Peridynamics (PD) represents a new approach for modelling fracture mechanics, where a continuum domain is modelled through particles connected via physical bonds. This formulation allows us to model crack initiation, propagation, branching and coalescence without special assumptions. Up to date, anisotropic materials were modelled in the PD framework as different isotropic materials (for instan...

Background: An electronic device consists of electronic components attached on a circuit board. Reliability of such a device is limited to fatigue properties of the components as well as of the board. Printed circuit board (PCB) consists of conducting traces and vertical interconnect access (via) out of copper embedded in a composite material. Usually the composite material is fiber reinforced ...

The problem of improving the delamination resistance and toughness of laminate fiberreinforced composites especially for the drop-off structure is receiving considerable attention with the increasing need and application in industries. A hot melt-bonding process is developed to bond glass fabric laminates and the thermoplastic (TP) polysulfone (PSU) interleaf prior to the vacuum assisted resin ...

The purpose of this research is to simulate and test nanomaterial reinforced composites for potential applications in Army vehicles, especially for improved ballistic and blast protection. The resultant simulation and design system can address major concerns in functional requirements of nanomaterials in Army’s ground vehicles such as strength, durability, ballistic and blast impact resistance....

An approximate method is presented to investigate Mgy the interlaminar stresses near the free edges of composite N laminate plates that are subjected to a combined NI~ thermo-mechanical loading. The method is based upon N~ admissible function representations of stresses which account Q!~) for the effects of both the global mismatches and the local ,~!k/ mismatches in two of the elastic properti...

(2002) Numerical and experimental studies on the fracture behavior of rubber-toughened epoxy in bulk specimen and laminated composites. ABSTRACT To study the toughening mechanisms of liquid rubber (LR) and core-shell rubber (CSR) in bulk epoxy and composite laminate, experimental and numerical investigations were carried out on compact tension (CT) and double-cantilever-beam (DCB) specimens und...

Advanced composite materials are attractive in situations where high performance materials are required, such as in aerospace, military, medical applications and sporting goods industries. However, because they are difficult to shape into complex geometries, currently, most composite parts are manufactured by the hand lay-up process, which is time-consuming and labor-intensive. The main motivat...

The paper presents recent progress on modelling low velocity impact induced damage in fibre reinforced composite laminates. It is important to understand the mechanisms of barely visible impact damage (BVID) and how it affects structural performance. To reduce labour intensive testing, the development of finite element (FE) techniques for simulating impact damage becomes essential and recent ef...

OBJECTIVES The purpose of the current study was to examine the impact of thermocycling on the development of surface flaws on the cemented surfaces of PLV restorations prepared by acid-etching or alumina (Al2O3) abrasion. METHODS Sets of 30 Vitadur-alpha dentin porcelain discs (15 mm diameter, 0.9 mm thickness) were prepared by either abrading with 50 microm Al2O3 or hydrofluoric (HF) acid-et...

The objective of this study is to develop a multiscale modeling approach to predict the influence of molecular structure and microstructure on the bulk-level properties of a graphite/epoxy plain-woven fabric composite in which the resin-rich regions are reinforced with carbon nanotubes. The modeling approach incorporates molecular modeling and micromechanics techniques. A parametric study shows...