L. Rodríguez-Tembleque¹, A. Sáez¹, F.C. Buroni¹

CMES-Computer Modeling in Engineering & Sciences, Vol.96, No.2, pp. 131-158, 2013, DOI:10.3970/cmes.2013.096.131

Abstract A boundary element based formulation is applied to study numerically the tribological behavior of fiber-reinforced plastics (FRP) under different frictional contact conditions, taking into account the micromechanics of FRP. Micromechanical models presented consider continuous and short fiber reinforced plastics configurations. The Boundary Element Method (BEM) with an explicit approach for fundamental solutions evaluation is considered for computing the elastic influence coefficients. Signorini’s contact conditions and an orthotropic law of friction on the potential contact zone are enforced by contact operators over the augmented Lagrangian. The proposed methodology is applied to study carbon FRP under frictional contact. The obtained numerical results… More >

Marcin Kamiński^1,2, Bernd Lauke²

CMES-Computer Modeling in Engineering & Sciences, Vol.93, No.6, pp. 411-440, 2013, DOI:10.3970/cmes.2013.093.411

Abstract The main aim in this paper is a computational study devoted to the sensitivity gradients and probabilistic moments of the effective elastic parameters for the rubber-filled polymers. The methodology is based on least squares recovery of the polynomial functions relating the effective tensor components and the given input design/random parameters. All numerical experiments are provided with respect to Young’s moduli of the elastomer constituents. Computational analysis is possible thanks to the application of the Response Function Method, which is enriched in our approach with the weighting procedures implemented according to the Dirac-type distributions. The homogenized elasticity tensor components are derived… More >

Guanghui Shi¹, Qingsheng Yang^1,2, Xiaoqiao He^3,4, Kim Meow Liew³

CMES-Computer Modeling in Engineering & Sciences, Vol.90, No.5, pp. 339-358, 2013, DOI:10.3970/cmes.2013.090.339

Abstract In order to describe the thermomechanical deformation and shape memory effect of shape memory polymers (SMPs), a three-dimensional thermomechanical constitutive model that considers elastic, viscoelastic strain and thermal expansion is proposed for isotropic SMPs. A three-dimensional finite element procedure is developed by implementing the proposed constitutive model into the user material subroutine (UMAT) in ABAQUS program. Numerical examples are used to compare it with existing experimental data in a one dimensional case and to demonstrate the thermomechanical behavior of SMPs with 3D deformation. It is shown that the present constitutive theory and the finite element method can effectively simulate the… More >

Mark Andrew Bradford¹, Yong-Lin Pi¹

CMES-Computer Modeling in Engineering & Sciences, Vol.89, No.5, pp. 389-416, 2012, DOI:10.3970/cmes.2012.089.389

Abstract This paper is devoted to the development of a finite composite beam element for the nonlinear elastic-plastic analysis of composite high strength steel and geopolymer concrete members. For this, geometric nonlinearity is derived using a special orthogonal rotation matrix, so that scalar product of vectors is preserved during rotation from the initial configuration to a deformed configuration and rigid body movements are excluded from the finite strains. The material nonlinearities of the geopolymer concrete are based on constitutive models in association with its axial stress-strain relationship that is consistent with the experimental results. To consider the slip due to possible… More >

K.W. Luczynski¹, A. Dejaco¹, O. Lahayne¹, J. Jaroszewicz², W.Swieszkowski², C. Hellmich¹

CMES-Computer Modeling in Engineering & Sciences, Vol.87, No.6, pp. 505-529, 2012, DOI:10.3970/cmes.2012.087.505

Abstract A 71 volume-% macroporous tissue engineering scaffold made of poly-l-lactide (PLLA) with 10 mass-% of pseudo-spherical tri-calcium phosphate (TCP) inclusions (exhibiting diameters in the range of several nanometers) was microCT-scanned. The corresponding stack of images was converted into regular Finite Element (FE) models consisting of around 100,000 to 1,000,000 finite elements. Therefore, the attenuation-related, voxel-specific grey values were converted into TCP-contents, and the latter, together with nanoindentation tests,entered a homogenization scheme of the Mori-Tanaka type, as to deliver voxel-specific (and hence, finite element-specific) elastic properties. These FE models were uniaxially loaded, giving access to the macroscopic Young's modulus of the… More >

