A Micromechanics-Based Notion of Stress for Use in the Determination of Continuum-Level Mechanical Properties via Molecular Dynamics

Author(s):  
Francesco Costanzo ◽  
Gary L. Gray
2010 ◽  
Vol 654-656 ◽  
pp. 1654-1657 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wen Xu ◽  
Qing Hua Zeng ◽  
Ai Bing Yu ◽  
Donald R. Paul

The properties of interphase in polymer composites are often different from those of bulk polymer matrix, which may include chemical, physical, microstructural, and mechanical properties. The nature of interphase is critical to the overall properties and performance of polymer materials, in particular in nanofiller reinforced composites. Experimental efforts have been made to determine the effective interphase thickness and its properties, for example, by nanoindentation and nanoscratch techniques. Yet, it is very difficult to quantify the interphase and its properties because of its nanoscale nature and the unclear boundary. In this regard, computer simulation, e.g., molecular dynamics, provides an effective tool to characterize such interphase and the properties. In this work, molecular dynamics simulations are applied to quantify the interphase thickness in clay-based polymer nanocomposites. Then, the mechanical properties of the so-called effective nanofiller (i.e., the physical size of nanofiller plus the thickness of interphase) will be determined by a series of simulations.


2014 ◽  
Vol 62 (1) ◽  
pp. 129-137
Author(s):  
A. Sawicki ◽  
J. Mierczyński

Abstract A basic set of experiments for the determination of mechanical properties of sands is described. This includes the determination of basic physical and mechanical properties, as conventionally applied in soil mechanics, as well as some additional experiments, which provide further information on mechanical properties of granular soils. These additional experiments allow for determination of steady state and instability lines, stress-strain relations for isotropic loading and pure shearing, and simple cyclic shearing tests. Unconventional oedometric experiments are also presented. Necessary laboratory equipment is described, which includes a triaxial apparatus equipped with local strain gauges, an oedometer capable of measuring lateral stresses and a simple cyclic shearing apparatus. The above experiments provide additional information on soil’s properties, which is useful in studying the following phenomena: pre-failure deformations of sand including cyclic loading compaction, pore-pressure generation and liquefaction, both static and caused by cyclic loadings, the effect of sand initial anisotropy and various instabilities. An important feature of the experiments described is that they make it possible to determine the initial state of sand, defined as either contractive or dilative. Experimental results for the “Gdynia” model sand are shown.


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