Advances in Computational Methods for Heterogeneous Materials

Study of the dynamic behavior of heterogeneous media, such as polycrystalline materials, particle reinforced composites and granular media, is a rich and complex endeavor. The broad spectrum of material properties and complex force and dissipative energy pathways in the configuration space corresponding to the structure of the material post a great challenge for the theoretical modeling and numerical simulations of the deformation physics of heterogeneous media under dynamic and quasi-static loading. The objective of this mini-symposium is to bring together researchers from the related fields to discuss recent advances and exchange new ideas on novel computational methods for the prediction of the response of heterogeneous materials at various strain rates and loading conditions. In this respect, topics of interest include but are not limited to:

(a)   Multiscale modeling and simulations of heterogeneous materials

(b)   Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS) of polycrystalline structure

(c)   Novel numerical methods, such as cohesive elements, meshfree methods, particle methods, X-FEM, for the prediction of damage evolution and failure in heterogeneous materials

(d)   Multiscale method for granular media