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Mean-field homogenization is an established and computationally efficient method estimating the effective linear elastic behavior of composites. In view of short-fiber reinforced materials, it is important to homogenize consistently during process simulation. This paper aims to comprehensively reflect and expand the basics of mean-field homogenization of anisotropic linear viscous properties and to show the parallelism to the anisotropic linear elastic properties. In particular, the Hill–Mandel condition, which is generally independent of a specific material behavior, is revisited in the context of boundary conditions for viscous suspensions. This study is limited to isothermal conditions, linear viscous and incompressible fiber suspensions and to linear elastic solid composites, both of which consisting of isotropic phases with phase-wise constant properties. In the context of homogenization of viscous properties, the fibers are considered as rigid bodies. Based on a chosen fiber orientation state, different mean-field models are compared with each other, all of which are formulated with respect to orientation averaging. Within a consistent mean-field modeling for both fluid suspensions and solid composites, all considered methods can be recommended to be applied for fiber volume fractions up to 10%. With respect to larger, industrial-relevant, fiber volume fractions up to 20%, the (two-step) Mori–Tanaka model and the lower Hashin–Shtrikman bound are well suited. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We extend the FE-DMN method to fully coupled thermomechanical two-scale simulations of composite materials. In particular, every Gauss point of the macroscopic finite element model is equipped with a deep material network (DMN). Such a DMN serves as a high-fidelity surrogate model for full-field solutions on the microscopic scale of inelastic, non-isothermal constituents. Building on the homogenization framework of Chatzigeorgiou et al. (Int J Plast 81:18–39, 2016), we extend the framework of DMNs to thermomechanical composites by incorporating the two-way thermomechanical coupling, i.e., the coupling from the macroscopic onto the microscopic scale and vice versa, into the framework. We provide details on the efficient implementation of our approach as a user-material subroutine (UMAT). We validate our approach on the microscopic scale and show that DMNs predict the effective stress, the effective dissipation and the change of the macroscopic absolute temperature with high accuracy. After validation, we demonstrate the capabilities of our approach on a concurrent thermomechanical two-scale simulation on the macroscopic component scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thermomechanical couplings are present in many materials and should therefore be considered in multiscale approaches. Specific cases of thermomechanical behavior are the isothermal and the adiabatic regime, in which the behavior of real materials differs. Based on the consistent asymptotic homogenization framework for thermomechanically coupled generalized standard materials, the present work is devoted to computing the effective thermomechanical behavior of composite materials in the context of fast Fourier transform (FFT)‐based micromechanics. Exploiting the homogeneity of the temperature on the microscale, we develop a fast implicit staggered solution scheme for the coupled problem, which is compatible to existing strain‐based micromechanics solvers. Due to its implicit formulation, the algorithm permits large time steps for computations involving strong thermomechanical coupling. We investigate the performance of modern FFT‐based algorithms combined with the proposed thermomechanical solution strategy. In this context, the Barzilai–Borwein method is identified as particularly efficient, inducing only a small overhead compared with the traditional isothermal setting. We demonstrate the effectiveness of the presented approach for short‐fiber reinforced composites with viscoelastic matrix behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The presence of grain boundaries significantly influences the overall mechanical behavior of materials with an underlying crystalline microstructure. They act as an obstacle against the movement of dislocations and, thus, significantly contribute to size effects as for example the Hall–Petch effect. Hence, the thermodynamically consistent modeling of the behavior of the plastic slip at a grain boundary is of utmost interest. To this end, balance equations at a grain boundary are derived from an extended energy balance by means of invariance considerations. The grain boundary is considered as a material singular surface with own internal and kinetic energy as well as energy supply. Consequently, the balances at the grain boundary depend on its mean curvature. The framework presented is applied to a small strain slip gradient crystal plasticity theory, regarding single slip. Accounting for the derived balance equations, thermodynamically consistent flow rules for the plastic slip at the grain boundary are obtained by exploitation of the Coleman–Noll procedure. In this context, a classification of flow rules for the plastic slip at the grain boundary is provided. Finally, the distribution of the plastic slip is presented regarding a three-phase laminate material with two elastoplastic phases and one elastic phase. The two elastoplastic phases represent the grains of a bicrystal. A grain boundary effect is discussed which is based on a variation of the internal length scale in one of the two elastoplastic phases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is shown in the present work that for linear elastic multiphase materials the orientation average of a stiffness tensor can be given in a closed form if central model functions are taken into consideration for the description of the material orientation distribution. This holds for arbitrary numbers of material constituents and for arbitrary degree of anisotropy of any of the constituents. The first-order bounds of Voigt and Reuss, the geometric average of Aleksandrov and Aisenberg and, specifically, the Hashin-Shtrikman bounds are given in closed forms depending on the single crystal stiffnesses of the material