Modeling of the thermal conductivity and thermomechanical behavior of diamond reinforced composites

Semi-analytical Mori-Tanaka methods and numerical models for studying the overall thermal conduction behavior of metal matrix composites reinforced by diamond particles are presented, special emphasis being put on the effects of finite interfacial conductances. Good agreement between the simulation approaches is obtained and the influence of particle shapes and homogeneous vs. inhomogeneous interfacial conductances on local and global responses is studied. Analogous methods are applied to modeling the elastic and thermoelastoplastic behavior of diamond reinforced metals. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.