August 1968

Prediction of the Elastic Moduli of C m o i e opsts

I

433

References R. B. Sosman, New and Old Phases of Silica, Trans. Brit.

Ceram. Soc., 54,655-70 (1955). Harald Schafer and R. 2. Horde, Silicon Monoxide Vapor Pressure Over Solid Silicon and Silica Mixtures, Z. Anorg. Allgem. Chem., 263 [5-61 261-79 (1950).

S. Geller and C. D. Thurniond, Existence of Crystalline Silicon Monoxide, ibid., 77, 5285-87 (1955). F. J. Norton and A. U. Seybolt, Gas Permeation Through Fused-Silica Capsules During High-Temperature Heat Treatments, Trans. A I M E , 230 [3] 595-97 (1964). Ya. I. Olshanskil and V. K. Shlepov, System Cr-Crz03,
Dokl. Akad. Nauk. SSSR, 91, 56144 (1953). lo Max Hansen and Kurt Anderko, Constitution of Binary Alloys, 2d ed., p. 547. McGraw-Hill Book Co., New York, 1958. l1 D. C. Hilty, W. D. Forgeng, and R. L. Folkman, Oxygen Solubility and Oxide Phases in the Fe-Cr-0 System, J . Metals, 7, 253-68 (1955); Trans. A I M E , 203,25348 (1955). l 2 G. K. Layden, Growth of Cr301Whiskers, J . Am. Ceram. SOC., [4] 219-20 (1965). 48 R. E. Hook and A. M. Adair, Formation and Dissolution of Chromium Oxides in Chromium, Trans. A I M E , 230 [6] 1278-83 (1964).

H. 1. Emons and P. Hellmold, Preparation and Properties of (SiO), and (SiS),, ibid., 341 [l-21 78-87 (1965). Georg Hass, Preparation, Structure, and Applications of Thin Films of Silicon Monoxide and Titanium Dioxide, J . Am. Ceram. Soc., 33 [12] 353-60 (1950). Leo Brewer and F. T. Greene, Differential Thermal Analysis of the Si-SiOz System, J . Phys. Chem. Solids, 2, 286-88 (1957).
6 Michacl Hoch and H. L. Johnston, Formation, Stability, and Crystal Structure of Solid Silicon Monoxide, J . Am. Chem.

SOC., [21] 5224-25 (1953). 75

Prediction of the Elastic Moduli of Composites

R. C . ROSS1
Laboratories Division, Aerospace Corporation, El Segundo, California 90045

The description of the elastic behavior of composite materials by mathematical expressions presently in the literature i s restricted by the microstructural models on which they were based. An extension has been made to one of these expressions in which the shape of the included phase is considered as well as the moduli of the individual phases. The results allow a more general application of the theoretical expressions to composite materials in which the included phase is contained at low concentrations.

THE

I. Introduction evcr-increasing performance requiremetits of inaterials has led to the developmcnt of composites in which the desired properties of each phase are accentuated and the undesirable properties are suppressed. Composites are those materials consisting of two or more dissimilar phases, for example, fiber-reinforced plastics, dispersed oxide particles in metals, and grahite flakes in a carbide eutectic matrix.l The experimental properties of a composite have been shown to be rclated not simply by phase composition but by a more complicated relation that is dependent u p m phase interaction. Understanding this interaction relative to the properties of thc individual components is necessary not only for the understanding of composite materials but also for the development of new ones. For structural applications, one of the properties of interest is the elastic behavior of composites. Many mathematical expressions have heen derived for the prediction of the clastic modulus of a composite from the moduli of the individual components. Each derivation is based on a physical model in which the included particle has a simple, regular shape, i.e. a sphere, fiber, or cube. Examination of the microstructures of those systems in which the mathematical expressions more
Presented at the Sixty-Ninth Annual Meeting of The American Ceramic Society, New York, N. Y . , May 1, 1967 (Basic Science Division, No. l l L B 4 7 ) and the Twentieth Pacific Coast Regional Meeting, S m Francisco, Calif., November 2, 1667. Received December 4, 1967; revised copy received January 16, 1968. Supported by the United States Air Force under Contract
F04695-6 7-C-0 158. The writer is a member of the technical staff, Laboratories

