Effects of morphology and geometry of inclusions on two-point correlation statistics in two phase composites

Abstract

A spectral form of the two-point correlation functions for two-phase composites is presented and the effects of secondary phase morphology, geometry and volume fraction on the coefficients of the corresponding series are studied. Initially, a principal component analysis is performed on the coefficients of the series and then, the effects of different morphological and geometrical parameters of the second phase inclusions on two-point correlation functions are examined. A direct linkage between the principal components of the coefficients with the morphological features (inclusion shape, aspect ratio and size) is established and the influence of preferred orientation of the anisotropic inclusions is also investigated. Finally a composite hull is constructed using the principal components of the coefficients in a three-dimensional space, which helps in determining the interrelation of properties and microstructures of any composite containing these types of inclusions.