Effective thermoelastic properties of short-fiber composites

Abstract

The effective elastic properties of short fiber composites are calculated in terms of tensors which are measures of the strain concentration and excess thermal strain in the fibers relative to to the average matrix strain. These tensors are estimated on the basis of the so-called equivalent inclusion method which utilizes the Eshelby's solution. A comparison of the results with the available bounds and limited experimental data suggests that the proposed estimates of effective properties may be quite reliable.