accurately fit the experimental data reveals that thc included particles do, in fact, have shapes that conform to the physical model. 2-4 Conversely, the microstructure of those systems in which the mathematical expressions do not agree with the experimental data shows that the shape of the included particles cannot adequately he approximated by the particle shape This suggests that some of defined in the physical the failures of theoretical expressions to predict accurately the elastic behavior of composites is due to oversimplification of the physical models on which the derivation is based. A rigorous derivation in which particle shape is a system variable is formidable even with present-day computers. The task becomes impossible for the description of a real materials system containing any but the simplest o f shapes as the included particles. Nevertheless, the engineering need for understanding the behavior of real material systems exists SO that design criteria can be met. The purpose of this paper is to provide a means of relating geometric variables of the microstructure to the elastic behavior of the composite. I n particular, a means of predicting the elastic moduli of composites by using not only the moduli of individual components but also the shape of the included second-phase particles and the orientation of these particles relative to the direction of the stress field will be demonstrated. The approach is nonrigorous and is intended only as an engineering solution to the problem. Furthermore, it is not recommended for use with composites having concentrations of second-phase inclusions greater than 10 ~01%.

11. Physical Model

Posing a physical model on which one may base a mathematical derivation almost invariably necessitates the oversimplification of the characteristics of real materials. The physical model must approximate the geometry of the composite. Among the more successful derivations is the work of Hashin2 which is both general in nature and sophisticated in approach. It is based on a physical model consisting of a body composed of spherical inclusions and is intended to approximate the geometry of a particle-dispersed composite. Hashin considers that the included phase or phases exist as a homogeneous distribution within an isotropic matrix. Every such inclusion is considered to be completely surrounded by the matrix such that the particle and surrounding matrix act

Division, Aerospace Corporation.

434

Journal of The American Ceramic Society-Rossi

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as an individual unit and that the volume fraction inclusion in each unit is equal to that of the body For mathematical simplicity, hc assumes that the shape of each such inclusion is a sphere and that the matrix for each unit is spherically concentric about the particles. The body is constructed by filling cotnplctcly with spherical units, some of which may diminish to infinitesimal size. 13s general solution is a summation over all individual units and is based on conditions of minimum strain energy for the system. The applicability of this derivation was demonstrated on several systems including tungsten carbide-cobalt alloys and bubbles in g l a s ~ . ~ , ~ Although many equally sophisticated mathematical expressions have becn derived to describe the elastic behavior of composites, it is convenient to use Hashin's derivations as a basis for this paper. The sphere is considered here as a special case of a more general shape. This paper is confined to small volume lractions of an included phase; therefore, Hashin's approximate solution a t low concentrations is used

Fig. 1. Effect of Poisson's ratio of the matrix on the stress concentrations about a spherical cavity.

111. Mathematical Model

Hashin's approximate solutions for the bulk modulus K and shear modulus C for a particle-dispersed composite at small concentrations of the included phase are :

less general geometric conditions, i.e. those which allow sufficient degrees of variability without overly restricting the system and which reduce the number of independent parameters to be experimentally determined. I n respohse to this requirement, a spheroid has been chosen to represent a particle of general shape. The system is then characterized by a single axial ratio and the angle between the unique axis of the spheroid and the stress direction. The value for stress concentration can then be determined directly from the literature.

whcrc p is Poisson's ratio, C is the volume concentration, 9 is the ratio of particlc modulus to matrix modulus (Gf/Go for shear), and the subscripts 0 and i are lor the matrix and the included phase, respectively. These expressions, as well as those derived lor fiber-composite5"' and laycrcd composites,3have the form :
G
=

Go(1

+ MGC,)

( 31

I V . Spherical Porosity as the Included Phase The special case of porosity as the included phase has been chosen because it provides a simplification to Eqs. (1) and (2) without the loss of essential parts and a more complete description of the stress concentrations about ellipsoidal and spheroidal cavities is known. When spherical porosity is the included phase, Eqs. (1) and (2) become :
K
=

