Dynamic Test Conditions Research Articles

Thoracic force-deflection studies in living and embalmed primates

In order to evaluate the validity of the use of the cadaver in making estimates of the living human response to cardio-thoracic impact a series of tests were performed under similar conditions comparing the force-deflection response of the anaesthetized and the embalmed Rhesus monkey. Twelve primates (100 tests) were subjected to controlled thoracic impact with a Remington Humane Stunner while seated in a sled held firmly in place. Tests on 8 of the monkeys were performed while they were anaesthetized and again 30 days after being embalmed. Four monkeys were tested only after embalming. X-rays were used to evaluate rib fractures. Results showed clear significant differences between anaesthetized primates and those tested 30 days after being embalmed. Forces developed under the same test conditions were 132 per cent higher for the embalmed primates compared to anaesthetized monkeys under static test conditions at maximum displacement and 25–50 per cent higher under dynamic testing conditions for all but the initial part of the tests. The results of these studies indicate that the mechanical characteristics of the primate thorax are dramatically affected by death and/or subsequent embalming procedures.

Performance of Fracturing Fluid Loss Agents Under Dynamic Conditions

Abstract Fluid loss agents for crude oil and for water have been studied in dynamic tests. A treatment using a spearhead with a fluid loss agent followed by plain fluid appears feasible in crude oil, but not in water. An equation for spearhead depletion shows that spurt loss relative to fracture width must be low, if the portion of spearhead fluid in the treatment is to be small. The presence of colloidal matter in crude oils aids the fluid loss agent. Unlike in kerosene, where flow limited the agent deposition, in crude oils the filter cake continually formed and leak-oil declined. The volume-time relation varied somewhat for different crudes, but was best described by a square root of time function. Spurt loss was inversely proportional to agent concentration. After the fluid loss agent initiated the filter cake, the crude oil colloids built on it effectively. A 2-minute or a 5-minute spearhead with double the normal agent concentration gave the same fluid loss curve as the same concentration did for a 30-minute test. The agents tested in water gave fluid loss plots on which, for the first few minutes, volume was proportional to the square root of time, but later became proportional to time. For fracture area calculation the customary square root of time function is a satisfactory approximation. Leak-off rates and spurt losses were higher in water systems than in oils. The spurt loss tended to be inversely proportional to concentration. In spearhead tests, the filter cakes were not eroded by water flow. However, the rather high spurt loss values make spearhead treatments impractical for water-based fluids. Introduction The effects of dynamic testing conditions on the performance of fluid loss agents in kerosene have been studied previously. We have extended the work to include crude-oil and water-based fracturing fluids. An understanding has been gained of the mechanisms of formation and functioning of the filter cakes of fluid loss agents. The practical aspects of evaluating performance of agents in relation to fracture area calculations also are considered. The feasibility of using the fluid loss agent in a spearhead stage of the treatment is examined further for both types of fluids. Experimental Procedure The dynamic fluid loss tests were performed in an apparatus similar to the high-pressure apparatus described in a previous publication. A fracturing fluid was circulated over a rock surface located in a closed pressurized loop. The fluid flowed axially over the cylindrical surface of a core 2 in. in diameter X 3.5 in. long, mounted (with the flat ends sealed off) in a pipe, with 0.1 17 in. annular clearance. The filtrate was collected in a central hole in the core and led through valves to graduated cylinders. Provision was made for changing quickly the circulating fluid during the test (spearhead runs) without interrupting the filtration pressure. The only modifications were to add heating tapes and water jackets for the tests with crude oils, all conducted at 150F, and to change all parts exposed to the test fluid to stainless steel for the tests with water-based fluids. The latter tests were made at room temperature, 80F. Three crude oils were tested. A mixed crude, obtained from a local refinery, contained a considerable amount of light ends. For safety reasons, it was stripped to 250F vapor temperature before use in the fluid loss tests. The other two oils were used as obtained from lease tanks. One was a greenish-brown, 37 deg. API paraffinic crude, and the other was a black, 32 deg. API asphaltic crude. The fluid loss agent for oil, here designated for brevity as Agent A, was Adomite Mark II*, a granular solid commercial agent, the same as previously tested in kerosene. Three different compositions of fluid loss agents were tested in Tulsa tap water. Agent B was Adomite Aqua*, a solid commercial fluid loss agent, comprising clays and hydrophilic gums principally derived from starch. Agent C was a mixture of three parts of Agent B with two parts of silica flour. Agent D was Dowell J137, a mixture of guar gum and silica flour. The test cores were cut from contiguous blocks of Berea or Bandera sandstones. For the oil tests, the cores were oven dried, evacuated, saturated with kerosene, and the kerosene permeability was measured. The cores used with the water-based fluids were pretreated by saturating with 3 percent calcium chloride solution to minimize permeability damage by the fresh water due to clay migration. JPT P. 763ˆ

