A key factor that limits the practical implementation of polymer gels is low gel toughness. Here, we present coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations of the effects of solvent molecular weight on the toughness of entangled and non-entangled polymer gels in the ballistic impact regime. Our results demonstrate that higher molecular weight solvents enhance gel toughness, and that mechanical p...

A transient _nite element analysis is carried out to provide insight into the low temperature dynamic material toughness versus crack tip relationship for high strength structural steels under intense stress pulse loading[ The problem analyzed here is plane strain fracture of an edge cracked specimen under plane wave loading conditions[ The _nite element formulation employed accounts for the e}...

Many delamination failure criteria based on fracture toughness have been suggested over the past few decades, but most only covered the region containing mode I and mode II components of loading because that is where toughness data existed. With new analysis tools, more 3D analyses are being conducted that capture a mode III component of loading. This has increased the need for a fracture crite...

This paper examines the effect of surface treatment and filler shape factor on the fracture toughness and elastic modulus of epoxy-based nanocomposite. Two forms of nanofillers, polydopamine-coated montmorillonite clay (D-clay) and polydopamine-coated carbon nanofibres (D-CNF) were investigated. It was found that Young's modulus increases with increasing D-clay and D-CNF loading. However, the f...

Perfect graphene is believed to be the strongest material. However, the useful strength of large-area graphene with engineering relevance is usually determined by its fracture toughness, rather than the intrinsic strength that governs a uniform breaking of atomic bonds in perfect graphene. To date, the fracture toughness of graphene has not been measured. Here we report an in situ tensile testi...

Purpose: The mechanical strength of polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) remains far from ideal for maintaining the longevity of denture. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of Zirconium oxide (ZrO2) nanofillers powder with different concentration (1.5%, 3%, 5% and 7%) on the flexural strength, fracture toughness, and hardness of heat-polymerized acrylic resin. Materials and methods:...

This paper presents a systematical computational study of the effect of microstructures of materials reinforced with brittle hard particles on their fracture behavior and toughness. Crack growth in particle-reinforced materials (here, in high speed steels) with various artificially designed arrangements of brittle inclusions is simulated using microstructure-based finite element meshes and an e...

The explosion process of explosives in a borehole applies a very high pressure on its surrounding rock media. This process can initiate and propagate rock fractures, and finally, may result in the rock fragmentation. Rock fragmentation is mainly caused by the propagation of inherent pre-existing fractures of the rock mass and also from the extension of the newly formed cracks within the intact ...