Micromechanical analysis of magneto-electro-thermo-elastic composite materials with applications to multilayered structures

The method of asymptotic homogenization was used to analyze a periodic magnetoelectric smart composite structure consisting of piezoelectric and piezomagnetic phases. The asymptotic homogenization model is derived, the governing equations are determined and subsequently general expressions called unit-cell problems that can be used to determine the effective elastic, piezoelectric, piezomagnetic, thermal expansion, dielectric, magnetic permeability, magnetoelectric, pyroelectric and pyromagnetic coefficients are presented. The latter three sets of coefficients are particularly interesting in the sense that they represent product or cross-properties; they are generated in the macroscopic composite via the interaction of the different phases, but may be absent from the constituents themselves. The derived expressions pertaining to the unit-cell problems and the resultant effective coefficients are very general and are valid for any 3-D geometry of the unit cell. The model is illustrated by means of longitudinally-layered smart composites consisting of piezoelectric (Barium Titanate) and piezomagnetic (Cobalt Ferrite) constituents. Closed-form expressions for the effective properties are derived and the results are plotted vs. the volume fraction of the piezoelectric phase. Pertaining to the product properties of this particular magnetoelectric laminate, it is observed that the effective pyroelectric and pyromagnetic coefficients attain a maximum value at a BaTiO3 volume fraction of 0.5 and maximum values for the magnetoelectric coefficients at a BaTiO3 volume fraction of 0.4. Likewise, the maximum value of a magnetoelectric figure of merit (characterizing efficiency of energy conversion in longitudinal direction) is also attained at a volume fraction of 0.4.