Special properties of Eshelby tensor for a regular polygonal inclusion

When studying the regular polygonal inclusion in 1997, Nozaki and Taya discovered numerically some remarkable properties of Eshelby tensor: Eshelby tensor at the center and the averaged Eshelby tensor over the inclusion domain are equal to that of a circular inclusion and independent of the orientation of the inclusion. Then Kawashita and Nozaki justified the properties mathematically. In the present paper, some other properties of a regular polygonal inclusion are discovered. We find that for an N-fold regular polygonal inclusion except for a square, the arithmetic mean of Eshelby tensors at N rotational symmetrical points in the inclusion is also equal to the Eshelby tensor for a circular inclusion and independent of the orientation of the inclusion. Furthermore, in two corollaries, we point out that Eshelby tensor at the center, the averaged Eshelby tensor over the inclusion domain, and the line integral average of Eshelby tensors along any concentric circle of the inclusion are all identical with the arithmetic mean.The project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (10172003 and 10372003) The English text was polished by Keren Wang.     

Eshelby Tensor of a Polygonal Inclusion and its Special Properties

Nozaki and Taya (ASME J. Appl. Mech. 64 (1997) 495–502) analyzed the elastic field in a convex polygonal inclusion in an infinite body. By numerical analysis, they found that, when the shape of the inclusion is a regular polygon, “the strain at the center of inclusion” and “the strain energy per unit volume of inclusion” have strange and remarkable properties: these values are the same as those of a circular inclusion and are invariant for inclusion's orientation if the shape of the inclusion is not a square. In this paper, we first derive a simple, exact expression of the Eshelby tensor for an arbitrary polygonal inclusion. Using the expression, we then show a mathematical explanation why these special properties appear. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Some general properties of Eshelby’s tensor fields in transport phenomena and anti-plane elasticity

Consider an infinite thermally conductive medium characterized by Fourier’s law, in which a subdomain, called an inclusion, is subjected to a prescribed uniform heat flux-free temperature gradient. The second-order tensor field relating the gradient of the resulting temperature field over the medium to the uniform heat flux-free temperature gradient is referred to as Eshelby’s tensor field for conduction. The present work aims at deriving the general properties of Eshelby’s tensor field for conduction. It is found that: (i) the trace of Eshelby’s tensor field is equal to the characteristic function of the inclusion, independently of the latter’s shape; (ii) the isotropic part of Eshelby’s tensor field over the inclusion of arbitrary shape is identical to Eshelby’s tensor field over a 2D circular or 3D spherical inclusion; (iii) when the medium is made of an isotropic material and when the inclusion has some specific rotational symmetries, the value of the Eshelby’s tensor field evaluated at the inclusion gravity center and the symmetric average of Eshelby’s tensor fields are both equal to Eshelby’s tensor field for a 2D circular or 3D spherical inclusion. These results are then extended, with the help of a linear transformation, to the general case where the medium consists of an anisotropic conductive material. The method elaborated and results obtained by the present work are directly transposable to the physically analogous transport phenomena of electric conduction, dielectrics, magnetism, diffusion and flow in porous media and to the mathematically identical phenomenon of anti-plane elasticity.     

Eshelby’s problem in an anisotropic multiferroic bimaterial plane

We solve analytically the Eshelby’s problem in an anisotropic multiferroic bimaterial plane. The solution is based on the extended Stroh formalism of complex variables, and is valid for the inclusion of arbitrary shapes, described by a Laurent polynomial, a polygon, or the one bounded by a Jordan curve. Furthermore, the results in the corresponding half plane and full plane can be reduced directly from the bimaterial-plane solution. As such, the solution unifies the complex variable method and the Green’s function method, extending further to the multiferroic bimaterial plane of general anisotropy. The essential eigenfunctions are also identified by which the induced fields can be simply determined. Numerical results are presented to investigate the features of these eigenfunctions as well as the strain, electric and magnetic fields (components of the extended Eshelby tensor). Particularly, we present the values of these fields at the center of the N-side regular polygonal inclusion and also the average values of these fields over the inclusion area. The effect of the half-plane traction-free surface condition as well as the effect of various couplings on the induced fields is discussed in detail. For the N-side regular polygonal inclusion, it is found that, when the inclusion is in the full plane, both the center and average values of the Eshelby tensor are independent of the side number N, except for N = 4. We further show that the piezoelectric and piezomagnetic coupling coefficients could significantly affect the Eshelby tensor. These features should be useful in controlling the Eshelby tensor for the design of better multiferroic composites. Typical contours of the field quantities in and around the inclusion bounded by both straight and curved line segments in a multiferroic bimaterial plane are also presented.     

