Onset of failure in finitely strained layered composites subjected to combined normal and shear loading

A limiting factor in the design of fiber-reinforced composites is their failure under axial compression along the fiber direction. These critical axial stresses are significantly reduced in the presence of shear stresses. This investigation is motivated by the desire to study the onset of failure in fiber-reinforced composites under arbitrary multi-axial loading and in the absence of the experimentally inevitable imperfections and finite boundaries.By using a finite strain continuum mechanics formulation for the bifurcation (buckling) problem of a rate-independent, perfectly periodic (layered) solid of infinite extent, we are able to study the influence of load orientation, material properties and fiber volume fraction on the onset of instability in fiber-reinforced composites. Two applications of the general theory are presented in detail, one for a finitely strained elastic rubber composite and another for a graphite-epoxy composite, whose constitutive properties have been determined experimentally. For the latter case, extensive comparisons are made between the predictions of our general theory and the available experimental results as well as to the existing approximate structural theories. It is found that the load orientation, material properties and fiber volume fraction have substantial effects on the onset of failure stresses as well as on the type of the corresponding mode (local or global).     

New exact results for the effective electric, elastic, piezoelectric and other properties of composite ellipsoid assemblages

In this paper we present a unified treatment of composite ellipsoid assemblages in the setting of uncoupled phenomena like conductivity and elasticity and coupled phenomena like thermoelectricity and piezomagnetoelectricity. The building block of this microgeometry is a confocal ellipsoidal particle consisting of a (possibly void) core and a coating. All space is filled up with such units which have different sizes but possess the same aspect ratios. The confocal ellipsoids may have the same orientation in space or may be randomly oriented. The resulting microgeometry simulates two-phase composites in which the reinforcing components are short fibers or elongated particles. Our main interest is in obtaining information of an exact nature on the effective moduli of this microgeometry whose effective tensor symmetry structure depends on the packing mode of the coated ellipsoids. This information will sometimes be complete like the full effective thermoelectric tensor of an assemblage which contains aligned ellipsoids in which the coating is isotropic and the core is arbitrarily anisotropic. In the majority of the cases however the maximum achievable exact information will be only partial and will appear in the form of certain exact relations between the effective moduli of the microgeometry. These exact relations are obtained from exact solutions for the fields in the microstructure for a certain set of loading conditions. In all the considered cases an isotropic coating can be combined with a fully arbitrary core. This covers the most important physical case of anisotropic fibers in an isotropic matrix. Allowing anisotropy in the coating requires the fulfillment of certain constraint conditions between its moduli. Even though in this case the presence of such constraint conditions may render the anisotropic coating material hypothetical, the value of the derived solutions remains since they still provide benchmark comparisons for approximate and numerical treatments. The remarkable feature of the general analysis which covers all treated uncoupled and coupled phenomena is that it is developed solely on the basis of potential solutions of the conduction problem in the same microgeometry.     

Kinetic wrinkling of an elastic film on a viscoelastic substrate

A compressed elastic film on a compliant substrate can form wrinkles. On an elastic substrate, equilibrium and energetics set the critical condition and select the wrinkle wavelength and amplitude. On a viscous substrate, wrinkle grows over time and the kinetics selects the fastest growing wavelength. More generally, on a viscoelastic substrate, both energetics and kinetics play important roles in determining the critical condition, the growth rate, and the wavelength. This paper studies the wrinkling process of an elastic film on a viscoelastic layer, which in turn lies on a rigid substrate. The film is elastic and modeled by the nonlinear von Karman plate theory. The substrate is linear viscoelastic with a relaxation modulus typical of a cross-linked polymer. Beyond a critical stress, the film wrinkles by the out-of-plane displacement but remains bonded to the substrate. This study considers plane strain wrinkling and neglects the in-plane displacement. A classification of the wrinkling behavior is made based on the critical conditions at the elastic limits, the glassy and rubbery states of the viscoelastic substrate. Linear perturbation analyses are conducted to reveal the kinetics of wrinkling in films subjected to intermediate and large compressive stresses. It is shown that, depending on the stress level, the growth of wrinkles at the initial stage can be exponential, accelerating, linear, or decelerating. In all cases, the wrinkle amplitude saturates at an equilibrium state after a long time. Subsequently, both amplitude and wavelength of the wrinkle evolve, but the process is kinetically constrained and slow compared to the initial growth.     