constituents, on their volume fractions and, for elasticity, on a central orientation and two scalar parameters per central model function. The central orientation and the two scalar parameters, referred to as texture eigenvalues in the present work, reflect the complete influence of the corresponding central model function on the elastic properties. The set of all admissible texture eigenvalues is derived. The closed form expressions can be used, e.g., for efficient and low dimensional homogenization procedures taking the crystallographic texture into account or, e.g., for the determination of estimates for unknown single crystal behavior. It is further shown, that central crystallite orientation distributions exist which conserve the anisotropy of the single crystal behavior but invert the direction of the anisotropy. The closed form expressions documented in the present work are used for an exemplary materials design problem in order to determine favorable volume fractions and texture eigenvalues for the orientation distributions of considered constituents for given prescribed anisotropic properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zeroth-order bounds of elastic properties have been discussed by Kröner (1977) and by Nadeau and Ferrari (2001). These bounds enclose the effective linear elastic properties of multiphase materials constituted of materials with arbitrary symmetry and of an arbitrary number of phases by using solely the material constants of the single materials. Nadeau and Ferrari showed that these bounds are isotropic tensors and presented an algorithm for the determination of the upper and the lower zeroth-order bound. It is shown in this paper that a problem arises for the lower bound, since the algorithm presented in Nadeau and Ferrari (2001), results in a negative compression modulus and/or shear modulus although the considered stiffness is positive definite. A simple analytic example for this undesirable property is given, together with a short Mathematica ® code of the algorithm. In the present work, the definition of the lower bound by Nadeau and Ferrari is modified, thereby assuring its positive definiteness. The Mathematica ® code of the corrected algorithm is also given. Furthermore, new bounds for non-diagonal components are derived, which give information of, in principle, accessible values for non-diagonal stiffness components using the zeroth-order bounds of the present work. The practical application of zeroth-order bounds for local and online material data bases of stiffness tensors is presented, in order to accelerate purposes in materials design through efficient materials screening. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mechanical properties of short-fiber reinforced composites are crucially influenced by their microstructure. The microstructure itself is mainly governed by the manufacturing process like injection or compression molding. The main contribution of this paper lies in the homogenization of linear elastic properties using experimental microstructural information. For this purpose, the microstructure of injection-molded specimens made of polypropylene reinforced with 30wt.% of short glass fibers are analyzed through micro-computer tomography (μCT) measurements. Applying a recently developed segmentation algorithm, the spatial position, the orientation distribution and the length of the fibers are determined. This data is evaluated in terms of orientation tensors and length distribution, and is used within three mean field approaches: a self-consistent homogenization method, the interaction direct derivative estimate, which is based on the three-phase model, and a two-step bounding method. All methods account for the orientation, the length and the diameter distribution. The numerical results are compared to experimental tensile tests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years the FFT-based homogenization method of Moulinec and Suquet has been established as a fast, accurate and robust tool for obtaining effective properties in linear elasticity and conductivity problems. In this work we discuss FFT-based homogenization for elastic problems at large deformations, with a focus on the following improvements. Firstly, we exhibit the fixed point method introduced by Moulinec and Suquet for small deformations as a gradient descent method. Secondly, we propose a Newton-Krylov method for large deformations. We give an example for which this methods needs approximately 20 times less iterations than Newton's method using linear fixed point solvers and roughly $$100$$ times less iterations than the nonlinear fixed point method. However, the Newton-Krylov method requires 4 times more storage than the nonlinear fixed point scheme. Exploiting the special structure we introduce a memory-efficient version with 40 % memory saving. Thirdly, we give an analytical solution for the micromechanical solution field of a two-phase isotropic St.Venant-Kirchhoff laminate. We use this solution for comparison and validation, but it is of independent interest. As an example for a microstructure relevant in engineering we discuss finally the application of the FFT-based method to glass fiber reinforced polymer structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A reduced basis order-reduction based homogenization method for the constitutive behavior of viscoelastic composites is presented. The approach is based on a modification of the Nonuniform Transformation Field Analysis (NTFA) introduced by Michel and Suquet [1]. A new evolution law for the set of macroscopic internal variables of the homogenized material is derived based on dissipative considerations. The theoretical aspects of the method are extensively discussed including an explicit algorithm for the computation of the anisotropic complex moduli of the material. Details concerning the numerical implementation and a selection of representative numerical examples are provided. The method accurately captures the anisotropic transient mechanical response of composites for various loading conditions while offering numerical savings in the order of 106–1010 with respect to both, CPU time and memory requirements. