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Open access publications by faculty, postdocs, and graduate students in the Department of Mechanical Engineering.
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Item Unraveling Morphology and Chemistry Dynamics in Fluoroethylene Carbonate Generated Silicon Anode Solid Electrolyte Interphase Across Delithiated and Lithiated States: Relative Cycling Stability Enabled by an Elastomeric Polymer Matrix(Journal of The Electrochemical Society, 2024-04-25) Mou, Rownak J.; Barua, Sattajit; Abraham, Daniel P.; Yao, Koffi P. C.The silicon solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) faces cyclical cracking and reconstruction due to the ∼350% volume expansion. Understanding the SEI dynamic morphology and chemistry evolution from delithiated to lithiated states is thereby paramount to engineering a stable Si anode. Fluoroethylene carbonate (FEC) is a preferred additive with widely demonstrated enhancement of the Si cycling. Thus, insights into the dynamics of the FEC-SEI may provide hints toward engineering the Si interface. Herein, complementary ATR-FTIR, AFM, tip IR, and XPS probing reveal the presence of an elastomeric polycarbonate-like matrix in the FEC-generated SEI which is absent from the FEC-free SEI. Adding FEC to the baseline 1 M LiPF6 in EC:EMC (1:1) electrolyte promotes formation of a thinner and more conformal SEI, and subdues morphology and chemistry changes between consecutive half-cycles. From AFM, morphological stabilization of the FEC-SEI occurs earlier. Furthermore, conventional SEI biproducts such as Li2CO3 and LiEDC appear in reduced quantities in the FEC-SEI implying a reduced quantity of Li-consuming species. The thin polymeric FEC-SEI enables deeper (de)lithiation of silicon. In conclusion, the enhanced mechanical compliance, chemical invariance, and reduced Li inventory consumption of the FEC-SEI are logically the key features underlying the Si cycling enhancement by FEC.Item Electrophoretic Deposition as a Versatile Low-Cost Tool to Construct a Synthetic Polymeric Solid-Electrolyte Interphase on Silicon Anodes: A Model System Investigation(ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces, 2024-02-14) Mou, Rownak J.; Barua, Sattajit; Prasad, Ajay K.; Epps, Thomas H. III; Yao, Koffi P. C.The cycling of next-generation, high-capacity silicon (Si) anodes capable of 3579 mAh·g–1 is greatly hindered by the instability of the solid-electrolyte interphase (SEI). The large volume changes of Si during (de)lithiation cause continuous cracking of the SEI and its reconstruction, leading to loss of lithium inventory and extensive consumption of electrolyte. The SEI formed in situ during cell cycling is mostly composed of molecular fragments and oligomers, the structure of which is difficult to tailor. In contrast, ex situ formation of a synthetic SEI provides greater flexibility to deposit long-chain, polymeric, and elastomeric components potentially capable of maintaining integrity against the large ∼350% volume expansion of Si while also enabling electronic passivation of the surface for longer cycling and calendar life. Furthermore, polymers are amenable to structural modifications, and the desired elasticity can be targeted by selection of the SEI polymer feedstock. Herein, electrophoretic deposition (EPD) is used to apply chitosan as a synthetic SEI on model Si thin film electrodes. Comparison of synthetic SEIs obtained without (Si/Chit) and with CH3COOLi (Si/Chit+CH3COOLi) added during EPD is performed to demonstrate a facile route to tuning of the polymer SEI chemistry. Atomic force and scanning electron microscopy reveal that addition of CH3COOLi at EPD assists in conformal deposition of the synthetic SEI. During electrochemical cycling, the Chit+CH3COOLi coating nearly doubles the capacity retention versus the reference bare Si thin film. X-ray photoelectron and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy reveal that CH3COOLi caps the −NH2 groups of chitosan through amidation during EPD, which suppresses the catalytic reduction of the electrolyte. The presented approach demonstrates and validates EPD as a low-capital route to achieving and chemistry-tuning synthetic SEIs on Si electrodes. More broadly, the method is a promising avenue toward controlled and tailored polymeric SEIs on various conversion-type electrodes with high particle volumetric expansion.Item Electrochemical Modeling of Fast Charging in Batteries(Advanced Energy Materials, 2024-04-18) Duan, Xudong; Hu, Dayong; Chen, Weiheng; Li, Jiani; Wang, Lubing; Sun, Shuguo; Xu, JunThe acceleration of fast charging capabilities has emerged as a pivotal objective within the realms of the battery, electric vehicle, and energy storage sectors. However, the classical electrochemical models are not able to describe voltages of the cell (Ucell), anode (Ua), and cathode (Uc) at high C-rates. Herein, Ucell, Ua,, and Uc are experimentally obtained under various C-rates (0.1–2C) and identified the charge transfer resistance of the cathode (RCT,c) as the primary rate-limiting factor. Thus, the anode is established as a multi-scale coupling model with Fick's law and phase separation model applied, to discuss their effect on Ua and Li-ion concentration prediction. 