MS-43 Mechanics of Smart Active Materials with Multi-physics Coupling or Advanced Microstructure

Prashant Saxena, University of Glasgow
Mokarram Hossain, Swansea University

Recent years have seen a tremendous increase in the amount of research conducted on smart active materials that produce a non-classical mechanical response either due to an advanced microstructure (eg. negative Poisson’s ratio) or due to multi-field coupling (eg. electro-, magneto-, hygro-, thermo-mechanics). A fast growing list of these smart materials include magneto-rheological elastomers, electro-active polymers, multi-ferroic composite materials, self-healing concrete, and several other composites used in civil, mechanical, and aerospace engineering applications. This mini-symposium will focus on the recent research advances in experimental characterization, modelling, and simulation of material behaviour of these advanced smart active materials. It will bring together researchers from engineering, materials science, mechanics, mathematics, and physics communities with common interests in coupled material properties and multi-functional materials.

Topics of Interest Include:

• Experimental characterization of electro-active and magneto-active polymers
• Multiscale and multiphase mechanics of materials
• Continuum models of linear and nonlinear multi-field behavior
• Multi-scale, multi-field homogenization methods
• Numerical methods for coupled problems in active materials
• Buckling and instabilities