Ko[1 GO [l -

where K is the maximum stress concentration arising in the matrix as a conscquencc of the stress interaction between particlc and matrix.'13* The effect of stress concentrations arising from nonspherical inclusions on the observed moduli has been previously observed and discus~ed.~ Any deviation from a spherical particle shape for a randomly oriented particle affcct s the elastic moduli of composites a t equivalent volume fractions more than that predicted lrom the sphere inclusion model. These observations form the basis of this paper. The similarity in form of Eq. ( 3 ) for physical models based on inclusion shapes varying from fiber to sphere to plate suggests that this equation is adequate for describing the elastic behavior of composites containing small concentrations of arbitrarily shaped inclusions. The mathematical model, therefore, is simply Eq. ( 3 ) ,in which the stress concentration varies with the shape of the included phase. Hence, the specific purpose ol this paper is to provide a value for K which adequately describes the geometry of composites of real materials. As it is desirable to limit geometric restrictions, a physical model with a generalized particle shape is considered. An included particle of general shape is most completely defined by an ellipsoidal shape. The characterization o f an ellipsoidal particle in a stressed composite body requires knowledge of two axial ratios and two axial directions relative to the stress vector. For the materials analyst, however, the determination of these four independent parameters can be a formidable task. Furthermore, the experimental uncertainty associated with their measurement could preclude the development o f meaningful results. It is useful, therefore, to choose

2(1 - 2PO)

- PO

in which P is the volume fraction porosity and its coefficient in each case is the stress concentration about a spherical cavity for compressive and shear stress states.13 Using Eqs. ( 5 ) and (6) and the expression:
E x - 9KG 3K G

(7)

a symmetrical linear expression is obtained for Young's modulus:

* A proof of the explicit appearance of the stress concentration for each statc of stress for Eqs. (1) and (2) has been made and is being published by Z. Hashin.

The coefficient differs from the stress concentration about a spherical cavity in a tensile state of stress given by Goodier,13 (27 - 15p)/[2(7 - 5 p ) ] , by a value of 3p(l - 5p)/[2(7 5 p ) l . This difference is small for all values of p for common engineering materials and is zero for p = 0.2 (the value used in this study). For engineering purposes, the use of the stress concentration as the coefficient in Eq. (8) for the estimation of Young's modulus produces an error that is usually less than 1% over the range of Poisson's ratios of commonly used materials. The stress concentrations for spherical porosity are solely a function of the Poisson's ratio of the matrix and thereby are constants for any system. The numerical values of these factors are plotted as functions of Poisson's ratio of the matrix material in Fig. 1. At a Poisson's ratio of 0.2, the stress concentration about a spherical cavity is 2.0 for all states of stress. Under tensile stress, it is almost unaffected by the Poisson's ratio of the matrix material.

August 1068

Prediction of the Elastic Moduli of Composites

435

V. Porosity in Real Materials

The clastic moduli of porous materials have often been reported by empirical expressions; for the shear modulus this is:
G
=

Go exp (-bcP)

(9)

and for Young's modulus:

EOexp ( - b s P )

(10)

whcrc bo and brj are empirical constants and P is the volume fraction of porosity. l4 At low concentrations of porosity Eqs (9) and (10) can be written:

G
and

Go(1 - ~ G P ) Eo(1 - bsP)

(11)

(12)
01 0

Thc empirical constants bG and bR are the direct counterparts of the stress concentration factors from derived expressions. A verification of the numerical equivalence of bo and b E with stress concentration has been determined on a system of glass containing spherical bubbles in which both empirical constants havc a value of 2.0.4 Experimental values of these constants for typical porous ceramics have been found to be always greater than 2.0 and often more than twice as great.g The empirical linear expressions add support to the basis of this papcr, and the value of the observed coefficients are indicative of the nonsphcrical pore shape usually encountered in real matcrials.

0.2

0.4 c /a

0.6

0.8

10 . 08 . AXIAL RATIOS

0.6
a /c

0.4

0.2

Fig. 2. Stress concentration about an oriented spheroidal cavity as a function of axial ratio.

VI. Oriented Spheroidal Porosity as the Included Phase

The stress concentrations for spheroidal cavities under uniaxial tension perpendicular t o the axes of the cavity are available in the literature.l6 Their value as a function of the axial ratio is presented in Fig. 2. The Poisson's ratio of the matrix matcrial is taken here as 0 2. The stress concentration appears to agree perfectly with the value of K from theoretical analyses of the elastic moduli for the special cases such as a or oriented hollow cylinders (a/c spherical cavity ( K = 0, K I." )' The curve in Fig. 2 can be approximated over most of its length by a hyperbolic relation such that:
K

0oLI

'

'

6 '

'

8 I

1 " 0

POROSITY, %

4c

5a+ -3 -

Fig. 3.