Strain gradient solution for the Eshelby-type polyhedral inclusion problem

The Eshelby-type problem of an arbitrary-shape polyhedral inclusion embedded in an infinite homogeneous isotropic elastic material is analytically solved using a simplified strain gradient elasticity theory (SSGET) that contains a material length scale parameter. The Eshelby tensor for a polyhedral inclusion of arbitrary shape is obtained in a general analytical form in terms of three potential functions, two of which are the same as the ones involved in the counterpart Eshelby tensor based on classical elasticity. These potential functions, as volume integrals over the polyhedral inclusion, are evaluated by dividing the polyhedral inclusion domain into tetrahedral duplexes, with each duplex and the associated local coordinate system constructed using a procedure similar to that employed by Rodin (1996. J. Mech. Phys. Solids 44, 1977–1995). Each of the three volume integrals is first transformed to a surface integral by applying the divergence theorem, which is then transformed to a contour (line) integral based on Stokes' theorem and using an inverse approach different from those adopted in the existing studies based on classical elasticity. The newly derived SSGET-based Eshelby tensor is separated into a classical part and a gradient part. The former contains Poisson's ratio only, while the latter includes the material length scale parameter additionally, thereby enabling the interpretation of the inclusion size effect. This SSGET-based Eshelby tensor reduces to that based on classical elasticity when the strain gradient effect is not considered. For homogenization applications, the volume average of the new Eshelby tensor over the polyhedral inclusion is also provided in a general form. To illustrate the newly obtained Eshelby tensor and its volume average, three types of polyhedral inclusions – cubic, octahedral and tetrakaidecahedral – are quantitatively studied by directly using the general formulas derived. The numerical results show that the components of the SSGET-based Eshelby tensor for each of the three inclusion shapes vary with both the position and the inclusion size, while their counterparts based on classical elasticity only change with the position. It is found that when the inclusion is small, the contribution of the gradient part is significantly large and should not be neglected. It is also observed that the components of the averaged Eshelby tensor based on the SSGET change with the inclusion size: the smaller the inclusion, the smaller the components. When the inclusion size becomes sufficiently large, these components are seen to approach (from below) the values of their classical elasticity-based counterparts, which are constants independent of the inclusion size.     

Strain gradient solution for a finite-domain Eshelby-type anti-plane strain inclusion problem

A solution for the finite-domain Eshelby-type inclusion problem of a finite elastic body containing an anti-plane strain inclusion of arbitrary cross-sectional shape prescribed with a uniform eigenstrain and a uniform eigenstrain gradient is derived in a general form using a simplified strain gradient elasticity theory (SSGET). The formulation is facilitated by an extended Betti’s reciprocal theorem and an extended Somigliana’s identity based on the SSGET and suitable for anti-plane strain problems. The disturbed displacement field is obtained in terms of the SSGET-based Green’s function for an infinite anti-plane strain elastic body. The solution reduces to that of the infinite-domain anti-plane strain inclusion problem when the boundary effect is not considered. The problem of a circular cylindrical inclusion embedded concentrically in a finite cylindrical elastic matrix undergoing anti-plane strain deformations is analytically solved by applying the general solution, with the Eshelby tensor and its average over the circular cross section of the inclusion obtained in closed forms. This Eshelby tensor, being dependent on the position, inclusion size, matrix size, and a material length scale parameter, captures the inclusion size and boundary effects, unlike existing ones. It reduces to the classical linear elasticity-based Eshelby tensor for the circular cylindrical inclusion in an infinite matrix if both the strain gradient and boundary effects are suppressed. Numerical results quantitatively show that the inclusion size effect can be quite large when the inclusion is small and that the boundary effect can dominate when the inclusion volume fraction is high. However, the inclusion size effect is diminishing with the increase of the inclusion size, and the boundary effect is vanishing as the inclusion volume fraction becomes sufficiently low.     

