Three-dimensional percolation modeling of self-healing composites
Abstract
We study the self-healing process of materials with embedded “glue”-carrying cells, in the regime of the onset of the initial fatigue. Three-dimensional numerical simulations within the percolation-model approach are reported. The main numerical challenge taken up in the present work has been to extend the calculation of the conductance to three-dimensional lattices. Our results confirm the general features of the process: The onset of material fatigue is delayed, by development of a plateaulike time dependence of the material quality. We demonstrate that, in this low-damage regime, the changes in the conductance and thus in similar transport and response properties of the material can be used as measures of the material quality degradation. A new feature found for three dimensions, where it is much more profound than in earlier-studied two-dimensional systems, is the competition between the healing cells. Even for low initial densities of the healing cells, they interfere with each other and reduce each other’s effective healing efficiency.
- Publication:
-
Physical Review E
- Pub Date:
- August 2008
- DOI:
- 10.1103/PhysRevE.78.021104
- arXiv:
- arXiv:0805.2188
- Bibcode:
- 2008PhRvE..78b1104D
- Keywords:
-
- 64.60.ah;
- Percolation;
- Condensed Matter - Materials Science;
- Condensed Matter - Statistical Mechanics
- E-Print:
- 15 pages in PDF, with 6 figures