Rational hyperelastic modelling of elastic poured compound for the failure analysis of embedded rail system

The continuous homogeneous rail constraint of embedded rail system (ERS) is realized by the encapsulation of rails with the elastic poured compound (EPC) which is a composite material. Previous treatment of EPC as linear elastic material was insufficient in the failure analysis of ERS. In this work, a hyperelastic model is developed to...

Circular composites: A design guide for products containing composite materials in a circular economy

The circular composites design guide presents circular economy strategies, product design aspects and tools to (re-)design products containing composite materials for a circular economy.<br/>A circular economy closes the loop for products, parts and materials, through reuse and recycling. In this guide you will find 5 circular economy strategies...

Image analysis for classification of damaged and undamaged areas on composite structures

Composite materials are susceptible to barely visible impact damages (BVID) due to low-velocity impact. Therefore, an automated damage detection and quantification technique is highly desirable for quick inspection of large number of composite structures. Among various different non-destructive techniques (NDTs), active thermography NDT can...

Composite 3D vascularization by using sacrificial electrospun sub-micrometric fibres

The creation of an extensive vasculature in composite structures is a challenge. The Bond and White groups are pioneers of different methods to achieve composite vascularisation, all of them based on the removal of sacrificial micro-fibres previously embedded in a polymer matrix. We propose the use of electrospinning to produce sacrificial sub...