Numerical Homogenization of the Thermophysical Properties of Fibrous Composites

The paper presents a complex numerical technique that allows one to determine the tensors of thermal conductivity and thermal expansion for fibrous composites from a unified standpoint and using one software. The advantage of the technique developed is that it allows the possibility of determination of thermal microstresses. Such stresses, self-balanced within representative volumes, arise even in a uniformly heated body whose displacements are not limited by external constraints. Consideration of the microstresses is important in a detailed analysis of the fracture mechanics of composite materials.