Network Materials: Mechanical Behavior of Athermal Networks and Applications

Catalin Picu [webpage]

Department of Mechanical, Aerospace and Nuclear Engineering, 

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY 12180, USA

Amphi Esquillan

ABSTRACT

Many materials have a stochastic network of fibers as their main structural component and are referred to collectively as "network materials". This class includes all biological connective tissue, the extracellular matrix, the cytoskeleton, paper and cellulose networks, nonwoven textiles and various molecular networks. Molecular networks are thermal, in the sense that thermal fluctuations affect their behavior, while all other examples provided are athermal. This talk reviews the relation between the structure of athermal networks and the material-scale mechanical properties, focusing on the common ground of these very diverse material systems. Properties of interest include the non-linear elastic response, the viscoelastic response, the strength and toughness. The presence of an elastic or viscoelastic matrix modifies the response of the network; this aspect will be discussed in the limit of time. Differences between the behavior of network materials and that of continua will be emphasized. The talk provides a comprehensive overview of the mechanics of this broad class of materials.