Eshelby's problem of non-elliptical inclusions

The Eshelby problem consists in determining the strain field of an infinite linearly elastic homogeneous medium due to a uniform eigenstrain prescribed over a subdomain, called inclusion, of the medium. The salient feature of Eshelby's solution for an ellipsoidal inclusion is that the strain tensor field inside the latter is uniform. This uniformity has the important consequence that the solution to the fundamental problem of determination of the strain field in an infinite linearly elastic homogeneous medium containing an embedded ellipsoidal inhomogeneity and subjected to remote uniform loading can be readily deduced from Eshelby's solution for an ellipsoidal inclusion upon imposing appropriate uniform eigenstrains. Based on this result, most of the existing micromechanics schemes dedicated to estimating the effective properties of inhomogeneous materials have been nevertheless applied to a number of materials of practical interest where inhomogeneities are in reality non-ellipsoidal. Aiming to examine the validity of the ellipsoidal approximation of inhomogeneities underlying various micromechanics schemes, we first derive a new boundary integral expression for calculating Eshelby's tensor field (ETF) in the context of two-dimensional isotropic elasticity. The simple and compact structure of the new boundary integral expression leads us to obtain the explicit expressions of ETF and its average for a wide variety of non-elliptical inclusions including arbitrary polygonal ones and those characterized by the finite Laurent series. In light of these new analytical results, we show that: (i) the elliptical approximation to the average of ETF is valid for a convex non-elliptical inclusion but becomes inacceptable for a non-convex non-elliptical inclusion; (ii) in general, the Eshelby tensor field inside a non-elliptical inclusion is quite non-uniform and cannot be replaced by its average; (iii) the substitution of the generalized Eshelby tensor involved in various micromechanics schemes by the average Eshelby tensor for non-elliptical inhomogeneities is in general inadmissible.     

Eshelby tensors for an ellipsoidal inclusion in a microstretch material

Eshelby tensors for an ellipsoidal inclusion in a microstretch material are derived in analytical form, involving only one-dimensional integral. As micropolar Eshelby tensor, the microstretch Eshelby tensors are not uniform inside of the ellipsoidal inclusion. However, different from micropolar Eshelby tensor, it is found that when the size of inclusion is large compared to the characteristic length of microstretch material, the microstretch Eshelby tensor cannot be reduced to the corresponding classical one. The reason for this is analyzed in details. It is found that under a pure hydrostatic loading, the bulk modulus of a microstretch material is not the same as the one in the corresponding classical material. A modified bulk modulus for the microstretch material is proposed, the microstretch Eshelby tensor is shown to be reduced to the modified classical Eshelby tensor at large size limit of inclusion. The fully analytical expressions of microstretch Eshelby tensors for a cylindrical inclusion are also derived.     

Strain gradient solution for a finite-domain Eshelby-type plane strain inclusion problem and Eshelby’s tensor for a cylindrical inclusion in a finite elastic matrix

