Modeling and homogenization of shape memory polymer nanocomposites

Abstract

Increasing applications of shape memory polymer nanocomposites calls for reliable and effective modeling techniques. Finite element analysis (FEA) is one of the popular modeling techniques mostly used for this purpose. To perform FEA, an effective constitutive law is needed to extract the behavior of material in each integration point. In this study, we have employed 3D finite element modeling to study shape memory polymers (SMPs) loaded with perfectly dispersed Graphene Nanoplateletes (GNPs). In the current work, a novel scheme is used to create representative volume elements for the purpose of modeling, and a 3D constitutive equation is derived to describe the characteristic thermomechanical behavior of SMPs. Several realizations of SMP nanocomposites with different volume fractions and aspect ratios of GNP inclusions are generated and modeled, and effective mechanical properties of generated microstructures are estimated using volume-averaged values. It is observed that SMPs loaded with3% by volume GNP inclusions recover their permanent shape when they are subjected to a small strain thermomechanical cycle. Furthermore, a considerable improvement on the elastic modulus of the composites is observed upon increasing volume fraction or aspect ratio of GNP inclusions.

Atomistic modeling of graphene/hexagonal boron nitride polymer nanocomposites: a review

“…As per the review conducted, the highperformance nanocomposites due to their exceptional mechanical properties and shape memory are widely used. 255,256 Since, most of the nanofillers are costly and not easily available, the efficient utilization of these components become essential. Therefore, the study of nanocomposite materials mechanics becomes valuable.…”

Prediction of the thermomechanical behavior of particle reinforced shape memory polymers

“…In previous study, most of the research works on the SMPCs was limited to the experiment aspects, however, little attention was paid to the theoretical or simulation studies . To the best knowledge of the authors, we only found that Li and Uppu created constitutive models to predict the thermomechanical behavior of shape memory polymer based syntactic foam which has potential application in the seal‐healing structures .…”

Nano-Level Damage Characterization of Graphene/Polymer Cohesive Interface under Tensile Separation

“…In addition, the atomistic methods have been combined with the continuum-level approaches through multiscale modelling to quantify the mechanical response of nanocomposite materials [8,27,28]. In the continuum-based approach, the mechanical behavior of graphene-polymer nanocomposite is calculated using the multiscale models with random distribution of graphene structures in the polymer matrix [14,22,28,29]. In these models, the graphene/polymer interface was simulated either as perfectly bonded [23], using a spring model that behaves according to Lennard–Jones (L-J) potential [28], with the effective interface layer model [22,30], using a linear spring model for imperfect interface [14], or with the cohesive imperfect zone model [29].…”