F. Maceri¹, M. Marino¹, G. Vairo¹

CMES-Computer Modeling in Engineering & Sciences, Vol.87, No.5, pp. 461-482, 2012, DOI:10.3970/cmes.2012.087.461

Abstract The mechanical behavior of biopolymer mo -le -cu -les is herein addressed and a novel predictive model for their elasto-damage response is proposed. Both entropic and energetic elastic mechanisms are accounted for, and coupled by consistent equilibrium conditions. Moreover, through non-smooth mechanics arguments, molecular damage is modeled accounting for failure due to both mechanical and non-mechanical damage sources. The model is applied to collagen molecules and an excellent agreement with available experimental tests and atomistic computations is shown. The proposed predictive theory can be usefully integrated in hierarchical models of biological structures towards a multiscale continuum approach. More >

J.A. García^1,2, J.M. Peña¹, S. McHugh², A. Jérusalem^2,3

CMES-Computer Modeling in Engineering & Sciences, Vol.87, No.5, pp. 411-432, 2012, DOI:10.3970/cmes.2012.087.411

Abstract Neuronal growth is a complex process involving many intra- and extracellular mechanisms which are collaborating conjointly to participate to the development of the nervous system. More particularly, the early neocortical development involves the creation of a multilayered structure constituted by neuronal growth (driven by axonal or dendritic guidance cues) as well as cell migration. The underlying mechanisms of such structural lamination not only implies important biochemical changes at the intracellular level through axonal microtubule (de)polymerization and growth cone advance, but also through the directly dependent stress/stretch coupling mechanisms driving them. Efforts have recently focused on modeling approaches aimed at accounting… More >

A.N. Guz¹, J.J.Rushchitsky¹, I.A.Guz²

CMES-Computer Modeling in Engineering & Sciences, Vol.26, No.3, pp. 139-156, 2008, DOI:10.3970/cmes.2008.026.139

Abstract The basic approach is offered for problems of nanocomposites and their mechanical properties, which includes a short review of modern problems in nanomechanics of materials. The fibrous carbon-polymer composites with carbon or graphite microfibers or carbon nanotubes are especially discussed. The basic model of the linear or nonlinear elastically deforming micro- and nanocomposites is considered. Within the framework of this model, the comparative computer modeling is performed. The modeling permits to observe the features in prediction of values of basic mechanical constants. These results are utilized on next step of modeling -- studying the peculiarities of wave propagation in particular… More >

J.A. Ferreira^2,3, P. de Oliveira², P. Silva⁴, J.N. Murta⁵

CMES-Computer Modeling in Engineering & Sciences, Vol.71, No.1, pp. 1-14, 2011, DOI:10.3970/cmes.2011.071.001

Abstract Mathematical models to describe drug concentration profiles of topically administered drug in the anterior chamber aqueous humor have been proposed by several authors. The aim of this paper is to present a mathematical model to predict the drug concentration in the anterior chamber when a therapeutical contact lens with the drug entrapped in nanoparticles is used. More >

D. C. C. Lam¹, L-H Keung¹, P. Tong²

CMES-Computer Modeling in Engineering & Sciences, Vol.66, No.1, pp. 73-100, 2010, DOI:10.3970/cmes.2010.066.073

Abstract Additional molecular rotations in long chained macromolecules lead to additional size dependence. In this investigation, we developed the higher order viscoelasticity framework and conducted experiments to determine the higher order material length scale parameters needed to describe the higher order viscoelastic behavior in the new framework. In the first part of the investigation of high order deformation behavior of macromolecular solids, the higher-order viscoelasticity theories for Maxwell and Kelvin-Voigt materials, and models of higher-order viscoelastic beam deflection creep are developed in this study. We conducted creep bending experiments with epoxy beams to show that the creep deflection behavior followed the… More >