2D reconstruction structures for the cathode is established with RCT,c effect considered. Finally, the Ua, Uc, and Ucell are successfully predicted at different C-rates. Results propose an accurate and versatile electrochemical model and highlight the importance of considering limiting factors in electrochemical modeling for fast charging.Item A novel digital lifecycle for Material-Process-Microstructure-Performance relationships of thermoplastic olefins foams manufactured via supercritical fluid assisted foam injection molding(Polymer Engineering and Science, 2024-03-15) Pradeep, Sai Aditya; Deshpande, Amit M.; Lavertu, Pierre‐Yves; Zheng, Ting; Yerra, Veera Aditya; Shimabukuro, Yiro; Li, Gang; Pilla, SrikanthThis research significantly enhances the applicability of thermoplastic olefins (TPOs) in the automotive industry using supercritical N2 as a physical foaming agent, effectively addressing the limitations of traditional chemical agents. It merges experimental results with simulations to establish detailed material-process-microstructure-performance (MP2) relationships, targeting 5–20% weight reductions. This innovative approach labeled digital lifecycle (DLC) helps accurately predict tensile, flexural, and impact properties based on the foam microstructure, along with experimentally demonstrating improved paintability. The study combines process simulations with finite element models to develop a comprehensive digital model for accurately predicting mechanical properties. Our findings demonstrate a strong correlation between simulated and experimental data, with about a 5% error across various weight reduction targets, marking significant improvements over existing analytical models. This research highlights the efficacy of physical foaming agents in TPO enhancement and emphasizes the importance of integrating experimental and simulation methods to capture the underlying foaming mechanism to establish material-process-microstructure-performance (MP2) relationships. Highlights - Establishes a material-process-microstructure-performance (MP2) for TPO foams - Sustainably produces TPO foams using supercritical (ScF) N2 with 20% lightweighting - Shows enhanced paintability for TPO foam improved surface aesthetics - Digital lifecycle (DLC) that predicts both foam microstructure and properties - DLC maps process effects & microstructure onto FEA mesh for precise predictionItem Fluoroalkyl phosphonic acid radical scavengers for proton exchange membrane fuel cells(Journal of Materials Chemistry A, 2023-04-06) Agarwal, Tanya; Adhikari, Santosh; Kim, Yu Seung; Babu, Siddharth Komini; Tian, Ding; Bae, Chulsung; Pham, Nguyet N. T.; Lee, Seung Geol; Prasad, Ajay K.; Advani, Suresh G.; Sievert, Allen; Rasika, Wipula Priya Liyanage; Hopkins, Timothy E.; Park, Andrew; Borup, RodRadical-induced degradation of proton exchange membranes limits the durability of proton-exchange membrane fuel cells. Cerium is widely used as a radical scavenger, but the migration of cerium ions to the catalyst layer has been an unresolved issue, reducing its effectiveness over time. Here, we report phosphonic acids as a promising class of radical scavengers, showing competent radical scavenging activity compared to cerium without the migration issue. The ex situ Fenton test shows that the fluoride emission rate for Nafion membrane incorporated with fluoroalkyl phosphonic acid ranged from 0.22 to 0.37 μg F cm−2 h−1, lower than that of the cerium-incorporated Nafion™ membrane (0.39 μg F cm−2 h−1). The in situ open circuit voltage hold test confirmed that a phosphonic acid-incorporated Nafion™ membrane has a 58% lower fluoride emission rate compared to the baseline. Density functional theory calculations indicate that the activation energy of the hydroxyl radical scavenging reaction of an alkyl phosphonic acid is only 0.68 eV, suggesting an effective radical scavenging pathway.Item Upstream mobility and swarming of light activated micromotors(Materials Advances, 2023-10-26) Wu, Bingzhi; Rivas, David P.; Das, SambeetaMicromotors have been proposed for applications such as targeted drug delivery, thrombolysis, or sensing. However, single micrormotors are limited in the amount of payload they can deliver or force they can exert. Swarms of micromotors can overcome many of these challenges, however creating and controlling such swarms presents many challenges of its own. In particular, utilizing swarms in fluid flows is of significant importance for biomedical or lab-on-chip applications. Here, the upstream mobility and swarm formation of light driven micromotors