A new modeling approach is proposed for predicting the bulk electromechanical properties of piezoelectric composites. The proposed model offers the same level of convenience as the wellknown Mori-Tanaka method. The electromechanical properties of four piezoelectric polymer composite materials are predicted with the proposed, Mori-Tanaka, Self-consistent methods, and detailed finite element anal...

Due to the large coupling between their electrical and mechanical properties, ferroelectric ceramics are increasingly being implemented in novel devices. This review reports on recent advances in the development of predictive constitutive models for the coupled and non-linear electromechanical behavior of ferroelectrics. Such constitutive models are required to analyze the performance of ferroe...

This paper presents the results of an experimental study on capillary tubes commonly used as expansion device in household refrigerators and freezers. The experiments were performed with HFC-134a at different condensing pressures and level of subcooling. The pressure and temperature profiles along the capillary tubes were measured in each test run. The data set was then used to evaluate the sui...

Long term responses of the heart to e.g. infarction or surgical intervention are related to response of the tissue to changes in the mechanical environment. The tissue response is likely to involve (local) change of mass. Implementation of the associated inhomogeneous change in volume for a complex geometry is cumbersome. In the present study, we propose a computational framework for finite vol...

Modeling the mechanical response of the brain has become increasingly important over the past decades. Although mechanical stimuli to the brain are small under physiological conditions, mechanics plays a significant role under pathological conditions including brain development, brain injury, and brain surgery. Well calibrated and validated constitutive models for brain tissue are essential to ...

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In this study, a technique is presented for developing constitutive models for polymer composite systems reinforced with single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNT). Because the polymer molecules are on the same size scale as the nanotubes, the interaction at the polymer/nanotube interface is highly dependent on the local molecular structure and bonding. At these small length scales, the lattice stru...

The rocks are formed through very complex processes and the complex behaviour of rock masses is dominated by the planes of weaknesses . Rock mass consists of intact rock and discontinuities. Many rocks show strain softening behaviour under loads. In this paper, the constitutive models for intact rocks and rock joints are presented. These form the basis for the development of constitutive models...