Factors Influencing the Ozone Resistance of Neoprene Vulcanizates under Flexure

Abstract The need for dynamic testing conditions, such as mild flexing, to study the attack of ozone on elastomeric vulcanizates, has become increasingly apparent. Many rubber goods, such as belts, tire sidewalls, and hose, are subjected to intermittent or continuously fluctuating strains in service and to evaluate their ozone resistance under constant stress or strain conditions is unrealistic and often leads to entirely erroneous conclusions. For example, it is well known that under static strain a vulcanizate's ozone resistance is enhanced by compounding with a wax which migrates to its surface and forms a protective film. However, numerous investigators have reported that when a wax film is continuously ruptured by dynamic testing, the vulcanizate is even more vulnerable to ozone attack than if no wax were present. Other surface films also may act detrimentally under dynamic conditions. One such film may form under static exposure by the migration of antiozonants to the surface of a sample where they or their ozone reaction products provide a shield against ozone. Also, diene elastomers, even when not under stress, react with ozone without cracking and it has been postulated that the thin films formed as a result of this reaction are less extensible and consequently more subject to rupture on flexing than the unreacted rubber beneath them. It may well be found that the resistance of any surface barrier to dynamic stresses is the limiting factor for many products in service. Consequently, techniques for testing under dynamic conditions are needed at least to supplement testing under constant stress or strain in ozone. Ozone exposure under dynamic conditions may prove to have analytical advantages over the static method. First, because dynamic tests accelerate ozone attack over that obtained statically even though no increased strain is impressed. This permits the more ozone resistant elastomers to be tested at lower concentrations of ozone than would be possible statically. By testing in more dilute ozone, the correlation between results obtained under atmospheric exposure and the ozone cabinet should be better. Also, it seems likely that compounding ingredients which improve ozone resistance under dynamic conditions should provide improvement under static conditions as well, even though the converse is not necessarily true.

Cam and Tappet Lubrication III — Radioactive Study of Phosphorus in the EP Film

A radioactive tracer, phosphorus-32 synthesized into zinc dialkyl dithiophosphate molecules, was used to study the EP films formed by this motor oil additive on cast iron cams and tappets. The tightly bound films, which contain phosphorus and zinc, formed rapidly and then approached steady-state values in static and dynamic tests. The amount of film increased with oil temperature (200 to 300F) and with available surface area. Dynamic test conditions greatly increased the amount of film formed, indicating the marked effect of surface temperature, pressure or wear. The film is maintained on parts run in additive oil; moreover, the film was not easily worn off in non-additive oil. The chemical and physical properties of the films appeared to vary with the conditions of film formation. Radioactive counting was used to determine the film on tappets and the thermal stability of the compounded oil. Autoradiographs showed the concentration and distribution of the film on cams and tappets. Contributed by the ASLE ...

Tensile Strength of Plastics above the Glass Temperature

A theory is presented for the tensile strength of rubbery plastics under dynamic test conditions. It is found that a nearly universal curve may be plotted relating the tensile strength of rubbers to the time of application of the load in a simple creep test or to the shear rate in a conventional type tensile test. The dependence on chain length, degree of cross linking, and temperature is also predicted. Experimental results for the tensile strength of poly butyl methacrylate in the range 30–95°C are presented. These are shown to agree with the theory within the experimental error. The experimental testing scale extends over a range of eight decades when use is made of a temperature—time superposition principle predicted by the theory. By comparing the tensile creep and tensile strength curves for poly butyl methacrylate, it is possible to find the size of a segment as defined in the theory of viscoelasticity. One segment is found to contain about six monomer units.