An official website of the United States government
Abstract The dynamics of Earth's D″ layer at the base of the mantle plays an essential role in Earth's thermal and chemical evolution. Mantle convection in D″ is thought to result in seismic anisotropy; therefore, observations of anisotropy may be used to infer lowermost mantle flow. However, the connections between mantle flow and seismic anisotropy in D″ remain ambiguous. Here, we calculate the present‐day mantle flow field in D″ using 3D global geodynamic models. We then compute strain, a measure of deformation, outside the two large‐low velocity provinces (LLVPs) and compare the distribution of strain with previous observations of anisotropy. We find that, on a global scale, D″ materials are advected toward the LLVPs. The strains of D″ materials generally increase with time along their paths toward the LLVPs and toward deeper depths, but regions far from LLVPs may develop relative high strain as well. Materials in D″ outside the LLVPs mostly undergo lateral stretching, with the stretching direction often aligning with mantle flow direction, especially in fast flow regions. In most models, the depth‐averaged strain in D″ is >0.5 outside the LLVPs, consistent with widespread observations of seismic anisotropy. Flow directions inferred from anisotropy observations often (but not always) align with predictions from geodynamic modeling calculations.
more »
« less
A biomimetic sliding–stretching approach to seismic isolation
Abstract There is growing demand in industrialized and developing countries to provide people and structures with effective earthquake protection. Here, we employ architectured material concepts and a bio-inspired approach to trail-blaze a new path to seismic isolation. We develop a novel seismic isolator whose unit cell is formed by linkages that replicate the bones of human limbs. Deformable tendons connect the limb members to a central post carrying the vertical load, which can slide against the bottom plate of the system. While the displacement capacity of the device depends only on the geometry of the limbs, its vibration period is tuned by dynamically stretching the tendons in the nonlinear stress–strain regime, so as to avoid resonance with seismic excitations. This biomimetic, sliding–stretching isolator can be scaled to seismically protect infrastructure, buildings, artworks and equipment with customized properties and sustainable materials. It does not require heavy industry or expensive materials and is easily assembled from metallic parts and 3D-printed components.
more »
« less
- Award ID(s):
- 2107926
- PAR ID:
- 10317990
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Nonlinear Dynamics
- Volume:
- 106
- Issue:
- 4
- ISSN:
- 0924-090X
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
More Like this
-
-
The utilization of mechanical-bearing-based precision motion stages (MBMS) is prevalent in the advanced manufacturing industries. However, the productivity of the MBMS is plagued by friction-induced vibrations, which can be controlled to a certain extent using a friction isolator. Earlier works investigating the dynamics of MBMS with a friction isolator considered a linear friction isolator, and the source of nonlinearity in the system was realized through the friction model only. In this work, we present the nonlinear analysis of the MBMS with a nonlinear friction isolator for the first time. We consider a two-degree-of-freedom spring-mass-damper system to model the servo-controlled motion stage with a nonlinear friction isolator. The characteristic of the dynamical friction in the system is captured using the LuGre friction model. The system’s stability and nonlinear analysis are carried out using analytical methods. More specifically, the method of multiple scales is used to determine the nature of Hopf bifurcation on the stability lobe. The analytical results indicate the existence of subcritical and supercritical Hopf bifurcations in the system, which are later validated through numerical bifurcation. This observation implies that the nonlinearity in the system can be stabilizing or destabilizing in nature, depending on the choice of operating parameters.more » « less
-
Abstract Motion stages are widely used for precision positioning in manufacturing and metrology applications. However, they suffer from nonlinear pre-motion (i.e., “static”) friction which adversely affects their precision and motion speed. Existing friction compensation methods are not robust enough to handle the highly nonlinear and variable dynamic behavior of pre-motion friction. Therefore, the first two authors have proposed the concept of a friction isolator as a simple and robust solution to mitigate the undesirable effects of pre-motion friction in precision motion stages. They experimentally demonstrated that a motion stage with friction isolator can achieve significantly improved precision, speed and robustness to variations in pre-motion friction. However, a theoretical study was not carried out to fundamentally understand the dynamic phenomena associated with using a friction isolator on a motion stage. This introductory paper investigates the dynamics of a PD-controlled motion stage with friction isolator. The influence of the friction isolator on the response and stability of the system is examined through theoretical and numerical analysis. It is shown, using a case study, that the addition of a friction isolator shrinks the range of P and D gains that can stabilize the motion stage. Several other case studies that include the effects of external excitation and integral controller are carried out to motivate deeper dynamic analyses of the friction isolator for precision motion control.more » « less
-
A stretchable pressure sensor is a necessary tool for perceiving physical interactions that take place on soft/deformable skins present in human bodies, prosthetic limbs, or soft robots. However, all existing types of stretchable pressure sensors have an inherent limitation, which is the interference of stretching with pressure sensing accuracy. Here, we present a design for a highly stretchable and highly sensitive pressure sensor that can provide unaltered sensing performance under stretching, which is realized through the synergistic creations of an ionic capacitive sensing mechanism and a mechanically hierarchical microstructure. Via this optimized structure, our sensor exhibits 98% strain insensitivity up to 50% strain and a low pressure detection limit of 0.2 Pa. With the capability to provide all the desired characteristics for quantitative pressure sensing on a deformable surface, this sensor has been used to realize the accurate sensation of physical interactions on human or soft robotic skin.more » « less
-
Biological springs can be used in nature for energy conservation and ultra-fast motion. The loading and unloading rates of elastic materials can play an important role in determining how the properties of these springs affect movements. We investigate the mechanical energy efficiency of biological springs (American bullfrog plantaris tendons and guinea fowl lateral gastrocnemius tendons) and synthetic elastomers. We measure these materials under symmetric rates (equal loading and unloading durations) and asymmetric rates (unequal loading and unloading durations) using novel dynamic mechanical analysis measurements. We find that mechanical efficiency is highest at symmetric rates and significantly decreases with a larger degree of asymmetry. A generalized one-dimensional Maxwell model with no fitting parameters captures the experimental results based on the independently characterized linear viscoelastic properties of the materials. The model further shows that a broader viscoelastic relaxation spectrum enhances the effect of rate-asymmetry on efficiency. Overall, our study provides valuable insights into the interplay between material properties and unloading dynamics in both biological and synthetic elastic systems.more » « less
- Free Publicly Accessible Full Text
-
Accepted Manuscript1.0
- Journal Article:
- https://doi.org/10.1007/s11071-021-06980-5
