Stiff Stiffening

Wang M, Stamenovic D. Contribution of intermediate filaments to cell stiffness, stiffening and growth. Am J Cell Physiol. 2000 279 C188-C194. 

The solution (pad bath) contains one or more of the amino resias described above, a catalyst, and other additives such as a softener, a stiffening agent, or a water repeUant. The catalyst may be an ammonium or metal salt, eg, magnesium chloride or ziac nitrate. Synthetic fabrics, such as nylon or polyester, are treated with amino resias to obtaia a stiff finish. Cotton (qv) or rayon fabrics or blends with synthetic fibers are treated with amino resias to obtain shrinkage control and a durable-press finish. 

Thus the addition of the stiff carbon fibers has a very great effect in stiffening the epoxy matrix. Eor the commonly used fiber volume fraction of 0.6 the unidirectional carbon—epoxy lamina has a predicted extensional stiffness E = 145 GPa (2.1 x 10 psi)-... 

When the temperamre is lowered, rubbers become stiff and brittle. All rubbers eventually stiffen to a rigid, amorphous glass at the glass transition temperature (Tg). This temperature also indicates the low-temperature service limit of the rubber. Tg values are dependent on the structure, degree of cross-linking (vulcanization) and isomeric composition of the rubber. 

The contribution to the stress from electromechanical coupling is readily estimated from the constitutive relation [Eq. (4.2)]. Under conditions of uniaxial strain and field, and for an open circuit, we find that the elastic stiffness is increased by the multiplying factor (1 -i- K ) where the square of the electromechanical coupling factor for uniaxial strain, is a measure of the stiffening effect of the electric field. Values of for various materials are for x-cut quartz, 0.0008, for z-cut lithium niobate, 0.055 for y-cut lithium niobate, 0.074 for barium titanate ceramic, 0.5 and for PZT-5H ceramic, 0.75. These examples show that electromechanical coupling effects can be expected to vary from barely detectable to quite substantial. 

We usually must go beyond the simple concept of a monocoque or single-thickness skin for whatever structure we design. That is, we must usually consider the bending stiffness, and, to achieve structural efficiency, we often must stiffen a structure in some manner. We will first address the terminology of stiffening and how it is used. Then, we will consider the types of stiffeners that could be used. Next, an important issue that arises in the design of stiffeners is whether the stiffener has an open- or a closed-cross section. Then, we will address some of the... 

Further contrast between metal and composite stiffeners is revealed when we examine the objectives and characteristics of stiffener design. For a metal stiffener of uniform or even nonuniform thickness, we attempt to maximize the moment of inertia of the stiffener in order to maximize the bending stiffness of the stiffener. Those two factors are proportional to one another when we realize that the bending stiffness of metal stiffeners about the middle surface of the plate or shell to which they are attached is... 

In contrast, because of the spatially variable (inhomogeneous) nature of material in a composite stiffener, the bending stiffness cannot be separated into a material factor times a geometric term as in Equation (7.6). Instead, the composite stiffener bending stiffness is... 

The relative efficiency of the two stiffeners is compared principally on the basis of the torsional resistance. The reason for the lower efficiency rating of the sandwich-blade stiffener is its low torsional resistance (and the bending stiffness is not high) and for the high efficiency of the hat stiffener is its high torsional resistance because of the basic open-versus closed-section stiffener issue. Stiffener torsional resistance affects the buckling load of a stiffened panel or shell as shown by Card and Jones [7-3]. 

Suppose we want to analyze the stresses in the two stiffeners. The geometry of the sandwich-blade stiffener is actually more complicated and less amenable to analysis than is the hat-shaped stiffener. Issues that arise in the analysis to determine the influence of the various portions of the stiffeners include the in-plane shear stiffness. In the plane of the vertical blade is a certain amount of shear stiffness. That is, the shear stiffness is necfessary to transfer load from the 0° fibers at the top of the stiffener down to the panel. In hat-shaped stiffeners, that shear stiffness is the only way that load is transferred from the 0° fibers at the top of the stiffener down to the panel. Thus, shear stiffness is the dominant issue in the design. And that is why we typically put 45° fibers in the web of the hat-shaped stiffener. 

Another issue that turns out to be very important for the sandwich-blade stiffener, but not at all important for the hat-shaped stiffener, is shear in the vertical web. Not shear in the plane of the web, but shear in the plane perpendicular to the web. This transverse shear stiffness turns out to dominate the behavior or be very important in the behavior of the sandwich blade, but simply is not addressed at all in the hatshaped stiffener. You can imagine that the transverse shearing stiffness would be more important in the sandwich blade when you consider the observation that the sandwich blade is a thick element and the hatshaped stiffener is a thin element. That is, bending and in-plane shear would dominate this response, whereas transverse shear, because the sandwich blade is thick, can very easily be an important factor in the sandwich blade. For both stiffeners, appropriate analyses and design rationale have been developed to be able to make an optimally shaped stiffener. 

Steife, /. stiffening (starch, glue, size) consistency prop, strut, stay stiffness, rigidity, steifen, v.t. stiffen starch stay, prop. Steifheit,/. stiffness, rigidity. 

The best combination of properties of polyethylene-based ionomers, such as stiffness, strength, transparency, and toughness, are realized at partial degrees of conversion of about 40-50% [13]. The initial increase in properties is a result of the presence of ionic interactions, which strengthen and stiffen the polymer. There is, however, some loss of crystallinity as a result of the presence of the ionic groups. When the loss of crystallin-... 

Glucose molecules can link together into chains, with each ring tethered to the next by a bridging oxygen atom. In one form, this is cellulose, the stiff material that gives the stalks of plants and the trunks of trees their structural strength. Chitin, a variation on cellulose, is an even stiffen material that forms the exoskeletons of crustaceans such as crabs and lobsters. 

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