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This contribution investigates the thermodynamic consistency of a meanfield damage model published by the authors [1]. The model is based on an empirical description of the fiber orientation distribution function (FODF). Due to a combination of matrix damage and fiber‐matrix interface debonding, the model is able to predict the inhomogeneous and anisotropic evolution of the overall behavior of the considered Sheet Molding Compound (SMC) composite. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biaxial tensile tests allow the investigation of damage evolution in sheet molding compound under biaxial stress states. This is of particular interest due to the different damage phenomena in composite materials. A key challenge is to find a suitable specimen design, because typical cruciform specimens fail in the arms before damage occurs in the area of interest which is the area of the biaxial stress state in the center area of the specimen. A specimen was found which enables the observation of anisotropic stiffness degradation which is one phenomenon of damage. In this proceedings the results of the experiments are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For a chosen combination of materials for a multiphase polycrystalline composite, a crystallite orientation distribution function for each phase is formulated as a superposition of analytic central model von Mises-Fisher functions. The chosen central model functions allow the analytic integration of orientation averages of arbitrarily anisotropic fourth-order tensors. Based on this result, the first-order bounds of Voigt and Reuss and the geometric average of the stiffness can be expressed explicitly in closed forms for arbitrarily anisotropic polycrystalline materials and number of phases depending on the volume fractions and the influence of the crystallographic texture of each constituent. These expressions can then be used for the materials design aiming the determination of volume fractions and orientation distribution of selected materials for prescribed effective properties. (© 2015 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carbon/carbon composites produced by chemical vapor infiltration consist of carbon fibers embedded in a matrix of pyrolytic carbon with anisotropic mechanical properties. The matrix around fibers consists of cylindrically shaped pyrolytic carbon layers of coating, which may have different textures with different mechanical properties in the axial, radial and circumferential directions. The goal of the present numerical study is to investigate the influence of the coating microstructure on stress concentrations and possible modes of failure in the carbon composite. Numerical modeling was performed on two length scales. First, the material properties of the differently textured pyrolytic carbon layers were determined on the nanometer scale using methodology based on the Eshelby theory for continuously distributed inclusions. Then, the obtained material parameters for each layer were used as input for the finite element models on the micrometer scale. The numerical simulations were conducted for three basic loading scenarios: uniaxial tension, shear loading and hydrostatic compression. The calculated stress distributions show zones of maximum stress concentrations and provide information on the possible failure regions for each material under all considered loading cases. The numerical results demonstrate good correspondence with experimentally identified failure regions. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Analytic shear-lag models enjoy great popularity for assessing and interpreting microstructure dependent stationary creep in fibrous metal composites, especially the formulation of Kelly-Street (Kelly and Street, 1972 [2]). Beyond the original model's scope, i.e. large aspect ratios of inclusions, predictions are highly inaccurate, which was recently pointed out by Wicht et al. (Wicht et al., 2022 [10]), by comparing model predictions to micromechanical Fast-Fourier-Transform-based simulations. In this study we therefore modify basic Kelly-Street model assumptions, concerning effective creep rate, stress transfer and inclusion spacing to arrive at a modified model with an extended scope. To validate the modified model, we benchmark the model against Fast-Fourier-Transform-based micromechanical simulations. We show, that the proposed modifications are successful in extending the model's scope to inclusions with small aspect ratios ≤20. Thus, the reformulated model is a powerful tool to describe and interpret microstructure dependent creep. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper revisits the topic of mean field homogenization for short fiber reinforced composite materials. A short glass fiber reinforced thermoplastic polyamide 6.6 with a fiber mass fraction of 35 % is used as an example material for which microstructural analyses and experimental tests were performed. We cover a set of common models: the Self-Consistent (SC), Mori–Tanaka (MT), Ponte Castañeda-Willis (PCW), Interaction Direct Derivative (IDD) and Two-Step (TS) schemes. We first recast them into a unified formulation that permits a thorough theoretical comparison, including the topics of loss of major symmetry as well as connections between the models. We are able to show that the MT, PCW and IDD schemes can be expressed in a surprisingly similar form. This extends to the equations for prediction of effective stiffness and compliance tensors as well as the strain and stress localization tensors. Secondly, we address the resolution of the material microstructure within mean field homogenization schemes, comparing classical and more recent and efficient methods. Last, we benchmark the different mean field schemes and modeling approaches, including comparisons to numerical homogenization by Fast Fourier Transformation (FFT) and experimental data from tensile tests. These show that the MT and TS schemes are both capable of accurately modeling the composite material for complex orientations and homogeneous fiber phases. For possibly inhomogeneous fiber phases only the TS scheme yields both accurate and physically reasonable results. Other models such as the IDD or PCW are of great theoretical importance, but cannot be generally applied for the given material class. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]