Fracture problems in microstructured materials

Fracture in science and technology is understood as the total or partial separation of an originally intact body or structure. This phenomenon may have destructive effects on structures and lead to catastrophic failures, with high economic consequences or, in the worst case, loss of lives.

The general goal of the proposed research project is to advance the fundamental understanding of crack propagation, localisation and damage progression in microstructured materials. In order to properly address phenomena such as size effects or localisation of strain, it is essential to enrich the classical continuum with additional material characteristic length scales. This may be achieved via a homogenised approach where microstructural features are introduced at a constitutive description level. To this purpose, a class of gradient type generalised continuum theories will be employed to account for the effects of the microstructure. The fracture problems addressed in this project cannot be attacked adequately solely by numerical strategies based e.g. on the Finite Element or Boundary Element Method since these techniques lack the necessary resolution to describe extremely localised phenomena in the presence of singularities. Therefore, particular emphasis will be given to the derivation of analytical solutions using appropriate mathematical tools.

Entry requirements
Applicants should have, or expect to achieve, at least a 2:1 Honours degree (or equivalent) in Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science, Applied Mathematics or a related subject.

A relevant Master’s degree and/or experience in one or more of the following will be an advantage: Mechanical Engineering, Computational Solid Mechanics, Applied Mathematics.