Lecture 35:

Designing of Hybrid
Materials

Jayant Jain

Assistant Professor,
Department of Applied Mechanics,
IIT Delhi, Hauz Khas, 110016

Function will help

in deciding the
configuration

Key steps involved in hybrid design

Decompose the requirements

Seek good solutions for each

Combine them in a chosen configuration
Assess its performance, and
Choose the combination that offers the best

Hybrids of type 1:
Composites

Composites

Four common
configurations of
composites

What is the most critical aspect in making the sound composite??

Components of Composite design

Remember property bounds cover all the possible configuration.

By using them we escape from the need to model individual

geometries.

Properties of Composites
Density
m density of matrix
r density of reinforcement
f volume fraction of reinforcement

Modulus (Voigt and Reuss bound)

Upper Bound

Lower Bound

Er Youngs modulus of reinforcement

Em Youngs modulus of matrix
f volume fraction of reinforcement

Bounds of Elasticity

Example: W particles dispersed in Cu matrix

W particles dispersed in Cu matrix

Bounds width measure of anisotropy

Mechanical Properties of
Composites
Strength
Upper Limit
Upper bound in strength can be given as similar
to that for modulus

Lower Limit

The yield strength of the matrix enhanced slightly by the plastic constraint
imposed by the reinforcement

Thermal Properties of Composites

Specific heat
The heat capacity of composite would be similar to like density

Thermal expansion

Materials Selection in Mechanical Design, 4th Edition 2010 Michael Ashby

Thermal Properties of Composites

Thermal conductivity

Fibre reinforced composite: Which

direction the conductivity is highest??

Factors that can affect the conductivity??

Bonding between matrix and fibre

Thermal diffusivity

Large difference in properties of constituent

components

Its upper and lower bound can be obtained

substituting appropriate conductivity

Materials Selection in Mechanical Design, 4th Edition 2010 Michael Ashby

Composite Design for stiffness

at minimum mass

We seek a composite offering high stiffness-to-weight in

structures subjected to bending loads. At present Al alloy is
in use

Be and Al2O3 are two choices: they both are stiffer than Al
and infact Be is lighter than Al

Can hybrids or composites of Al with either of these offer

improved performance?

The criterion of excellence will be used to judge the

performance of composite

What should be the criterion of excellence when we talk

about stiffness at minimum weight for a beam

Composite Design for controlled thermal

response
Another application is demanding a material that requires
minimum thermal distortion. At present Al is in use
We will be accessing the performance of Al-BN and Al-SiC
composite
The criterion of excellence will be used to judge the
performance of composite: minimising thermal distortion

Al-SiC composites
are significantly better
than Al and Al-BN

Hybrids of type 2:
Sandwiches

Design and Properties of

Sandwich

Sandwich Structures
A sandwich panel combines two materials in a
specified geometry and scale, configured such
that one forms the faces and the other the core
to give a structure of high bending stiffness
and strength at low weight

Materials Selection in Mechanical Design, 4th Edition 2010 Michael Ashby

Sandwich Structure

Designing of Sandwich
structures

Materials Selection in Mechanical Design, 4th Edition 2010 Michael Ashby

Refrigerator Walls
A refrigerator. The panels of
the container unit must
insulate, protect against the
external environment, and be
stiff and strong in bending.
This can be achieved by
seeking materials or hybrids
that maximize Eflex, the
second by minimizing

We begin with a hybrid of

type: Sandwich

Refrigerator Walls: Sandwich panel selection

Mild steel face

PVC foam core

The panel offers the combination of stiffness and insulation that

can not be matched by monolithic material, composites and foams