Modeling of Mechanical Behavior of Ceramic Nanocomposites

Deformation and damage occurring at the meso-scale level in structured representative volumes (RVE) of modern nanocomposites in wide loading conditions were simulated. The computational models of a structured RVE of ceramic nanocomposites were developed using the data of structure researches on meso-, micro -, and nanoscale levels. The critical fracture stress on meso-scale level depends not only on relative volumes of voids and inclusions, but also on the parameters of inclusion clusters. The critical fracture stress at the meso-scale level depends not only on relative volumes of voids and strengthened phases, but also on sizes of corresponding structure elements. In the studied ceramic composites the critical failure stress is changed non-monotonically with growth of the volume concentration of strengthening phase particles. At identical porosity, concentration of nanovoids in the vicinity of grain boundaries causes the decrease in the shear strength of nanostructured and ultrafine-grained ceramics. It is revealed that the occurrence of bimodal distributions of the local particle velocity at the meso-scale level precedes the nucleation of microcracks. At mesoscale level of ceramic nanocomposites the pressure and particle velocity distribution don’t display a resonance behavior under submicrosecond single shock pulse loading or repeated pulse loadings.