in microchannel flows is demonstrated with maximum speeds around 0.1 mm s−1. Additionally, the light actuated microrobots operate in fairly low concentrations of hydrogen peroxide of approximately 1%. The micromotors form swarms at the boundary of the locally applied light pattern and the swarms can be moved by translating the light up or downstream.Item Design optimization of a multi-material, fiber-reinforced composite-intensive body-in-white of a mid-size SUV(CAMX 2023 Conference Proceedings, 2023-10-30) Deshpande, Amit M.; Sadiwala, Rushabh; Brown, Nathan; Lavertu, Pierre-Yves; Pradeep, Sai Aditya; Headings, Leon M.; Zhao, Ningxiner; Losey, Brad; Hahnlen, Ryan; Dapino, Marcelo J.; Li, Gang; Pilla, SrikanthTransportation accounts for almost a third of all energy consumption and emissions in the U.S. With an emphasis on improving the energy efficiency of vehicles and transitioning to electrified vehicles, lightweighting has become relevant to compensate for the added complexity of battery packs and hybrid powertrains. Lightweight materials such as aluminum, magnesium, and fiber-reinforced plastic (FRP) composites can reduce the vehicle’s structural mass, the body-in-white (BIW), by up to 50%. However, the higher proportion of large sports utility vehicles (SUVs) and trucks in the North American fleet poses a challenge, as the larger size and high production scale of the structural components for this segment can significantly increase material costs. Thus, a multi-material approach to deploy FRP composites at select locations in an existing metal BIW can help advance composites design, integration, and manufacturing technologies. Furthermore, these designs can be translated for future EV structures. This study utilizes a systems approach to 1) establish design targets through structural analysis of the baseline SUV BIW design under various static and dynamic load cases, 2) conceptualize multi-material designs, and 3) assess the designs to meet lightweighting, cost, and sustainability objectives. Sustainable recycled carbon fiber-reinforced composites and other cost-effective FRP composite materials manufactured using state-of-the-art high-pressure resin transfer molding (HP RTM) technology were assessed for use in structural elements. An ultrasonic additive manufacturing (UAM) technique was implemented to produce mechanically interlocked metal-fiber transition joints to serve as a joining mechanism between fibers and metals in the multi-material design. To incorporate the transition joint design into the topology optimization scheme, a high-fidelity model of the fiber-metal transition joints that describes the fiber-oriented interactions between the fibers, cured-epoxy matrix, and metal components was developed. This model's results accurately represented the behavior from experimental testing. They can be transferred to the FEA solver as a computationally efficient material card specifically for use at the metal-composite transition regions in the proposed designs. The results from this system-level multi-material composites integration study have been presented.Item Biosourced Antioxidants for Chemical Durability Enhancement of Perfluorosulfonic Acid Membrane(Advanced Functional Materials, 2024-01-02) Agarwal, Tanya; Adhikari, Santosh; Babu, Siddharth Komini; Prasad, Ajay K.; Advani, Suresh G.; Borup, Rodney L.The chemical durability of perfluorosulfonic acid (PFSA) membranes is a topic of growing interest to meet Department of Energy (DOE) durability targets for heavy-duty vehicle (HDV) applications. State-of-the-art membranes like Nafion, rely on the use of cerium, heteropolyacids, and other inorganic additives to increase PFSA chemical durability. A less explored avenue for the oxidative stabilization of PFSA and hydrocarbon membranes is the use of organic antioxidants. No reversible organic antioxidant has been demonstrated to date which can enhance membrane lifetime by factors comparable to cerium. Here, ellagic acid (EA) is demonstrated as a promising radical scavenger for PFSA's. It is found that the incorporation of EA enhances the chemical durability of Nafion by 160%. EA, when incorporated with cerium as an electron donorenhances Nafion durability by at least 80% compared to a membrane incorporated with just cerium in DOE-defined durability tests. EA is found to be reversible in acidic conditions like those of fuel cells and its reversibility could be further enhanced by the use of suitable co-antioxidants.Item Contributions of deep learning to automated numerical modelling of the interaction of electric fields and cartilage tissue based on 3D images(Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology, 2023-08-29) Che, Vien Lam; Zimmermann, Julius; Zhou, Yilu; Lu, X. Lucas; van Rienen, UrsulaElectric fields find use in tissue engineering but also in sensor applications besides the broad classical application range. Accurate numerical models of