Size-dependent effective elastic moduli of particulate composites with interfacial displacement and traction discontinuities

This work aims at estimating the size-dependent effective elastic moduli of particulate composites in which both the interfacial displacement and traction discontinuities occur. To this end, the interfacial discontinuity relations derived from the replacement of a thin uniform interphase layer between two dissimilar materials by an imperfect interface are reformulated so as to considerably simplify the characteristic expressions of a general elastic imperfect model which is adopted in the present work and include the widely used Gurtin–Murdoch and spring-layer interface models as particular cases. The elastic fields in an infinite body made of a matrix containing an imperfectly bonded spherical particle and subjected to arbitrary remote uniform strain boundary conditions are then provided in an exact, coordinate-free and compact way. With the aid of these results, the elastic properties of a perfectly bonded spherical particle energetically equivalent to an imperfectly bonded one in an infinite matrix are determined. The estimates for the effective bulk and shear moduli of isotropic particulate composites are finally obtained by using the generalized self-consistent scheme and discussed through numerical examples.     

An exact theory of interfacial debonding in layered elastic composites

An exact theory of interfacial debonding is developed for a layered composite system consisting of distinct linear elastic slabs separated by nonlinear, nonuniform decohesive interfaces. Loading of the top and bottom external surfaces is defined pointwise while loading of the side surfaces is prescribed in the form of resultants. The work is motivated by the desire to develop a general tool to analyze the detailed features of debonding along uniform and nonuniform straight interfaces in slab systems subject to general loading. The methodology allows for the investigation of both solitary defect as well as multiple defect interaction problems. Interfacial integral equations, governing the normal and tangential displacement jump components at an interface of a slab system are developed from the Fourier series solution for the single slab subject to arbitrary loading on its surfaces. Interfaces are characterized by distinct interface force–displacement jump relations with crack-like defects modeled by an interface strength which varies with interface coordinate. Infinitesimal strain equilibrium solutions, which account for rigid body translation and rotation, are sought by eigenfunction expansion of the solution of the governing interfacial integral equations. Applications of the theory to the bilayer problem with a solitary defect or a defect pair, in both peeling and mixed load configurations are presented.     

A micromechanical model for effective elastic properties of particulate composites with imperfect interfacial bonds

A micromechanical model for effective elastic properties of particle filled acrylic composites with imperfect interfacial bonds is proposed. The constituents are treated as three distinct phases, consisting of agglomerate of particles, bulk matrix and interfacial transition zone around the agglomerate. The influence of the interfacial transition zone on the overall mechanical behavior of composites is studies analytically and experimentally. Test data on particle filled acrylic composites with three different interfacial properties are also presented. The comparison of analytical simulation with experimental data demonstrated the validity of the proposed micromechanical model with imperfect interface. Both the experimental results and analytical prediction show that interfacial conditions have great influence on the elastic properties of particle filled acrylic composites.     

On the problem of interfacial damage in fibre-reinforced composites under variable loads

In this paper, the theoretical background for the failure analysis of fibre-reinforced composites under variable repeated loads in the framework of direct methods is presented. It is based on a local shakedown analysis in a representative volume element of the composite and the use of averaging techniques to study the influence of each component (matrix, fibre and interface) on the macroscopic response of such composite.     

Surface and interfacial waves in anisotropic elastic quasicrystals

We present the Stroh formalism for two-dimensional subsonic steady-state motion of anisotropic quasicrystals. Using this new formalism and a series of identities and properties which follow, we investigate subsonic surface and interfacial waves in anisotropic quasicrystals. Our results suggest that there exist at most three subsonic surface wave speeds. This interesting observation is quite different from the unique surface wave speed known for anisotropic crystals. The degenerate case of decagonal quasicrystalline materials is discussed in detail.     

Harmonic waves in three-dimensional elastic composites

For a periodic elastic composite which consists of a matrix and fibers with finite dimensions (i.e. a three-dimensional problem), here are given estimates for eigenfrequencies and eigenfunctions. Calculations are based on a new quotient which has been proposed by Nemat-Nasser. The periodic character of the eigenfrequencies is pointed out, and illustrative examples are given.     

