The Prediction and Simulation for the Mechanical Properties of Ceramic-Based Composites Reinforced with Nano-Micro Particles

The global-local homogenization method with precise period boundary conditions is applied to predict and simulate the mechanical properties of ceramic composites reinforced by spherical nano-micro particles with enwrapping and nesting arrays. The numerical simulation is performed with different size ratios of nano-micro particles, and different configurations for representative volume element. The results show that the low radius ratios of nano-micro particles produce a larger effective Young's modulus for its more uniform dispersion, and the hexagon RVE with nesting array can make an overestimation for effective elastic modulus of ceramic composites, and the interfacial damage between nano-microscopic particles and matrix degenerates the effective elastic modulus. It shows in this paper that it is significant to improve the mechanical properties of ceramic materials by mixing some nano- and micro-particles into the matrix with good designed array methods from the viewpoints of nano-microscopic crystal structure, and a rational interfacial damage model should be further proposed to investigate the toughening mechanism of ceramic-composites reinforced with nano-micro particles.