (taken at 600 ° C). When making a comparison between this values of conductivity with the reported in the literature is identified similarity with or traditional system zirconia-yttria the most widely used commercially as electrolyte oxygen sensors and fuel cells, confirming the potential use of the oxides mixed rare earth for these specific applications.

The understanding of the creep behavior of silicon nitride (Si3N4) is extremely complex because of a large number of parameters influencing simultaneously the creep deformation of the materials. In general, the main creep mechanisms acting in these materials are grain boundary sliding or materials transport by solution-precipitation process. In this work, the creep behavior has been monitored by X ray diffraction analysis, determining the peak intensity ratio of the (101) and (210) planes of b-Si3N4. This characterization technical, allied the microstructural analysis can contribute to determination of creep mechanisms acting in material. The beta-Si3N4 grains are highly elongated with aspect ratios ranging between 3 and 11. Therefore, the intensity of the peaks related to the basal plane (101) tends to be higher when compared to the lateral planes (210). During creep deformation occurs alignment of the elongated beta-Si3N4 grains in the plane parallel to the direction of the applied load, reflecting in the peak intensity ratio. Crept samples presented variations in the (101)/(210) peak intensity ratio of beta-Si3N4 indicating that grain rotation can to be contributing with creep deformation. In this way, the use of X ray diffractometry as a mean to characterize microstructural changes during creep has been shown successfully.

The objective of this work has been to compare the reliability of two Si3N4 ceramics, with Y2O3/Al2O3 or CTR2O3/Al2O3 mixtures as additives, in regard to their 4-point bending strength and to confirm the potential of the rare earth oxide mixture, CTR2O3, produced at FAENQUIL, as an alternative, low cost sinter additive for pure Y2O3 in the sintering of Si3N4 ceramics. The oxide mixture CTR2O3 is a solid solution formed mainly by Y2O3, Er2O3, Yb2O3 and Dy2O3 with other minor constituents and is obtained at a cost of only 20% of pure Y2O3. Samples were sintered by a gas pressure sintering process at 1900 °C under a nitrogen pressure of 1.5 MPa and an isothermal holding time of 2 h. The obtained materials were characterized by their relative density, phase composition and bending strength. The Weibull analysis was used to describe the reliability of these materials. Both materials produced presented relative densities higher than 99.5%t.d., b-Si3N4 and Y3Al5O12 (YAG) as cristalline phases and bending strengths higher than 650 MPa, thus demonstrating similar behaviors regarding their physical, chemical and mechanical characteristics. The statistical analysis of their strength also showed similar results for both materials, with Weibull moduli m of about 15 and characteristic stress values s o of about 700 MPa. These results confirmed the possibility of using the rare earth oxide mixture, CTR2O3, as sinter additive for high performance Si3N4 ceramics, without prejudice of the mechanical properties when compared to Si3N4 ceramics sintered with pure Y2O3.