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A comparative study of averaging schemes for periodic heterogeneous media
Published in
2002
Volume: 83

Issue: NOV.
Pages: 29 - 35
Abstract
Analysis of heterogeneous media, with rapidly oscillating material coefficients, is computationally intense and complex. Thus many averaging and multi-scale schemes have been developed to analyze the composite materials at the macroscopic and microscopic level, each of which may predict different results depending upon the assumptions made. The type of averaging will influence the quality of the computed solution quantities. The present work is an attempt to quantify the accuracy of various techniques with respect to the desired solution quantities (eg, displacements, strains, stresses). It has been shown that the microscopic and macroscopic behaviour essentially depends on the size, shape and properties of fibers as well as on their spatial distribution within the matrix. Severe errors in critical values of response quantities (eg, stresses) can be obtained for all the averaging methods.