A. M. Dongare^1,2, A. M. Rajendran³, B. LaMattina⁴, M. A. Zikry¹, D. W. Brenner¹

CMC-Computers, Materials & Continua, Vol.24, No.1, pp. 43-60, 2011, DOI:10.3970/cmc.2011.024.043

Abstract Large-scale molecular dynamics (MD) simulations are used to investigate the effects of microstructure and loading conditions on the dynamic failure behavior of nanocrystalline Cu. The nucleation, growth, and coalescence of voids is investigated for the nanocrystalline metal with average grain sizes ranging from 6 nm to 12 nm (inverse Hall-Petch regime) for conditions of uniaxial expansion at constant strain rates ranging from 4x107 s - 1 to 1010 s - 1. MD simulations suggest that the evolution of voids can be described in two stages: The first stage corresponds to the nucleation of voids and the fast linear initial growth… More >

Surkay D. Akbarov^1,2, Resat Kosker³, Nihan T. Cinar³

CMC-Computers, Materials & Continua, Vol.21, No.2, pp. 119-146, 2011, DOI:10.3970/cmc.2011.021.119

Abstract In the present paper, the stress distribution in an infinite elastic body containing two neighboring nanofibers is studied. It is assumed that the midlines of the fibers are in the same plane. With respect to the location of the fibers according to each other the co-phase and anti-phase curving cases are considered. At infinity uniformly distributed normal forces act in the direction of the nanofibers, location. The investigations are carried out in the framework of the piecewise homogeneous body model with the use of the three-dimensional geometrically non-linear exact equations of the theory of elasticity. The normal and shear self-equilibrated… More >

Alamusi¹, Y.L. Liu¹, N. Hu^1,2

CMC-Computers, Materials & Continua, Vol.20, No.2, pp. 101-118, 2010, DOI:10.3970/cmc.2010.020.101

Abstract In this work, we propose a 3 dimensional (3D) numerical model to predict the piezoresistivity behaviors of a nanocomposite material made from an insulating polymer filled by carbon nanotubes (CNTs). This material is very hopeful for its application in highly sensitive strain sensor by measuring its piezoresistivity, i.e., the ratio of resistance change versus applied strain. In this numerical approach, a 3D resistor network model is firstly proposed to predict the electrical conductivity of the nanocomposite with a large amount of randomly dispersed CNTs under the zero strain state. By focusing on the fact that the piezoresistivity of the nanocomposite… More >

Hui- Shen^1,2, Zheng Hong Zhu³

CMC-Computers, Materials & Continua, Vol.18, No.2, pp. 155-182, 2010, DOI:10.3970/cmc.2010.018.155

Abstract This paper investigates the buckling and postbuckling of simply supported, nanocomposite plates with functionally graded nanotube reinforcements subjected to uniaxial compression in thermal environments. The nanocomposite plates are assumed to be functionally graded in the thickness direction using single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) serving as reinforcements and the plates' effective material properties are estimated through a micromechanical model. The higher order shear deformation plate theory with a von Kármán-type of kinematic nonlinearity is used to model the composite plates and a two-step perturbation technique is performed to determine the buckling loads and postbuckling equilibrium paths. Numerical results for perfect and imperfect,… More >

J. Wang¹, D. C. C. Lam²

CMC-Computers, Materials & Continua, Vol.17, No.3, pp. 215-232, 2010, DOI:10.3970/cmc.2010.017.215

Abstract Selected elastic moduli of nanocomposites are higher than the elastic moduli of microcomposites. Molecular immobilization and crystallization at the interfaces had been proposed as potential causes, but studies suggested that these effects are minor and cannot be used to explain the magnitude observed in nanocomposites with >3nm particles. Alternately, molecular simulation of polymer deformation showed that rotation gradients can lead to additional molecular rotations and stiffen the matrix. The stiffening is characterized by the nanostiffening material parameter, l2. In this investigation, an analytical expression for nanostiffening in nanocomposites was developed using finite element analysis. The nanostiffening in nanocomposites was determined… More >

Edward Van Keuren¹, MakiNishida¹

CMC-Computers, Materials & Continua, Vol.14, No.1, pp. 61-78, 2009, DOI:10.3970/cmc.2009.014.061

Abstract Room temperature solution-based synthetic methods are an important option for the production of a wide range of nanomaterials. These methods often rely on self-assembly or self-organization of molecular precursors, with specific control of their nucleation and growth properties. We are developing strategies for the creation of multifunctional composite nanoparticles as well as models for predicting the bulk properties from the individual components and parameters of the processing conditions. One method of synthesis is a reprecipitation technique in which nanoparticle nucleation and growth is induced by the rapid injection of a molecular solution into a miscible non-solvent. Here we demonstrate that… More >