Effect of oriented spheroidal cavities o n the relative Young's modulus.

For a composite having a Poisson's ratio of 0.2 and containing pores that can be described as oriented spheroids, Young's modulus can be described by:

EO[l

(g + i) P ]

where c is the unique axis parallel to the stress vector and a is the axis in thc plane perpendicular to the unique axis. Because the curve in Fig. 2 is not precisely hyperbolic, minor corrections to Eqs. (13) and (14) must be made as the ratio betwcen axes becomes extremely large or small. The effect of oriented spheroidal cavities on relative Young's modulus is shown in Fig. 3 or various axial ratios.

VII. Random Orientation of Spheroidal Porosity as the Included Phase

If one wished to determine Young's modulus of a composite body composed of a small concentration of oriented spheroidal cavities, it would be necessary to determine only the appropriate axial ratio and substitute that value in Eq. (14). Unfortunately, it is seldom possible to define a porous material such that it contains an array of spheroidal cavities in which the unique axis of all spheroids are perfectly aligned with the stress direction. I n real systems, it can be assumed that the spheroidal array is randomly oriented. Also, the pores of a real system must be defined by an array of randomly oriented spheroids having an effective axial ratio that is an average

value for the system. The problem becomes one of detesmining an effective stress concentration for randomly oriented spheroidal cavities. An explicit mathematical solution is not available for this problem so it is necessary to assumc that thc stress concentration is primarily a function of the radius of curvature of the inclusion a t the point of tangency with the stress direction and, also, that it is secondarily a function of the shape of the inclusion defined by its axial ratio. A spheroid randomly oriented a t an arbitrary angle 6 with the stress direction can be related to an ellipsoid oriented parallel to the principal axes of stress. This relation is shown schematically in Fig. 4. The radius of curvature a t the elliptical apex coincident with semiaxial length a is defined by the radius of curvature a t point P of the spheroid. The axial lengths of the ellipsoid are determined from this radius of curvature and from the axial lengths of the ellipse formed by the projection of the spheroid onto the plane perpendicular to the stress. It is assumed that the stress concentration of an oriented ellipsoid defined in this manner is the same as that for the spheroid oriented a t the arbitrary angle 6. Transformation of a random spheroid to an oriented ellipsoid allows use of the stress concentrations around a general ellipsoidal cavity having principal axes parallel to major stress directions as they

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Y'

I-\- '
/

VY'

20

q
IY
--_I--+,

:m
_---_ -----_--_
428
109

2-

--7-------L10

---

z
Fig. 5. Stress concentration about an ellipsoidal cavity at point a for various axial ratios; uniaxial tension U Y = 1 at m (from Ref. 16).

\
\\

\
X'

\ 2'
Fig. 4. Schematic of the geometric transformation of a randomly oriented spheroid to an orthogonally oriented ellipsoid. Fig. 6. Cross section of a spheroid oriented at an arbitrary angle with the direction of stress.

appear in the literature.I6 Figure 5 , reproduced from Ref. 16, shows the change of maximum stress concentration with various axial ratios when the stress is parallel with axis Y' and where a , p, and y are the lengths of the ellipsoid semiaxes. Thc problem now is to determine the radius of curvature of the randomly oriented spheroid at the point of tangency with the stress vector. .4n oriented ellipsoid is then defined as having thc same radius of curvature and a cross-sectional area equivalent to the projected area of the spheroid. The variable to be considered is that of the angle 4 between the unique axis of the spheroid and the stress vector. Because of the radial symmetry of the spheroid, it is possible to consider only the elliptical cross section of the spheroid that lies in the plane parallel to the stress and includes the spheroid axes. The unique axis of the spheroid is the minor axis of this ellipse for an oblate sphcroid or its major axis for a prolate spheroid. The oblate and prolate spheroids of equal axial ratios and size are orthogonally equivalent in cross section, so it is possible to consider a general ellipse for both cases. Identification of

either spheroid is made by the assignment of a major or minor axis appropriate to each case. The radius of curvature for a point along a curved line is given by:

R =

(1

y'2)3/2

I Y" I

(15)

where y' and y" are the first and second derivatives of the y coordinate. For an ellipse in standard orientation:
y =