A Binary Model of textile composites: III high failure strain and work of fracture in 3D weaves

Prior experiments have revealed exceptionally high values of the work of fracture (0.4-) in carbon/epoxy 3D interlock woven composites. Detailed destructive examination of specimens suggested that much of the work of fracture arose when the specimens were strained well beyond the failure of individual tows yet still carried loads . A mechanism of lockup amongst broken tows sliding across the final tensile fracture surface was suggested as the means by which high loads could still be transferred after tow failure. In this paper, the roles of weave architecture and the distribution of flaws in the mechanics of tow lockup are investigated by Monte Carlo simulations using the so-called Binary Model. The Binary Model was introduced previously as a finite element formulation specialised to the problem of simulating relatively large, three-dimensional segments of textile composites, without any assumption of periodicity or other symmetry, while preserving the architecture and topology of the tow arrangement. The simulations succeed in reproducing all qualitative aspects of measured stress-strain curves. They reveal that lockup can indeed account for high loads being sustained beyond tow failure, provided flaws in tows have certain spatial distributions. The importance of the interlock architecture in enhancing friction by holding asperities on sliding fibre tows into firm contact is highlighted.     

Global load-sharing model for unidirectional hybrid fibre-reinforced composites

A promising strategy to increase the tensile failure strain of carbon fibre-reinforced composites is to hybridise carbon fibres with other, higher-elongation fibres. The resulting increase in failure strain is known as the hybrid effect. In the present article, a global load-sharing model for hybrid composites is developed and used to carry out a parametric study for carbon/glass hybrids. Hybrid effects of up to 15% increase in failure strain are predicted, corresponding reasonably well to literature data. Scatter in the carbon fibre strength is shown to be crucial for the hybrid effect, while the scatter in glass fibre strength is much less important. In contrast to reports in earlier literature, the ratio of failure strains of the two fibres has only a small influence on the hybrid effect. The results provide guidelines for designing optimal hybrid composites.     

Debonding failure and size effects in micro-reinforced composites

Failure in micro-reinforced composites is investigated numerically using the strain-gradient plasticity theory of Gudmundson [Gudmundson, P., 2004. A unified treatment of strain gradient plasticity. Journal of the Mechanics and Physics of Solids 52 (6) 1379–1406] in a plane strain visco-plastic formulation. Bi-axially loaded unit cells are used and failure is modeled using a cohesive zone at the reinforcement interface. During debonding a sudden stress drop in the overall average stress–strain response is observed. Adaptive higher-order boundary conditions are imposed at the reinforcement interface for realistically modeling the restrictions on moving dislocations as debonding occurs. It is found that the influence of the imposed higher-order boundary conditions at the interface is minor. If strain-gradient effects are accounted for a void with a smooth shape develops at the reinforcement interface while a smaller void having a sharp tip nucleates if strain-gradient effects are excluded. Using orthogonalization of the plastic strain gradient with three corresponding material length scales it is found that, the first length scale dominates the evaluated overall average stress–strain response, the second one only has a small effect and the third one has an intermediate effect. Finally, studies of reinforcement having elliptical cross-sections show rather significant gradients of stress which is not seen for the corresponding circular cross-sections. Also, an increased drop in the overall load carrying capacity is observed for cross-sections elongated perpendicular to the principal tensile direction compared to the corresponding circular cross-sections.     

