Publications related to Micromechanical design of hierarchical composites using global load sharing theory

Quench Detection and Temperature Measurement With Fiber Optic Sensors

Davide Uglietti, Kamil Sedlák, Christoph Müller

For the EU DEMO conductor testing, a temperature sensor based on Fiber Bragg Grating (FBG) optical fiber is studied at the EPFL Swiss Plasma Center. The SULTAN test facility has been upgraded to use fiber optic sensor for temperature monitoring and quench ...

IEEE Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers2024

Two-dimensional quasi-static delamination in composite laminates under Mode-I and Mode-II conditions

Congzhe Wang

Fiber-polymer composites consist of a polymer matrix and reinforcing fibers made of various materials. These composites exhibit exceptional properties, such as a high strength-to-weight ratio and excellent corrosion resistance, which has led to their incre ...

EPFL2024

Filiform Variable Stiffness Technologies for Medical Robotics

Yegor Piskarev

In recent years, soft robotics has surged in applications like wearables, drones, smart fabrics, and medical instruments. Due to their compliance, these devices excel in tasks demanding dexterity and adaptability, such as manipulation, locomotion, crash re ...

EPFL2024

Self-catalysed frontal polymerisation enables fast and low-energy processing of fibre reinforced polymer composites

Véronique Michaud, Baris Çaglar, Jacobus Gerardus Rudolph Staal

Frontal polymerisation has the potential to bring unprecedented reductions in energy demand and process time to produce fibre reinforced polymer composites. Production of epoxy-based fibre reinforced polymer parts with high fibre volume content, commonly e ...

2024

Additive Manufacturing of Bioinspired Mineral-Based Composites

Ran Zhao

Biominerals are used by natural organisms for example as structural supports and optical sensors. They are produced from a limited number of elements and under ambient conditions. Nevertheless, they often possess excellent mechanical properties and sometim ...

EPFL2024

Numerical investigation of two-dimensional Mode-II delamination in composite laminates

Thomas Keller, Anastasios Vassilopoulos, Congzhe Wang

Existing standards for delamination tests on composite materials typically employ one-dimensional (1D) beam specimens. However, such specimens may not represent real delamination scenarios in composite structures, where cracks tend to propagate in two dime ...

Elsevier Sci Ltd2024

Highly anisotropic carbon fiber electrodes for DEAs and their dynamic non-monotonic conductive properties

Yves Perriard, Stefania Maria Aliki Konstantinidi, Markus Koenigsdorff

A common method for creating compliant electrodes for dielectric elastomer actuators (DEAs) and soft sensors is to incorporate electrically conductive carbon particles into a polymer matrix. However, using unidirectional aligned carbon fibers instead not o ...

Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE)2024

On the influence of flow-front orientation on stringer stiffened composite panels in water impacts

Véronique Michaud

Water impacts form the critical load case for high-performance carbon fibre reinforced polymer (CFRP) racing craft. Such events produce a peaked, non-uniform pressure distribution that travels along a hull panel as it is immersed. Current design standards ...

2024

High energy-density electrostatic actuators for soft robotics

Sylvain Thomas Schaller

This thesis reports high energy-density electrostatic actuators for use in soft robotics. This thesis has two main parts: a) a detailed study of electro-adhesion using microfabricated electrodes, and b) a flexi-ble fiber-shaped linear motor. Electro-adhesi ...

EPFL2024

Pseudo-Three-Dimensional Analytical Model of Linear Induction Motors for High-Speed Applications

André Hodder, Mario Paolone, Lucien André Félicien Pierrejean, Simone Rametti

Literature on linear induction motors (LIMs) has proposed several approaches to model the behavior of such devices for different applications. In terms of accuracy and fidelity, field analysis-based models are the most relevant. Closed-form or numerical so ...

2024

Moulding and Microfluidic Wet Spinning of the Soft Polymer Optical Fibers for Sensory Applications

Khushdeep Sharma

Polymer optical fibre (POFs) based wearable sensors have attracted a lot of attention in the field of healthcare and biomedical applications. They are in particular envision as the next generation of sensors for the continuous, real-time n ...

EPFL2024

A cut-cell method for the numerical simulation of 3D multiphase flows with strong interfacial effects

Alexandre Caboussat, Alexandre Masserey, Marco Picasso, Julien Hess

We present a numerical model for the approximation of multiphase flows with free surfaces and strong interfacial effects. The model relies on the multiphase incompressible Navier-Stokes equations, and includes surface tension effects on the interfaces betw ...

Academic Press Inc Elsevier Science2024

Numerical Modeling of FRP-Strengthened Masonry Structures Using Equivalent Frame Models

Katrin Beyer, Francesco Vanin, Ivana Bozulic

The present study focuses on enhancing the seismic resistance of existing masonry structures. To that aim, the use of fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) strengthening serves to improve structural behaviour by attaching FRP strips to the masonry walls. Despite ...

Springer2024

The time-domain Cartesian multipole expansion of electromagnetic fields

Farhad Rachidi-Haeri, Marcos Rubinstein, Nicolas Mora Parra, Elias Per Joachim Le Boudec, Emanuela Radici, Chaouki Kasmi

Time-domain solutions of Maxwell’s equations in homogeneous and isotropic media are paramount to studying transient or broadband phenomena. However, analytical solutions are generally unavailable for practical applications, while numerical solutions are co ...

Nature Publishing Group2024

Adaptive Finite Elements with Large Aspect Ratio. Application to Aluminium Electrolysis

Paride Passelli

The goal of this work is to use anisotropic adaptive finite elements for the numerical simulation of aluminium electrolysis. The anisotropic adaptive criteria are based on a posteriori error estimates derived for simplified problems. First, we consider an ...

EPFL2024

Modeling friction and wear using an adaptive discrete-continuum coupling

Manon Eugénie Voisin--Leprince

When two objects slide against each other, wear and friction occur at their interface. The accumulation of wear forms what is commonly referred to as a ``third-body''. Understanding third-body evolution has significant applications in industry, where contr ...

EPFL2024

Experimental characterization and stochastic models for time-dependent rupture of thin-ply composite laminates

Thin-laminate composites with thicknesses below 200 mu m hold significant promise for future, larger, and lighter deployable structures. This paper presents a study of the time-dependent failure behavior of thin carbon-fiber laminates under bending, focusi ...

2024

Process development of pre-impregnated hybrid thin-ply composites

Alexios Argyropoulos

Thin-ply composites, obtained with recently developed fiber spreading techniques, rapidly gained industrial interest because they offer a large composite design freedom, and lead to a composite tensile strength that is close to that of the individual fiber ...

EPFL2023

Multi-scale characterization and modeling of notched strength and translaminar fracture in hybrid thin-ply composites based on different carbon fiber grades

Guillaume Clément Broggi

Owing to their high specific stiffness and strength, Carbon Fiber Reinforced Composites (CFRP) are ideal candidates for the development of lightweight high-performance structures. Within this family, thin-ply composites allow for wider design freedom and p ...

EPFL2023

Incorporation of Lignin in Bio-Based Resins for Potential Application in Fiber-Polymer Composites

Mário Alexandre De Jesus Garrido, Mateus De Assunção Hofmann

Bio-based resins, obtained from renewable raw materials, are a more sustainable alternative to oil-based resins for fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) composites. The incorporation of lignin in those resins has the potential to enhance their performance. This ...

MDPI2023