Ricerc@Sapienza

Mechanical behaviour of particle composite materials is growing of interest to engineering applications. A computational homogenization procedure in conjunction with a statistical approach have been successfully adopted for the definition of the representative volume element (RVE) size, that in random media is an unknown of the problem, and of the related equivalent elastic moduli. Drawback of such a statistical approach to homogenization is the high computational cost, which prevents the possibility to perform series of parametric analyses.

Abstract Several composite materials used in engineering – such as ceramic/metal matrix composites, concrete, masonry-like/geo–materials and innovative meta–materials – have internal micro-structures characterized by a random distribution of inclusions (particles) embedded in a matrix. Their structural response is highly influenced not only by the mechanical properties of components, but also by the shape, size and position of the inclusions.