Compressive strength of fibre composites with random fibre waviness

The compressive strength of unidirectional long fibre composites is predicted for plastic microbuckling from a random two-dimensional distribution of fibre waviness. The effect of the physical size of waviness is addressed by using couple stress theory, with the fibre bending resistance scaling with the fibre diameter d. The predicted statistical distribution of compressive strength is found using a Monte Carlo method. An ensemble of fibre waviness profiles is generated from an assumed spectral density of waviness and the compressive strength for each such realisation is calculated directly by the finite element method. The average predicted strength agrees reasonably with practical values, confirming the hypothesis that microbuckles can be initiated by fibre misalignment. It is found that the probability distribution of strength is well matched by a Weibull fit, and the dependence of the Weibull parameters upon the spectral density of waviness is determined. For the practical range of fibre distributions considered, it is concluded that the strength depends mainly upon the root mean square amplitude of fibre misalignment, with the shape of the power spectral density function playing only a minor role. An engineering model for predicting the compressive strength is proposed, akin to weakest link theory for materials containing flaws. A specimen containing randomly distributed waviness is examined to locate regions of high-fibre misalignment. The strength of each of these weak regions is estimated from a look-up table derived from calculations with idealised circular or elliptical patches of waviness. The strength of the composite is given by the failure stress associated with the weakest such patch. For random distributions of waviness, the predictions using this engineering approach are in good agreement with the direct calculations of strength using the finite element method.     

Microscopic symmetric bifurcation condition of cellular solids based on a homogenization theory of finite deformation

In this paper, we establish a homogenization framework to analyze the microscopic symmetric bifurcation buckling of cellular solids subjected to macroscopically uniform compression. To this end, describing the principle of virtual work for infinite periodic materials in the updated Lagrangian form, we build a homogenization theory of finite deformation, which satisfies the principle of material objectivity. Then, we state a postulate that at the onset of microscopic symmetric bifurcation, microscopic velocity becomes spontaneous, yet changing the sign of such spontaneous velocity has no influence on the variation in macroscopic states. By applying this postulate to the homogenization theory, we derive the conditions to be satisfied at the onset of microscopic symmetric bifurcation. The resulting conditions are verified by analyzing numerically the in-plane biaxial buckling of an elastic hexagonal honeycomb. It is thus shown that three kinds of experimentally observed buckling modes of honeycombs i.e., uniaxial, biaxial and flower-like modes, are attained and classified as microscopic symmetric bifurcation. It is also shown that the multiplicity of bifurcation gives rise to the complex cell-patterns in the biaxial and flower-like modes.     

Elastoplastic microscopic bifurcation and post-bifurcation behavior of periodic cellular solids

In this study, a general framework is developed to analyze microscopic bifurcation and post-bifurcation behavior of elastoplastic, periodic cellular solids. The framework is built on the basis of a two-scale theory, called a homogenization theory, of the updated Lagrangian type. We thus derive the eigenmode problem of microscopic bifurcation and the orthogonality to be satisfied by the eigenmodes. The orthogonality allows the macroscopic increments to be independent of the eigenmodes, resulting in a simple procedure of the elastoplastic post-bifurcation analysis based on the notion of comparison solids. By use of this framework, then, bifurcation and post-bifurcation analysis are performed for cell aggregates of an elastoplastic honeycomb subject to in-plane compression. Thus, demonstrating a basic, long-wave eigenmode of microscopic bifurcation under uniaxial compression, it is shown that the eigenmode has the longitudinal component dominant to the transverse component and consequently causes microscopic buckling to localize in a cell row perpendicular to the loading axis. It is further shown that under equi-biaxial compression, the flower-like buckling mode having occurred in a macroscopically stable state changes into an asymmetric, long-wave mode due to the sextuple bifurcation in a macroscopically unstable state, leading to the localization of microscopic buckling in deltaic areas.     