Generalized solutions of beams with jump discontinuities on elastic foundations

Summary  The bending solutions of the Euler–Bernoulli and the Timoshenko beams with material and geometric discontinuities are developed in the space of generalized functions. Unlike the classical solutions of discontinuous beams, which are expressed in terms of multiple expressions that are valid in different regions of the beam, the generalized solutions are expressed in terms of a single expression on the entire domain. It is shown that the boundary-value problems describing the bending of beams with jump discontinuities on discontinuous elastic foundations have more compact forms in the space of generalized functions than they do in the space of classical functions. Also, fewer continuity conditions need to be satisfied if the problem is formulated in the space of generalized functions. It is demonstrated that using the theory of distributions (i.e. generalized functions) makes finding analytical solutions for this class of problems more efficient compared to the traditional methods, and, in some cases, the theory of distributions can lead to interesting qualitative results. Examples are presented to show the efficiency of using the theory of generalized functions. Received 6 June 2000; accepted for publication 24 October 2000     

Pupil function splitting method in calculating acoustic microscopic signals for elastic discontinuities

This paper deals with the output signals of scanning acoustic microscopes observing the elastic discontinuities on sample surface, and presents a new method of calculation. The formulation is based on the angular-spectrum method together with a ray-optical approximation. The key treatment is splitting of the pupil function into two parts. This method clarifies the image-forming factors in acoustic microscopy including large and fine fringes parallel to discontinuities. Calculation for an edge and a metal/ceramic joint showed good agreements with the experimental results.     

On the overall elastic moduli of composites with spherical coated fillers

A micromechanical approach is presented to estimate the overall linear elastic moduli of three phase composites consisting of two phase coated spherical particles randomly dispersed in a homogeneous isotropic matrix. The theoretical method is based on Eshelby’s equivalent inclusion method and its recent extension by Shodja and Sarvestani [J. Appl. Mech. 68 (2001) 3] to evaluate the local field variables in case of double (multi) inhomogeneities. Using Tanaka–Mori theorem [J. Elasticity 2 (1972) 199] and a decomposition of Green’s function integral equation, the pair-wise average phase values of stress and strain in two interacting coated particles are estimated. Following Ju and Chen [Acta Mech. 103 (1994) 103; Acta Mech. 103 (1994) 123] the ensemble phase volume average of stress and strain fields can be evaluated within a representative volume element containing a finite number of coated particles. Comparisons with classical bounds are presented to illustrate the accuracy of the proposed method.     

Modeling cylindrical waves in nonlinear elastic composites

A procedure of deriving nonlinear wave equations that describe the propagation and interaction of hyperelastic cylindrical waves in composite materials modeled by a mixture with two elastic constituents is outlined. Nonlinearity is introduced by metric coefficients, Cauchy-Green strain tensor, and Murnaghan potential. It is the quadratic nonlinearity of all governing relations. For a configuration (state) dependent on the radial coordinate and independent of the angular and axial coordinates, quadratically nonlinear wave equations for stresses are derived and a relationship between the components of the stress tensor and partial strain gradient is established. Four combinations of physical and geometrical nonlinearities in systems of wave equations are examined. Nonlinear wave equations are explicitly written for three of the combinations __________ Translated from Prikladnaya Mekhanika, Vol. 43, No. 6, pp. 63–72, June 2007.     

Purely elastic interfacial instabilities in superposed flow of polymeric fluids

Purely elastic interfacial stability of superposed plane Poiseuille flow of polymeric liquids has been investigated utilizing both asymptotic and numerical techniques. It is shown that these instabilities are caused by an unfavorable jump in the first normal stress difference across the fluid interface. To determine the significance of these instabilities in finite experimental geometries, a comparison between the maximum growth rates of purely elastic instabilities with instabilities driven primarily by a viscosity or a combined viscosity and elasticity difference is made. Based on this comparison, it is shown that purely elastic interfacial instabilities can play a major role in superposed flow of polymeric liquids in finite experimental geometries.     

The behavior of induced discontinuities behind curved shocks in isotropic linear elastic materials

In this paper we examine the behavior of the induced discontinuities behind curved longitudinal and transverse shock waves in isotropic linear elastic materials. It is shown that in either case the governing differential equation of the induced discontinuity differs from that of the shock amplitude. The latter depends linearly on the second fundamental form of the shock surface and exhibits purely geometrical effects. The former, however, depends non-linearly on the second fundamental form of the shock surface, and on the shock amplitude. These terms are dominant for a strong shock and their effects diminish as the shock weakens. In particular, the governing differential equation for an acceleration wave is obtained in the limit as the shock amplitude vanishes. The results obtained are quite unexpected, and they demonstrate the complex evolutionary behavior of mechanical waves due to geometrical considerations alone.     

