A concurrent micromechanical model for predicting nonlinear viscoelastic responses of composites reinforced with solid spherical particles

A concurrent micromechanical model for predicting nonlinear viscoelastic responses of particle reinforced polymers is developed. Particles are in the form of solid spheres having micro-scale diameters. The composite microstructures are idealized by periodically distributed cubic particles in a matrix medium. Each particle is assumed to be fully surrounded by polymeric matrix such that contact between particles can be avoided. A representative volume element (RVE) is then defined by a single particle embedded in the cubic matrix. A spatial periodicity boundary condition is imposed to the RVE. One eighth unit-cell model with four particle and polymer subcells is generated due to the three-plane symmetry of the RVE. The solid spherical particle is modeled as a linear elastic material. The polymeric matrix follows nonlinear viscoelastic behaviors of thermorheologically simple materials. The homogenized micromechanical relation is developed in terms of the average strains and stresses in the subcells and traction continuity and displacement compatibility at the subcells’ interfaces are imposed. A stress–strain correction scheme is also formulated to satisfy the linearized micromechanical and the nonlinear constitutive relations. The micromechanical model provides three-dimensional (3D) effective properties of homogeneous composite responses, while recognizing microstructural geometries and in situ material properties of the heterogeneous medium. The micromechanical formulation is designed to be compatible with general displacement based finite element (FE) analyses. Experimental data and analytical micromechanical models available in the literature are used to verify the capability of the above micromechanical model for predicting the overall composite behaviors. The proposed micromodel is also examined in terms of computational efficiency and accuracy