Modelling of laminated microstructures in stress-induced martensitic transformations

This paper is concerned with micromechanical modelling of stress-induced martensitic transformations in crystalline solids, with the focus on distinct elastic anisotropy of the phases and the associated redistribution of internal stresses. Micro-macro transition in stresses and strains is analysed for a laminated microstructure of austenite and martensite phases. Propagation of a phase transformation front is governed by a time-independent thermodynamic criterion. Plasticity-like macroscopic constitutive rate equations are derived in which the transformed volume fraction is incrementally related to the overall strain or stress. As an application, numerical simulations are performed for cubic β₁ (austenite) to orthorhombic γ₁′ (martensite) phase transformation in a single crystal of Cu-Al-Ni shape memory alloy. The pseudoelasticity effect in tension and compression is investigated along with the corresponding evolution of internal stresses and microstructure.     

Inhomogeneity effects on the crack driving force in elastic and elastic-plastic materials

This article evaluates the effect of material inhomogeneities on the crack-tip driving force in general inhomogeneous bodies and reports results for bimaterial composites. The theoretical model, based on Eshelby material forces, makes no assumptions about the distribution of the inhomogeneities or the constitutive properties of the materials. Inhomogeneities are modeled by making the stored energy have an explicit dependence on the reference coordinates. Then the material inhomogeneity effect on the crack-tip driving force is quantified by the term C_inh, which is the integral of the gradient of the stored energy in the direction of crack growth. The model is demonstrated by two model problems: (i) bimaterial elastic composite using asymptotic solutions and (ii) graded elastic and elastic-plastic compact tension specimen using numerical methods for stress analysis.     

Multiresolution modeling of ductile reinforced brittle composites

Tungsten carbide-cobalt (WC-Co) is an important ductile reinforced brittle composite used in a range of important applications. The relationship between microstructure and mechanical properties of WC-Co is truly multiscale; micromechanical processes interact at different scales, resulting in permanent plastic deformation, damage accumulation and final failure of the composite. The goal of the current paper is to develop a continuum-based model, which captures the progressively finer scales of strain localization observed in WC-Co composites during plastic deformation and failure. This is achieved via a set of multiresolution governing equations; a microstress is introduced at each scale of strain localization, which represents the resistance to inhomogeneous strain localization at that scale. The extra constitutive models associated with these microstresses can be elucidated from the average response of separate computational cell models of a representative microstructure. The final multiresolution continuum model is capable of capturing the important length scales of deformation during the plastic stage of deformation without resorting to modeling microstructural scale features directly. The result is a more realistic continuum model; in particular the fracture toughness prediction is more physical when these length scales are incorporated compared to a conventional continuum approach.     

Localized buckling in sandwich struts with pre-existing delaminations and geometrical imperfections

A recent model for the nonlinear structural response of compression sandwich struts is developed further to account for pre-existing face-core delaminations and initial imperfections in the strut geometry. Whilst the pre-existing delaminations only take effect after the critical bifurcation for overall (Euler) buckling, it is found that the secondary instability associated with localized buckling occurs earlier than for the initially perfectly bonded strut. More severe instabilities can also be promoted by superimposing geometric imperfections. In combination with delamination, the practical structural response can be highly unstable.     

On the r-value of textured sheet metals

The r-value of a sheet metal is a measure of plastic anisotropy frequently used for prediction of performance in deep-drawing. It has also figured prominently in the literature for validation of theories where the predicted angular dependence of r is compared with the measured dependence. As plastic anisotropy in sheet metals is caused mainly by the preferred orientations of grains within the polycrystalline metal, it is natural to ask how r would depend on the orientation distribution function (ODF) w which defines the crystallographic texture of the polycrystal. In this paper a general formula relating r to w is derived for textured sheet metals whose plastic flow behavior is governed by a plastic potential f(σ, w), the anisotropic part of which depends linearly on the texture coefficients; here σ denotes the deviator of the Cauchy stress. Specific forms of this formula for orthorhombic sheets of cubic and of hexagonal metals are explicitly given.     

