Controlling Damage Mechanisms in Metamaterial Composites with Multiscale Interfaces

The goal of the proposed research is to develop metamaterial composites that control damage, using magneto-active elastomers and the design of the composites geometry. While polymer matrix composites are well known for their high stiffness, lightweight, and high strength mechanical properties, they typically suffer from subpar fracture toughness, are prone to damaging vibrations, and have no mechanism to adapt their properties in the presence of a propagating crack. The proposed work addresses these limitations of traditional composites, by engineering weak interfaces, the stiffness of which can be tuned with an applied magnetic field, in specific architectures in polymer matrix composites. Our hypotheses are that interfaces in engineered composites at different length scales control damage in composites, tunable stiffness materials can change the fracture toughness and crack propagation path of the composite through actuations, and resonant and periodic features combined with friction at interfaces in composites will mitigate damaging vibrations and enhance mechanical dissipation. The technical approach of the proposed work is to systematically study multi-scale interfaces in metamaterial composites to understand their role in controlling crack propagation.