electrical stimulation devices can pave the way for effective therapies in cartilage regeneration. To this end, the dielectric properties of the electrically stimulated tissue have to be known. However, knowledge of the dielectric properties is scarce. Electric field-based methods such as impedance spectroscopy enable determining the dielectric properties of tissue samples. To develop a detailed understanding of the interaction of the employed electric fields and the tissue, fine-grained numerical models based on tissue-specific 3D geometries are considered. A crucial ingredient in this approach is the automated generation of numerical models from biomedical images. In this work, we explore classical and artificial intelligence methods for volumetric image segmentation to generate model geometries. We find that deep learning, in particular the StarDist algorithm, permits fast and automatic model geometry and discretisation generation once a sufficient amount of training data is available. Our results suggest that already a small number of 3D images (23 images) is sufficient to achieve 80% accuracy on the test data. The proposed method enables the creation of high-quality meshes without the need for computer-aided design geometry post-processing. Particularly, the computational time for the geometrical model creation was reduced by half. Uncertainty quantification as well as a direct comparison between the deep learning and the classical approach reveal that the numerical results mainly depend on the cell volume. This result motivates further research into impedance sensors for tissue characterisation. The presented approach can significantly improve the accuracy and computational speed of image-based models of electrical stimulation for tissue engineering applications.Item Modeling the Maturation of the Vocal Fold Lamina Propria Using a Bioorthogonally Tunable Hydrogel Platform(Advanced Healthcare Materials, 2023-08-02) Zou, Xiaoyu; Zhang, He; Benson, Jamie M.; Gao, Hanyuan; Burris, David L.; Fox, Joseph. M.; Jia, XinqiaoToward the goal of establishing an engineered model of the vocal fold lamina propria (LP), mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are encapsulated in hyaluronic acid (HA)-based hydrogels employing tetrazine ligation with strained alkenes. To mimic matrix stiffening during LP maturation, diffusion-controlled interfacial bioorthogonal crosslinking is carried out on the soft cellular construct using HA modified with a ferocious dienophile, trans-cyclooctene (TCO). Cultures are maintained in MSC growth media for 14 days to afford a model of a newborn LP that is homogeneously soft (nLP), a homogeneously stiffened construct zero (sLP0) or 7 days (sLP7) post cell encapsulation, and a mature LP model (mLP) with a stiff top layer and a soft bottom layer. Installation of additional HA crosslinks restricts cell spreading. Compared to the nLP controls, sLP7 conditions upregulate the expression of fibrous matrix proteins (Col I, DCN, and FN EDA), classic fibroblastic markers (TNC, FAP, and FSP1), and matrix remodeling enzymes (MMP2, TIMP1, and HAS3). Day 7 stiffening also upregulates the catabolic activities, enhances ECM turnover, and promotes YAP expression. Overall, in situ delayed matrix stiffening promotes a fibroblast transition from MSCs and enhances YAP-regulated mechanosensing.Item Boosting photocatalytic hydrogen production from water by photothermally induced biphase systems(Nature Communications, 2021-02-26) Guo, Shaohui; Li, Xuanhua; Li, Ju; Wei, BingqingSolar-driven hydrogen production from water using particulate photocatalysts is considered the most economical and effective approach to produce hydrogen fuel with little environmental concern. However, the efficiency of hydrogen production from water in particulate photocatalysis systems is still low. Here, we propose an efficient biphase photocatalytic system composed of integrated photothermal–photocatalytic materials that use charred wood substrates to convert liquid water to water steam, simultaneously splitting hydrogen under light illumination without additional energy. The photothermal–photocatalytic system exhibits biphase interfaces of photothermally-generated steam/photocatalyst/hydrogen, which significantly reduce the interface barrier and drastically lower the transport resistance of the hydrogen gas by nearly two orders of magnitude. In this work, an impressive hydrogen production rate up to 220.74 μmol h−1 cm−2 in the particulate photocatalytic systems has been achieved based on the wood/CoO system, demonstrating that the photothermal–photocatalytic biphase system is cost-effective and greatly advantageous for practical applications.Item Propulsive performance of oscillating plates with time-periodic flexibility(Journal of Fluid Mechanics, 2023-03-22) Yudin, David; Floryan, Daniel; Van Buren, TylerWe use small-amplitude inviscid theory to study the swimming performance