5
a

(a2

x2)1/2

(16)

where a is the length of the semiaxis along the X coordinate and G is the length of the semiaxis along the Y coordinate. The first and second derivatives of y are :
y = '

Cx(a2 -

x2)-1/z

(17)

August 1968
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Prediction of the Elastic Moduli of Composites

5
(a2

437

xz)-1/2[1

+ xz(a2

- x2)-'1

(18)

The radius of curvature for an ellipse is found by substituting Eqs. (17) and (18) into Eq. (15), which gives:

R =

[a4

+ xZ(c2 - a2)]'/s
ca

(19)

g z
e z
0
c

1 0

Equation (19) is the radius of curvature of an ellipse in t e r m of the length of the semimajor and semiminor axes and the x coordinate of the ellipse. As an ellipse is rotated about the angle 4 from the position in which its principal axes are coincident with the principal directions of stress, the point of tangency with the stress vector moves along the surface of the ellipse. Figure 6 is a schematic representation of an elliptical cross section, representing in this case a prolate spheroid, which is rotated a t some arbitrary angle with the stress direction. T o determine the relation between the random angle 4 and the point of tangency, it is convenient to consider a second coordinate system, X' - Y',wherein Y remains parallel to the stress vector. ' The ellipse remains in the X - Y coordinate system, and the angle 6 is the rotation angle between the two systems, Then point P ( x , y) at the point of tangency lies on the line x = h, a ' ' constant in the X' - Y coordinate system, and on the line y =m x b in the X - Y coordinate system. The intercept b is equal to y x tan 8 and the slope m is the first derivative of y with respect to x. Then the equation of the line always parallel to the stress vector and always tangent to the ellipse is:

n U n

8 6

2
5

u u L

8
v)

2 0 '
1 0

w v)

20

30

40

50

RANDOM ANGLE,

60

70

80

90

(20)

0 '

1 0

2 0

30

40

50

The angles 0 and 6 are complementary angles, as is seen in Fig. 6, therefore:

RANDOM ANGLE,

60

70

80

90

Fig. 7 . Stress concentration about a spheroidal cavity as a function of its rotation angle from the stress direction.

Squaring Eq. (21) and solving for x 2 gives:

x2 =

a4 c2 tan24

+ a2

(22)

metrical expression for y,x can be determined relative to the ' spheroid,

Substituting Eq. (22) for x2 in Eq. (19) gives thc radius of curvature of the ellipse a t the point of tangency to the stress vector as a function of the random angle 4:

x '

= (cosz

++

c*2

sin2 +)>/2

(27)

Equation (23) can be simplified by normalizing the ellipse relative to the x-axial length, so that the radius of curvature then becomes : sec3d R = (G*~ tan2+ 1)%
cc*

The ellipsoid semiaxis @ perpendicular to the stress direction is coincident with the spheroid semiaxis a, about which the spheroid is rotated, and is equal to it. From Eqs. (24), (as), and (27), the axial lengths of the ellipsoid can be determined relative to the random angle and axial ratio of the spheroid:
@ = a
01

(28)
+)'I1

(case

+ + c*z sin2

y = c(r*2 sin2

+ + cos2

(29)

+)-'I2

(30)

wherc c * is the axial ratio c/a. I n transforming to the ellipsoid, the radius of curvature as givcn in Eq. (24) also defines the radius of curvature of an ellipsoid oriented parallel to the stress direction. Since angle 9 = 0 for the oriented ellipsoid, the radius of curvature relative to the ellipsoid axes is given by:

From these axial lengths, the appropriate axial ratios of the ellipsoid are determined from the angle 6 and axial ratio of a spheroid, and the correct stress concentration is found from Fig. 5.* The stress concentration that arises from a spheroid is given as a function of the random angle 9 for various axial ratios in Fig. 7. R a n d o m Array of Spheroidal Porosity as the Included Phase The stress concentrations given in Fig. 7 satisfy the condition in which a spheroidal pore is oriented at a particular angle to the stress direction. This condition is equally as probable as the condition in which the pore is aligned parallel with the stress direction. The condition that most simulates real materials is that in which spheroidal pores are oriented in a uniform random array. Such a condition is described by an

VIII.

wherc y is the length of the semiaxis parallel to the stress direction and a is the semiaxial length at which point the radius of curvature is determined. The semiaxial length a is determined from the projected area of the spheroid and is equal to the coordinate length x , ' Fig. 6. The length x by transformation is: ' x '
=

x sin

+ + y cos +

(26)

By substituting the square root of Eq. (22) for x and the sym-

* A slight correction to the values in Fig. 5 was made to account for the 0.2 Poisson's ratio of the matrix.