A solution for the finite-domain Eshelby-type inclusion problem of a finite elastic body containing a plane strain inclusion prescribed with a uniform eigenstrain and a uniform eigenstrain gradient is derived in a general form using a simplified strain gradient elasticity theory (SSGET). The formulation is facilitated by an extended Betti’s reciprocal theorem and an extended Somigliana’s identity based on the SSGET and suitable for plane strain problems. The disturbed displacement field is obtained in terms of the SSGET-based Green’s function for an infinite plane strain elastic body, which differs from that in earlier studies using the three-dimensional Green’s function. The solution reduces to that of the infinite-domain inclusion problem when the boundary effect is suppressed. The problem of a cylindrical inclusion embedded concentrically in a finite plane strain cylindrical elastic matrix of an enhanced continuum is analytically solved for the first time by applying the general solution, with the Eshelby tensor and its average over the circular cross section of the inclusion obtained in closed forms. This Eshelby tensor, being dependent on the position, inclusion size, matrix size, and a material length scale parameter, captures the inclusion size and boundary effects, unlike existing ones. It reduces to the classical elasticity-based Eshelby tensor for the cylindrical inclusion in an infinite matrix if both the strain gradient and boundary effects are not considered. Numerical results quantitatively show that the inclusion size effect can be quite large when the inclusion is very small and that the boundary effect can dominate when the inclusion volume fraction is very high. However, the inclusion size effect is diminishing with the increase of the inclusion size, and the boundary effect is vanishing as the inclusion volume fraction becomes sufficiently low.     

Stress fields and Eshelby forces on half-plane inhomogeneities with eigenstrains and strip inclusions meeting a free surface

The stress field due to a half-plane inhomogeneity with plane eigenstrain is obtained by a limiting procedure from the one of a circular Eshelby inhomogeneity/inclusion. This field, which requires tractions to be applied at infinity to be sustained, has minimum strain energy versus any other superposed homogeneous one, and is the Eshelby solution inside plus the Hill jump conditions. By superposition, the stresses due to an infinite strip (Eshelby property domain) inhomogeneity with eigenstrain are obtained, and, by superposition periodic strips or laminates can be obtained. By cancelling the stresses on a free-surface, strips of inclusions meeting a free surface are solved. They exhibit tensile stresses under the free surface, and logarithmic singularities in the tensile stress at the vertex, which may initiate cracking. The Eshelby self-forces on the boundary of circular and half-plane inhomogeneities are computed.     

Micromechanics-based constitutive modeling for unidirectional laminated composites

A micromechanics-based constitutive model is developed to predict the effective mechanical behavior of unidirectional laminated composites. A newly developed Eshelby’s tensor for an infinite circular cylindrical inclusion [Cheng, Z.Q., Batra, R.C., 1999. Exact Eshelby tensor for a dynamic circular cylindrical inclusion. J. Appl. Mech. 66, 563–565] is adopted to model the unidirectional fibers and is incorporated into the micromechanical framework. The progressive loss of strength resulting from the partial fiber debonding and the nucleation of microcracks is incorporated into the constitutive model. To validate the proposed model, the predicted effective stiffness of transversely isotropic composites under far field loading conditions is compared with analytical solutions. The constitutive model incorporating the damage models is then implemented into a finite element code to numerically characterize the elastic behavior of laminated composites. Finally, the present predictions on the stress–strain behavior of laminated composite plate containing an open hole is compared with experimental data to verify the predictive capability of the model.     

Solution of Eshelby's inclusion problem with a bounded domain and Eshelby's tensor for a spherical inclusion in a finite spherical matrix based on a simplified strain gradient elasticity theory

A solution for Eshelby's inclusion problem of a finite homogeneous isotropic elastic body containing an inclusion prescribed with a uniform eigenstrain and a uniform eigenstrain gradient is derived in a general form using a simplified strain gradient elasticity theory (SSGET). An extended Betti's reciprocal theorem and an extended Somigliana's identity based on the SSGET are proposed and utilized to solve the finite-domain inclusion problem. The solution for the disturbed displacement field is expressed in terms of the Green's function for an infinite three-dimensional elastic body in the SSGET. It contains a volume integral term and a surface integral term. The former is the same as that for the infinite-domain inclusion problem based on the SSGET, while the latter represents the boundary effect. The solution reduces to that of the infinite-domain inclusion problem when the boundary effect is not considered. The problem of a spherical inclusion embedded concentrically in a finite spherical elastic body is analytically solved by applying the general solution, with the Eshelby tensor and its volume average obtained in closed forms. This Eshelby tensor depends on the position, inclusion size, matrix size, and material length scale parameter, and, as a result, can capture the inclusion size and boundary effects, unlike existing Eshelby tensors. It reduces to the classical Eshelby tensor for the spherical inclusion in an infinite matrix if both the strain gradient and boundary effects are suppressed. Numerical results quantitatively show that the inclusion size effect can be quite large when the inclusion is very small and that the boundary effect can dominate when the inclusion volume fraction is very high. However, the inclusion size effect is diminishing as the inclusion becomes large enough, and the boundary effect is vanishing as the inclusion volume fraction gets sufficiently low.     

