Elastic properties of multi-cracked composite materials

The problem of predicting the effective elastic properties of multi-cracked and/or composite materials is both fundamental in materials mechanics and of large technological impact. In this paper we develop a continuum elasticity model, based on the Eshelby theory and on the differential homogenization technique, for the effective elastic moduli of a fibro-reinforced system and we address it to elaborate an estimation of the average failure condition of such composites. Copyright EDP Sciences, SIF, Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2010