of a flexible flapping plate with time-varying flexibility. The stiffness of the plate oscillates at twice the frequency of the kinematics in order to maintain a symmetric motion. Plates with constant and time-periodic stiffness are compared over a range of mean plate stiffnesses, oscillating stiffness amplitudes and oscillating stiffness phases for isolated heaving, isolated pitching and combined leading-edge kinematics. We find that there is a profound impact of oscillating stiffness on the thrust, with a lesser impact on propulsive efficiency. Thrust improvements of up to 35 % relative to a constant-stiffness plate are observed. For large enough frequencies and amplitudes of the stiffness oscillation, instabilities emerge. The unstable regions may confer enhanced propulsive performance; this hypothesis must be verified via experiments or nonlinear simulations.Item Estimating ground reaction force with novel carbon nanotube-based textile insole pressure sensors(Wearable Technologies, 2023-03-02) Burch, Kaleb; Doshi, Sagar; Chaudhari, Amit; Thostenson, Erik; Higginson, JillThis study presents a new wearable insole pressure sensor (IPS), composed of fabric coated in a carbon nanotube-based composite thin film, and validates its use for quantifying ground reaction forces (GRFs) during human walking. Healthy young adults (n = 7) walked on a treadmill at three different speeds while data were recorded simultaneously from the IPS and a force plate (FP). The IPS was compared against the FP by evaluating differences between the two instruments under two different assessments: (1) comparing the two peak forces at weight acceptance and push-off (2PK) and (2) comparing the absolute maximum (MAX) of each gait cycle. Agreement between the two systems was evaluated using the Bland–Altman method. For the 2PK assessment, the group mean of differences (MoD) was −1.3 ± 4.3% body weight (BW) and the distance between the MoD and the limits of agreement (2S) was 25.4 ± 11.1% BW. For the MAX assessment, the average MoD across subjects was 1.9 ± 3.0% BW, and 2S was 15.8 ± 9.3% BW. The results of this study show that this sensor technology can be used to obtain accurate measurements of peak walking forces with a basic calibration and consequently open new opportunities to monitor GRF outside of the laboratory.Item Online Self-Calibration for Visual-Inertial Navigation: Models, Analysis, and Degeneracy(IEEE Transactions on Robotics, 2023-06-07) Yang, Yulin; Geneva, Patrick; Zuo, Xingxing; Huang, GuoquanAs sensor calibration plays an important role in visual-inertial sensor fusion, this article performs an in-depth investigation of online self-calibration for robust and accurate visual-inertial state estimation. To this end, we first conduct complete observability analysis for visual-inertial navigation systems (VINS) with full calibration of sensing parameters, including inertial measurement unit (IMU)/camera intrinsics and IMU-camera spatial-temporal extrinsic calibration, along with readout time of rolling shutter (RS) cameras (if used). We study different inertial model variants containing intrinsic parameters that encompass most commonly used models for low-cost inertial sensors. With these models, the observability analysis of linearized VINS with full sensor calibration is performed. Our analysis theoretically proves the intuition commonly assumed in the literature—that is, VINS with full sensor calibration has four unobservable directions, corresponding to the system's global yaw and position, while all sensor calibration parameters are observable given fully excited motions. Moreover, we, for the first time, identify degenerate motion primitives for IMU and camera intrinsic calibration, which, when combined, may produce complex degenerate motions. We compare the proposed online self-calibration on commonly used IMUs against the state-of-art offline calibration toolbox Kalibr, showing that the proposed system achieves better consistency and repeatability. Based on our analysis and experimental evaluations, we also offer practical guidelines to effectively perform online IMU-camera self-calibration in practice.Item Visual accuracy dominates over haptic speed for state estimation of a partner during collaborative sensorimotor interactions(Journal of Neurophysiology, 2023-07-01) Lakesh, Rakshith; Sullivan, Seth R.; Germain, Laura St.; Roth, Adam M.; Calalo, Jan A.; Buggeln, John; Ngo, Truc; Marchhart, Vanessa R. F.; Carter, Michael J.; Cashaback, Joshua G. A.We routinely have physical interactions with others, whether it be handing someone a glass of water or jointly moving a heavy object together. These sensorimotor interactions between humans typically rely on visual feedback and haptic feedback. Recent single-participant studies have highlighted that the unique noise and time delays of each sense must be considered to estimate the state, such as the position and velocity, of