Prof. Zengtao Chen, ASME Fellow, University of Alberta, Canada

Speech Title: Thermomechanical Analysis of Cracked Structures Using Non-Fourier, Non-Local Theories

Abstract: Fracture analysis of cracked structures under thermomechanical loading is of great interest in design and manufacturing of advanced thermal structures. In particular, structures of heterogeneous microstructures show non-Fourier heat conduction where thermal response shows a time delay with respect to the disturbance, and nonlocal mechanical behavior where the stress response relies on the intrinsic length scale of the material. Non-Fourier heat conduction has revealed dynamic overshooting of thermal response, which is essential to reliable design of a thermal barrier, while the non-local stress analysis allows removal of singular stress field around a crack tip. In the present talk, some recent progress in thermal stress analysis of cracked advanced composite materials are reviewed to illustrate the unique merit of non-Fourier heat conduction and nonlocal theory in analyzing the dynamic thermomechanical response.

Biography: Dr. Zengtao Chen joined the Department of Mechanical Engineering at University of Alberta as a Professor in August 2014. He has been a faculty member with the Department of Mechanical Engineering of University of New Brunswick for ten years prior to the current position with UofA. His research areas include Mechanics of Materials, Materials Modelling, and Damage and Fracture Mechanics. His recent work includes multiscale modelling of deformation and damage evolution in aluminum and steel alloys, advanced thermal stress analysis of smart materials and structures, nanostructures, and composite structures. He is a Fellow of ASME.