Experimental investigation of initial and subsequent yield surfaces for laminated metal matrix composites

The aim of this work is to construct yield surfaces to describe initial yielding and characterize hardening behavior of a highly anisotropic material. A methodology for constructing yield surfaces for isotropic materials using axial–torsion loading is extended to highly anisotropic materials. The technique uses a sensitive definition of yielding based on permanent strain rather than offset strain, and enables multiple yield points and multiple yield surfaces to be conducted on a single specimen. A target value of 20 × 10⁻⁶ is used for Al₂O₃ fiber reinforced aluminum laminates having a fiber volume fraction of 0.55. Sixteen radial probes are used to define the yield locus in the axial–shear stress plane. Initial yield surfaces for [0₄], [90₄], and [0/90]₂ fibrous aluminum laminates are well described by ellipses in the axial–shear stress plane having aspect ratios of 10, 2.5, and 3.3, respectively. For reference, the aspect ratio of the Mises ellipse for an isotropic material is 1.73. Initial yield surfaces do not have a tension–compression asymmetry. Four overload profiles (plus, ex, hourglass, and zee) are applied to characterize hardening of a [0/90]₂ laminate by constructing 30 subsequent yield surfaces. Parameters to describe the center and axes of an ellipse are regressed to the yield points. The results clearly indicate that kinematic hardening dominates so that material state evolution can be described by tracking the center of the yield locus. For a nonproportional overload of (σ, τ) = (500, 70) MPa, the center of the yield locus translated to (σ, τ) = (430, 37) MPa and the ellipse major axis was only 110 MPa.     

Micromechanical design of hierarchical composites using global load sharing theory

Hierarchical composites, embodied by natural materials ranging from bone to bamboo, may offer combinations of material properties inaccessible to conventional composites. Using global load sharing (GLS) theory, a well-established micromechanics model for composites, we develop accurate numerical and analytical predictions for the strength and toughness of hierarchical composites with arbitrary fiber geometries, fiber strengths, interface properties, and number of hierarchical levels, N. The model demonstrates that two key material properties at each hierarchical level—a characteristic strength and a characteristic fiber length—control the scalings of composite properties. One crucial finding is that short- and long-fiber composites behave radically differently. Long-fiber composites are significantly stronger than short-fiber composites, by a factor of 2^N or more; they are also significantly tougher because their fiber breaks are bridged by smaller-scale fibers that dissipate additional energy. Indeed, an “infinite” fiber length appears to be optimal in hierarchical composites. However, at the highest level of the composite, long fibers localize on planes of pre-existing damage, and thus short fibers must be employed instead to achieve notch sensitivity and damage tolerance. We conclude by providing simple guidelines for microstructural design of hierarchical composites, including the selection of N, the fiber lengths, the ratio of length scales at successive hierarchical levels, the fiber volume fractions, and the desired properties of the smallest-scale reinforcement. Our model enables superior hierarchical composites to be designed in a rational way, without resorting either to numerical simulation or trial-and-error-based experimentation.     

Macroscopic yield criteria for plastic anisotropic materials containing spheroidal voids

The combined effects of void shape and matrix anisotropy on the macroscopic response of ductile porous solids is investigated. The Gologanu–Leblond–Devaux’s (GLD) analysis of an rigid-ideal plastic (von Mises) spheroidal volume containing a confocal spheroidal cavity loaded axisymmetrically is extended to the case when the matrix is anisotropic (obeying Hill’s [Hill, R., 1948. A theory of yielding and plastic flow of anisotropic solids. Proc. Roy. Soc. London A 193, 281–297] anisotropic yield criterion) and the representative volume element is subjected to arbitrary deformation. To derive the overall anisotropic yield criterion, a limit analysis approach is used. Conditions of homogeneous boundary strain rate are imposed on every ellipsoidal confocal with the cavity. A two-field trial velocity satisfying these boundary conditions are considered. It is shown that for cylindrical and spherical void geometries, the proposed criterion reduces to existing anisotropic Gurson-like yield criteria. Furthermore, it is shown that for the case when the matrix is considered isotropic, the new results provide a rigorous generalization to the GLD model. Finally, the accuracy of the proposed approximate yield criterion for plastic anisotropic media containing non-spherical voids is assessed through comparison with numerical results.     