one’s own movement. However, we know little about how visual feedback and haptic feedback are used to estimate the state of another person. Here, we tested how humans utilize visual feedback and haptic feedback to estimate the state of their partner during a collaborative sensorimotor task. Across two experiments, we show that visual feedback dominated haptic feedback during collaboration. Specifically, we found that visual feedback led to comparatively lower task-relevant movement variability, smoother collaborative movements, and faster trial completion times. We also developed an optimal feedback controller that considered the noise and time delays of both visual feedback and haptic feedback to estimate the state of a partner. This model was able to capture both lower task-relevant movement variability and smoother collaborative movements. Taken together, our empirical and modeling results support the idea that visual accuracy is more important than haptic speed to perform state estimation of a partner during collaboration. NEW & NOTEWORTHY Physical collaboration between two or more individuals involves both visual and haptic feedback. Here, we investigated how visual and haptic feedback is used to estimate the movements of a partner during a collaboration task. Our experimental and computational modeling results parsimoniously support the notion that greater visual accuracy is more important than faster yet noisier haptic feedback when estimating the state of a partner.Item Carbon Additive Manufacturing with a Near-Replica “Green-to-Brown” Transformation(Advanced Materials, 2023-05-30) Zhang, Chunyan; Shi, Baohui; He, Jinlong; Zhou, Lyu; Park, Soyeon; Doshi, Sagar; Shang, Yuanyuan; Deng, Kaiyue; Giordano, Marc; Qi, Xiangjun; Cui, Shuang; Liu, Ling; Ni, Chaoying; Fu, Kun KelvinNanocomposites containing nanoscale materials offer exciting opportunities to encode nanoscale features into macroscale dimensions, which produces unprecedented impact in material design and application. However, conventional methods cannot process nanocomposites with a high particle loading, as well as nanocomposites with the ability to be tailored at multiple scales. A composite architected mesoscale process strategy that brings particle loading nanoscale materials combined with multiscale features including nanoscale manipulation, mesoscale architecture, and macroscale formation to create spatially programmed nanocomposites with high particle loading and multiscale tailorability is reported. The process features a low-shrinking (<10%) “green-to-brown” transformation, making a near-geometric replica of the 3D design to produce a “brown” part with full nanomaterials to allow further matrix infill. This demonstration includes additively manufactured carbon nanocomposites containing carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and thermoset epoxy, leading to multiscale CNTs tailorability, performance improvement, and 3D complex geometry feasibility. The process can produce nanomaterial-assembled architectures with 3D geometry and multiscale features and can incorporate a wide range of matrix materials, such as polymers, metals, and ceramics, to fabricate nanocomposites for new device structures and applications.Item Extrusion-Based Additively Manufactured PAEK and PAEK/CF Polymer Composites Performance: Role of Process Parameters on Strength, Toughness and Deflection at Failure(Journal of Composites Science, 2023-04-11) Sharafi, S.; Santare, M. H.; Gerdes, J.; Advani, S. G.Poly aryl-ether-ketone (PAEK) belongs to a family of high-performance semicrystalline polymers exhibiting outstanding material properties at high temperatures, making them suitable candidates for metallic part replacement in different industries such as aviation, oil and gas, chemical, and biomedical. Fused filament fabrication is an additive manufacturing (AM) method that can be used to produce intricate PAEK and PAEK composite parts and to tailor their mechanical properties such as stiffness, strength and deflection at failure. In this work, we present a methodology to identify the layer design and process parameters that will have the highest potential to affect the mechanical properties of additively manufactured parts, using our previously developed multiscale modeling framework. Five samples for each of the ten identified process conditions were fabricated using a Roboze-Argo 500 version 2 with heated chamber and dual extruder nozzle. The manufactured PAEK and PAEK/carbon fiber samples were tested until failure in an Instron, using a video extensometer system. Each sample was prepared with a speckle pattern for post analysis using digital image correlation (DIC) to measure the strain and displacement over its entire surface. The raster angle and the presence of fibers had the largest influence on the mechanical properties of the AM manufactured parts, and the resulting properties were comparable to the