Circular inclusions in anti-plane strain couple stress elasticity

The solution for a circular inclusion with a prescribed anti-plane eigenstrain is derived. It is shown that the components of the Eshelby tensor within the inclusion, corresponding to a uniform eigenstrain, can be either uniform or non-uniform, depending on the imposed interface conditions. The stress amplification factors due to circular void or rigid inclusion in an infinite medium under remote anti-plane shear stress are calculated. The failure of the couple stress elasticity to reproduce the classical elasticity solution in the limit of vanishingly small characteristic length is indicated for a particular type of boundary conditions. The solution for a circular inhomogeneity in an infinitely extended matrix subjected to remote shear stress is then derived. The effects of the imposed interface conditions, the shear stress and couple stress discontinuities, and the relationship between the inhomogeneity and its equivalent eigenstrain inclusion problem are discussed.     

LIMITATION OF AVERAGE ESHELBY TENSOR AND ITS APPLICATION IN ANALYSIS OF ELLIPSE APPROXIMATION

By the aid of irreducible decomposition, the average Eshelby tensor can be expressed by two complex coefficients in 2D Eshelby problem. This paper proved the limitation of complex coefficients based on the span of elastic strain energy density. More discussions yielded the constraints on the sampling of module and phase difference of complex coefficients. Using this information, we obtained that the maximum relative error is 65.78% after an ellipse approximation. These results, as a supplement to our previous paper, further implied that Eshelby's solution for an ellipsoidal inclusion could not be applied to non-ellipsoidal inclusions without taking care.     

Inclusions in a finite elastic body

Within the framework of 2D or 3D linear elasticity, a general approach based on the superposition principle is proposed to study the problem of a finite elastic body with an arbitrarily shaped and located inclusion. The proposed approach consists in decomposing the initial inclusion problem into the problem of the inclusion embedded in the corresponding infinite body and the auxiliary problem of the finite body subjected to the appropriate boundary loading provided by solving the former problem. Thus, our approach renders it possible to circumvent the difficulty due to the unavailability of the relevant Green function, use various existing solutions for the problem of an inclusion inside an unbounded body and clearly makes appear the finite boundary effects. The general approach is applied and specified in the context of 2D isotropic elasticity. The complex potentials for the problem of an inclusion in an infinite body are given as two boundary integrals, and the boundary integral equation governing the complex potentials for the auxiliary problem is provided. In the important particular situation where a finite body with an arbitrarily shaped and located inclusion is circular, the exact explicit expressions for the complex potentials are derived, leading to those for the strain, stress and Eshelby’s tensor fields inside and outside the inclusion. These results are analytically detailed and numerically illustrated for the cases of a square inclusion placed concentrically, and a circular inclusion located eccentrically, inside a circular body.     

On Conservation and Balance Laws in Micromorphic Elastodynamics

In this paper, following Noether’s theorem we investigate the Lie point symmetries of linear micromorphic elastodynamics (linear elastodynamics with microstructure). Conservation and balance laws of linear, micromorphic elastodynamics are derived. We generalize the J, L and M integrals for this theory. In addition, we give the Eshelby stress tensor, pseudomomentum vector, field intensity vector, Hamiltonian, angular momentum tensor and scaling flux generalized to micromorphic elastodynamics.      