438
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Journal of The American Ceramic Society-Rossi

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w I Lo a

Vol. 51, No. 8

ORLAIE

PROLATE

z
CT

0
c U c z
w 0 z
v 0
v)

02

E
L

l
0.2 0.4

04 clo

06

08

I0
I

08

06

04

a fc

02
-

05
01

0.6 0.8 1.0 0.8 0.6 0.4 0.2 0

A X I A L RATIOS

Fig. 8.

Stress concentration about a random spheroidal cavity as a function of axial ratio.

O L 0

4 6 POROSITY, %

IO

06 .;

'

I 2

Fig. 9. Effect of random spheroidal cavities o n t h e relative Young's modulus.

6 INCLUSION CONCENTRATION, %

'

'

I 8

1 0

Fig. 11. Effect of the incIusion to matrix modulus on the ratio of composite to matrix Young's modulus.

average strcss concentration r7 for each axial ratio by:

5; =
f(K)+

c'2

sin +drp

(31)

tously with the inclusion of oblate spheroidal cavities and is always less than the case for spherical cavities with either oblate or prolate spheroidal cavities.

where f ( ~ ) $is the function of stress concentration for each axial ratio with respect to the angle and . sin 4 & represents f p a sphcrical distribution function. The use of this distribution assumes a uniform random array in which there is an equal probability that a spheroid is oriented in every possible direction. A more general consideration should consider a distribution ol axial ratios within any system. However, in order to evaluate this more general case, a distribution function for axial ratio must be known or assumed. This distribution is one which is not likely to be known experimentally nor can it be assumed with confidence. I n view of this limitation, the general condition is restricted to an axial ratio that is assumed to bc an average value for the system. Iiy use of this more restrictive condition, the average eEective stress conccntration for a random array of spheroidal pores is given in Fig. 8 as a function of the axial ratio of the average spheroid. Young's modulus for a composite consisting of such an array is given in Fig. 9 for various axial ratios. Figure 9 contrasted with Fig. 3 shows that for a random array of spheroidal pores Young's modulus does not drop as precipi-

IX. Random Array of Spheroidal Inclusions

The geometric considerations presented in the preceding sections are equally applicable to the case in which the included phase or phases are rigid materials rather than cavities. The stress concentrations for this case are contained in the coefficients in Eqs. (I) and (2). These more general expressions require knowledge of the relative elastic modulus of the included phase to the matrix. The stress concentrations about spheroidal inclusions oriented parallel with the stress are available in the literature as a function of the ratio of the elastic modulus of the included phase to that of the matrix. By use of the techniques described in the preceding sections, the stress concentration about a randomly oriented spheroid can be determined as a function of both the axial ratio and modulus ratio. From these values the slope M E , Eq. (8) for Young's modulus, was determined and plotted in Fig. 10 as a function of axial ratio for the case in which the Poisson's ratio of both matrix and inclusion is 0.2. Examples of the behavior of Young's modulus for composites containing a random array of spheroidal inclusions are presented in Figs. 11 through 13 for the

August 1968

Prediction of the Elastic Moduli of Composites

439

The observed relation between strength and Youngs modulus17 and the ability of predicting strength from this elastic measurementla may well depend on the similar role of stress concentration in both mechanical properties.