mechanical properties of injection molded parts.Item A traveler-centric mobility game: Efficiency and stability under rationality and prospect theory(PLOS ONE, 2023-05-05) Chremos, Ioannis Vasileios; Malikopoulos, Andreas A.In this paper, we study a routing and travel-mode choice problem for mobility systems with a multimodal transportation network as a “mobility game” with coupled action sets. We formulate an atomic routing game to focus on the travelers’ preferences and study the impact on the efficiency of the travelers’ behavioral decision-making under rationality and prospect theory. To control the innate inefficiencies, we introduce a mobility “pricing mechanism,” in which we model traffic congestion using linear cost functions while also considering the waiting times at different transport hubs. We show that the travelers’ selfish actions lead to a pure-strategy Nash equilibrium. We then perform a Price of Anarchy and Price of Stability analysis to establish that the mobility system’s inefficiencies remain relatively low and the social welfare at a NE remains close to the social optimum as the number of travelers increases. We deviate from the standard game-theoretic analysis of decision-making by extending our mobility game to capture the subjective behavior of travelers using prospect theory. Finally, we provide a detailed discussion of implementing our proposed mobility game.Item The nervous system tunes sensorimotor gains when reaching in variable mechanical environments(iScience, 2023-06-16) Maurus, Philipp; Jackson, Kuira; Cashaback, Joshua G.A.; Cluff, TylerHighlights: • The control of reaching is altered when facing time-varying physical disturbances • The changes in control increase responses to proprioceptive and visual feedback • Responses to feedback are tuned to the variability of the time-varying disturbances Summary: Humans often move in the presence of mechanical disturbances that can vary in direction and amplitude throughout movement. These disturbances can jeopardize the outcomes of our actions, such as when drinking from a glass of water on a turbulent flight or carrying a cup of coffee while walking on a busy sidewalk. Here, we examine control strategies that allow the nervous system to maintain performance when reaching in the presence of mechanical disturbances that vary randomly throughout movement. Healthy participants altered their control strategies to make movements more robust against disturbances. The change in control was associated with faster reaching movements and increased responses to proprioceptive and visual feedback that were tuned to the variability of the disturbances. Our findings highlight that the nervous system exploits a continuum of control strategies to increase its responsiveness to sensory feedback when reaching in the presence of increasingly variable physical disturbances. Graphical abstract available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isci.2023.106756Item Bladder expandable robotic system and UV materials for rapid internal pipeline repair(SAMPE Conference Proceedings 2023, 2023-04-18) Tierney, John J.; Vanarelli, Alex; Fuessel, Lukas; Abu-Obaid, Ahmad; Sauerbrunn, Steve; Das, Shagata; Deitzel, Joseph; Tatar, Jovan; Heider, Dirk; Shenton, Harry W. III; Kloxin, Christopher J.; Sung, Dae Han; Thostenson, Erik; Gillespie, John W. Jr.This paper describes a novel composite placement process to fabricate stand-alone structural pipe within existing legacy pipelines—with no disruption in gas service. The process utilizes low-cost, UV-curable, glass fiber reinforced plastics (GFRP) for discrete preforms made from continuous fiber fabrics. These sections are designed to meet 50-year service life by addressing the unique loading conditions of the pipe repair allowing for the design customization of the preforms to accommodate the state of pipe corrosion, access points or other local features that may vary along the length of the pipe. The approach offers maximum design flexibility and customization while minimizing installation time and cost. The preforms are fabricated above ground using rapid automated manufacturing methods for quality control. The preforms are transported by a tethering system to the robot. The robot is comprised of a self-propelled dual inflation expandable bladder system that places, consolidates, and cures standard or custom composite sections along the entire pipe length in a continuous co-cure process. This system is designed to adapt to pipe features that include lateral tees, service connections, joints, gaps, and irregular cross sections. In addition, variable thickness composite sections can be placed along the pipe where exposed to high external loads under railroads, highways, airports or where soil erosion and movement occurs. This paper presents the robot design, assessment of UV curable resins, embedded sensing methods, and fabrication of pipe sections with this system.