Material force for dynamic crack propagation in multiphase micromorphic materials

Micromorphic theory, which considers material body as a continuous collection of deformable particles of finite size and inner structure; each has nine independent degrees of freedom describing the stretches and rotations of the particle in addition to the three classical translational degrees of freedom of its center, is briefly introduced in this work. The concept of material forces, which may also be referred as Eshelbian mechanics, is extended to micromorphic theory. The balance law of pseudo-momentum is formulated. The detailed expressions of Eshelby stress tensor, pseudo-momentum, and material forces are derived for thermoelastic micromorphic solid. It is found that the material forces are due to (1) body force and body moment, (2) temperature gradient and (3) material inhomogeneities in density, microinertia, and elastic coefficients. The general expression of material forces due to the presence of dynamically propagating crack front has also been derived. It is found that, at the crack front, material force is reduced to the J-integral in a very special and restrictive case.     

Elastoplastic modeling of circular fiber-reinforced ductile matrix composites considering a finite RVE

A micromechanical elastoplastic damage model considering a finite RVE is proposed to predict the overall elastoplastic damage behavior of circular fiber-reinforced ductile (matrix) composites. The constitutive damage model proposed in our preceding work (Kim and Lee, 2009) considering a finite Eshelby’s tensor (Li et al., 2005, Wang et al., 2005) is extended to accommodate the elastoplastic behavior of the composites. On the basis of the exterior-point Eshelby’s tensor for circular inclusions and the ensemble-averaged effective yield criterion, a micromechanical framework for predicting the effective elastoplastic damage behavior of ductile composites is derived. A series of numerical simulations are carried out to illustrate stress–strain response of the proposed micromechanical framework and to examine the influence of a Weibull parameter on the elastoplastic behavior of the composites. Furthermore, comparisons between the present predictions and experimental data available in the literature are made to further assess the predictive capability of the proposed model.     

Mean Green operators and Eshelby tensors for hemispherical inclusions and hemisphere interactions in spheres. Application to bi-material spherical inclusions in isotropic spaces

This paper mainly presents an exact expression for the mean shape function of a hemispherical inclusion, from which are obtained analytical forms for the mean Green operator (GO) and Eshelby tensor of this hemi-sphere as well as for the related mean pair interaction Green operator (IGO) between the two hemi-spheres of a sphere, in media with isotropic (elastic or dielectric) properties. We secondly address the problem of bi-material inclusions, in the sense of a two-phase compact set of two or a few elementary domains, a particular inclusion pattern case for which we give an estimate of the mean stress and strain in each phase accounting for interactions. This estimate results from knowing the mean GO (or Eshelby tensor) for each pattern element plus the mean IGO between element pairs, what is rarely fulfilled analytically. The here solved case for bi-material spherical inclusions made of two different hemispherical elements adds to the recently made available solution for bi-material cylindrical inclusions made of piled coaxial finite cylinders. The obtained mean stress estimates are exemplified able to satisfactorily match with FEM calculations up to highly contrasted bi-material inclusions. Other types of bi-material spherical inclusions are mentioned for which the mean GOs for the sub-domains and their pair IGO can be obtained without calculation, owing to particular symmetries of the phase arrangement. Mean GOs and IGOs are also useful in certain homogenization frameworks yielding overall property estimates for inclusion-reinforced matrices. Further discussions and specific applications will be presented in forthcoming papers.     

On the Nonlinear Continuum Theory of Dislocations: A Gauge Field Theoretical Approach

A nonlinear continuum theory of material bodies with continuously distributed dislocations is presented, based on a gauge theoretical approach. Firstly, we derive the canonical conservation laws that correspond to the group of translations and rotations in the material space using Noether’s theorem. These equations give us the canonical Eshelby stress tensor as well as the total canonical angular momentum tensor. The canonical Eshelby stress tensor is neither symmetric nor gauge-invariant. Based on the Belinfante-Rosenfeld procedure, we obtain the gauge-invariant Eshelby stress tensor which can be symmetric relative to the reference configuration only for isotropic materials. The gauge-invariant angular momentum tensor is obtained as well. The decomposition of the gauge-invariant Eshelby stress tensor in an elastic and in a dislocation part gives rise to the derivation of the famous Peach-Koehler force.