Smart composites with tunable stress-strain curves

Abstract

Smart composite materials with tunable stress-strain curves are examined numerically. Microscopic constituents of the composites respond to external stimuli by changing their elastic response in a well-defined, continuous and controllable manner, which defines the tunable traits of the macroscopic constituents. This inherently dynamic behavior of the constituents results in a display of characteristic properties that cannot be attained by any combination of traditional materials. A repetitive controller, which is intrinsically fits the types of applications desired for such composites where loading is cyclic, is used to prompt microscopic adaptation of the material. Stability and performance analysis are displayed in detail for the overall numerical framework over complex paths in macroscopic stress-strain domain. Later, the feasibility of designing and analyzing smart composites for real life applications are demonstrated by incorporating the control approach within a computational setting that is based on the finite element method on representative two- and three-dimensional tunable microstructures.