The asymptotic homogenization elasticity tensor properties for composites with material discontinuities

The classical asymptotic homogenization approach for linear elastic composites with discontinuous material properties is considered as a starting point. The sharp length scale separation between the fine periodic structure and the whole material formally leads to anisotropic elastic-type balance equations on the coarse scale, where the arising fourth rank operator is to be computed solving single periodic cell problems on the fine scale. After revisiting the derivation of the problem, which here explicitly points out how the discontinuity in the individual constituents’ elastic coefficients translates into stress jump interface conditions for the cell problems, we prove that the gradient of the cell problem solution is minor symmetric and that its cell average is zero. This property holds for perfect interfaces only (i.e., when the elastic displacement is continuous across the composite’s interface) and can be used to assess the accuracy of the computed numerical solutions. These facts are further exploited, together with the individual constituents’ elastic coefficients and the specific form of the cell problems, to prove a theorem that characterizes the fourth rank operator appearing in the coarse-scale elastic-type balance equations as a composite material effective elasticity tensor. We both recover known facts, such as minor and major symmetries and positive definiteness, and establish new facts concerning the Voigt and Reuss bounds. The latter are shown for the first time without assuming any equivalence between coarse and fine-scale energies (Hill’s condition), which, in contrast to the case of representative volume elements, does not identically hold in the context of asymptotic homogenization. We conclude with instructive three-dimensional numerical simulations of a soft elastic matrix with an embedded cubic stiffer inclusion to show the profile of the physically relevant elastic moduli (Young’s and shear moduli) and Poisson’s ratio at increasing (up to 100 %) inclusion’s volume fraction, thus providing a proxy for the design of artificial elastic composites.     

Moving interfacial crack between piezoelectric ceramic and elastic layers

An analysis is performed for the problem of a finite Griffith crack moving with constant velocity along the interface of a two-layered strip composed of a piezoelectric ceramic and an elastic layers. The combined out-of-plane mechanical and in-plane electrical loads are applied to the strip. Fourier transforms are used to reduce the problem to a pair of dual integral equations, which is then expressed in terms of a Fredholm integral equation of the second kind. The dynamic stress intensity factor(DSIF) is determined, and numerical results show that DSIF depends on the crack length, the ratio of stiffness and thickness, and the magnitude and direction of electrical loads as well as the crack speed. In case that the crack moves along the interface of piezoelectric and elastic half planes, DSIF is independent of the crack speed.     

The growth of plane discontinuities propagating into a homogeneously deformed elastic material

It is shown that, in general, plane acceleration discontinuities propagating into an isotropic elastic material in a state of homogeneous deformation either become infinite in a finite time or decay to zero in an infinite time. Exceptions to this result are transverse discontinuities which propagate along a principal axis of strain without change in strength. Conditions governing the growth of acceleration discontinuities travelling into undeformed material are found to be identical with the thermodynamic conditions derived by Bland [2] for shock propagation. Plane discontinuities of order higher than the second are shown to propagate with constant strength.     

General variational methods for waves in elastic composites

General variational theorems in which the displacement, the stress, and the strain in one case, and the displacement and the stress in another case, are given independent variations, and which include appropriate general bondary and discontinuity conditions, are developed with a view toward the application to harmonic waves in elastic composites with periodic structures. The one-dimensional case is first developed in detail, and in order to demonstrate the effectiveness of the results, especially their accuracy in providing the dispersion curve, waves propagating normal to layers in a layered composite are discussed, and numerical results are presented; see Tables I and II. Then the general three-dimensional case is considered, and the results are applied to waves propagating normal to the fibers in a fiber-reinforced composite.

---

Résumé Les théorèmes généraux variationels, dans lesquels on varie indépendemment le déplacement, la contrainte et la déformation, dans le premier cas, et le déplacement et la contrainte, dans le second cas, et qui fournissent de même les conditions aux limites et les conditions de discontinuité, sont dévelopés dans le but d'application aux ondes harmoniques dans les matériaux composites à structure périodique. Le cas d'une seule dimension est d'abord exposé en détail, et pour démontrer l'efficacité des résultats, en particulier la précision avec laquelle la courbe de dispersion peut être determinée, le cas d'ondes se propageant normalement aux couches du matériel composite est discuté et des résultats numériques sont présentés (voir Tables I et II). Par suite, le cas géneral en trois dimensions est considéré et les résultats sont appliqués aux ondes qui se propagent normalement aux fibres dans un matériel renforcé par fibres.

---

---

This work was partly completed while the author was at the University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California, as a consultant to Grant AF-AFOSR 70-1957, sponsored by the Air Force Office of Aerospace Research, United States Air Force, Washington, D.C.     

Evolutionary behavior of induced discontinuities behind one dimensional shock waves in non-linear elastic materials

The governing differential equation of induced discontinuities behind one dimensinal shock waves in non-linear elastic materials has been derived. This equation depends, in particular, on the shock amplitude itself. Therefore, its solution depends on the solution of the governing equation of the shock amplitudes which, in turn, depend on the induced discontinuities. It is shown in the special case pertaining to a first-order approximation that there exists a critical shock amplitude S _c such that the evolutionary behavior of the induced discontinuities depends on the relative magnitudes of the shock amplitudes and S _c. However, in the special case pertaining to a second-order approximation the evolutionary behavior of the induced discontinuities is monotone.