XI. Conclusions
A model has been proposed which provides a correction to
existing expressions for predicting elastic moduli of composites a t low concentrations of second-phase inclusions and is based on the shape of the second phase. The model is formulated on the explicit appearance of the stress concentration in the approximate solution to existing expressions for elastic moduli. The modulus of the second phase relative to the matrix was shown to be extremely important in the prediction of elastic behavior. The effect of an oblate spheroidal inclusion was found to be more profound than that of a prolate spheroidal inclusion whether the inclusion is a cavity or a rigid particle. Acknowledgment The author recognizes the contributions of R. D. Carnahan during many discussions of this manuscript. References H. W. Rauch, Sr., W. H. Sutton, and L. R. McCreight, Survey of Ceramic Fibers and Fibrous Composite Materials, Tech. Contract AF 33(615)-3278, 445 pp., Rept. AFML-TR-66-365; October 1966. Zvi Hashin, Elastic Moduli of Heterogeneous Materials, J . Appl. Mech., 29 111 143-50 (1962). B. Paul, Prediction of Elastic Constants of Multiphase Materials, Trans. A I M E , 218 [l] 36-41 (1960). D. P. H. Hasselman and R. M. Fulrath, Effect of Small Fraction of Spherical Porosity on Elastic Moduli of Glass, J . A m . Ceram. Soc.,47 [l] 52-53 (1964). D. P. H. Hasselman and R. M. Fulrath, Effect of Cylindrical Porosity on Youngs Modulus of Polycrystalline Brittle Materials, ibid., 48 [lo] 545 (1965). 6 D. P. H. Hasselman, Experimental and Calculated Youngs Moduli of Zirconium Carbide Containing a Dispersed Phase of Graphite, &id.,46 [2] 103-104 (1963). M. 0. Marlowe and D. R. Wilder, Elasticity and Internal Friction of Polycrystalline Yttrium Oxide, ibid., 48 [5] 227-33 (1965). * Orville Hunter, Jr., and W. E. Brownell, Thermal Expansion and Elastic Properties of Two-Phase Ceramic Bodies, ibid., 50 [ l ] 19-22 (1967). 0 K. R. Janowski and R. C. Rossi, Elastic Behavior of MgO Matrix Composites, ibid., [ l l ]599-602. lo Zvi Hashin and B. W. Rosen, Elastic Moduli of Fiber-Reinforced Materials, J . A p p l . Mech., 31 [2] 223-32 (1964). 11 D. P. H. Hasselman, Relation Between Microscopic Shear Moduli and Micromechanical Shear Stress Concentrations of Multicomponent Materials, J . Am. Ceram. Soc., 50 (61 331-32 (1967). l 2 T. T. Wu, Effect of Inclusion Shape on Elastic Moduli of Two-Phase Material, Brown University, Division of Engineering, Tech. Rept. 10; Contract AT(30-1)2394,1964. l 3 J. N. Goodier, Concentrations of Stress Around Spherical and Cylindrical Inclusions and Flaws, J . Appl. Mech., 1 [I] 39-44 (1933). 14R. M. Spriggs, L. A. Brissette, and T. Vasilos, Effect of Porosity on Elastic and Shear Moduli of Polycrystalline Magnesium Oxide, J . A m . Ceram. Soc., 45 [8] 400 (1962). l6R. H. Edwards, .S:ress Concentrations Around Spheroidal Inclusions and Cavities, , J .A p p l . Mech., 19 [l] 19-30 (1951). 16 M. A. Sadowsky and E. Sternberg, Stress Concentration Around a Triaxial Ellipsoidal Cavity, ibid., 16 [2] 149-5 (1949). l7 D. P. H. Hasselman, Relation Between Effects of Porosity on Strength and on Youngs Modulus of Elasticity of Polycrystal line Materials, J . A m . Ceram. Soc., 46 [ l l ] 564-65 (1963). 18 G. E. Lockyer and E. A. Proudfoot, Nondestructive Deter mination of Mechanical Properties of Refractory Materials, A m . Ceram. SOC. Bull., 46 [5] 521-26 (1967).

-, I
w

10

INCLUSION CONCENTRATION, *lo

Fig. 13. Effect of randomly oriented prolate spheroidal inclusions on the ratio of composite to matrix Youngs modulus at various ratios of inclusion to matrix modulus.

special cases of a spherical inclusion and extreme oblate and prolate spheroidal inclusions.

X. Discussion
The theory ol elasticity for composites is applicable to most multiple-phase systems. The utility of this theory for the prediction and design of engineering materials is apparent and the modification to existing expressions as proposed in this paper offers an additional parameter for this purpose. Not apparent, however, is the capability of the shape parameter in the description of hetergeneous materials. Through a nondestructive measurement of elastic modulus, a n effective shape can be determined for an included phase. Although the defined shapc is geometrically symmetric in contrast to the irregular shape encountered in real materials, it is, nevertheless, a measure of the relative angularity of the included phase. This parameter offers a quantitative capability of describing the physical character of a multiple-phase material augmenting that offered by microstructural examination.