Surface instability of an elastic half space with material properties varying with depth

If a body with a stiffer surface layer is loaded in compression, a surface wrinkling instability may be developed. A bifurcation analysis is presented for determining the critical load for the onset of wrinkling and the associated wavelength for materials in which the elastic modulus is an arbitrary function of depth. The analysis leads to an eigenvalue problem involving a pair of linear ordinary differential equations with variable coefficients which are discretized and solved using the finite element method.The method is validated by comparison with classical results for a uniform layer on a dissimilar substrate. Results are then given for materials with exponential and error-function gradation of elastic modulus and for a homogeneous body with thermoelastically induced compressive stresses.     

Dynamic stability analysis of an elastic composite material having a negative-stiffness phase

The rigorous classical bounds of elastic composite materials theory provide limits on the achievable composite stiffnesses in terms of the properties and arrangements of the composite's constituents. These bounds result from the assumption, presumably made for stability reasons, that each constituent material must have positive-definite elastic moduli. If this assumption is relaxed, recently published elasticity analyses and experimental measurements show these bounds can be greatly exceeded, resulting in new materials of enormous potential.The key question is whether a composite material having a non-positive-definite constituent can be stable overall in the practically useful situation of applied traction boundary conditions. Drugan [2007. Elastic composite materials having a negative-stiffness phase can be stable. Phys. Rev. Lett. 98 (5), article no. 055502] first proved the answer is yes, by applying the energy criterion of elastic stability to the basic two- and three-dimensional composites consisting of a cylinder or sphere having non-positive-definite (but strongly elliptic) moduli with a thin positive-definite coating and proving overall stability provided the coating is sufficiently stiff.Here, we perform a complete and direct dynamic stability analysis of the plane strain fundamental elastic composite consisting of a circular cylinder of non-positive-definite material firmly bonded to a positive-definite concentric coating, for the full range of coating thicknesses (i.e., volume fractions). We determine quantitatively the full permissible range of inclusion and coating moduli, as a function of coating thickness, for which the overall composite is stable under dead traction boundary conditions. Among the results, we show that in the thin-coating case, the present dynamic stability analysis leads to precisely the same analytical stability requirements as those derived via the energy criterion by Drugan [2007. Elastic composite materials having a negative-stiffness phase can be stable. Phys. Rev. Lett. 98 (5), article no. 055502], and we derive new analytical stability requirements that are valid for a wider range of coating thickness. At the other extreme, we show that in the case of very thick coatings (corresponding to the dilute case of a matrix-inclusion composite), even an inclusion with merely strongly elliptic moduli can be stabilized by a positive-definite matrix satisfying weak requirements, for which we derive analytical expressions. Overall, our results show that surprisingly weak restrictions on the moduli and thickness of the positive-definite coating are sufficient to stabilize a non-positive-definite inclusion, even one whose moduli are merely strongly elliptic. These results legitimize expanding the search for novel materials with extreme properties to those incorporating a non-positive-definite constituent, and they provide quantitative restrictions on the constituent materials’ moduli and volume fractions, for the geometry examined here, that ensure overall stability of such composite materials.     

Exactly solvable spherically anisotropic thermoelastic microstructures

Microstructures possessing local spherical anisotropy are considered in this paper. An example is a spherulitic polymer which can be modelled by an assemblage of spheres of all sizes in which a radial direction in every sphere is an axis of local transverse isotropy. Our purpose is to construct effectively isotropic microstructures, with spherically anisotropic and thermoelastic constituents, whose effective bulk modulus, thermal stress and specific heat can be exactly determined. The basic microstructure for which this is achieved in the present paper is the nested composite sphere assemblage of Milgrom and Shtrikman (J. Appl. Phys. 66 (1989) 3429) which was originally formulated for isotropic constituents, in the settings of conductivity and coupled fields with scalar potentials. Here, we allow the phases of this microstructure to be spherically thermoelastic with a symmetry class which can be trigonal, tetragonal, transversely isotropic, cubic or isotropic with respect to a local spherical coordinate system. A rich class of new exact results for two-phase composites and polycrystals are obtained.