In this paper, we discuss two problems concerning scattering and localisation of flexural waves in structured elastic plates. Firstly, we compare the scattering amplitudes of waves in a thin plate, generated by a point source, due to a single mass and to a large number of smaller masses, having the same equivalent mass and located around a circle. We show that in the second case, the scattering can be reduced, in particular in the medium- and high-frequency regimes. Secondly, we develop a homogenised model for a double-ring cluster of spring-mass resonators, connected to an elastic thin plate. We determine the conditions for which the plate exhibits vibration modes trapped between the two rings. Further, we show that the frequencies of the localised modes can be tuned by varying the geometry of the two rings and the characteristics of the resonators. The analytical results are corroborated by numerical simulations performed with independent finite element models.

I hope some of you may find this work interesting. We show, analytically and numerically, that strain gradient plasticity predicts the existence of an inner elastic field adjacent to the crack tip, reminiscent of a dislocation-free zone. The fact that elastic strains dominate plastic strains near the crack tip implies a paradigm-shift with respect to previous crack tip asymptotic studies in plasticity and gradient plasticity, which neglect elastic strains.

Emilio Martínez-Pañeda, Norman A. Fleck

Mode I crack tip fields: Strain gradient plasticity theory versus J2 flow theory.

European Journal of Mechanics - A/Solids 75, pp. 381-388 (2019)

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0997753818308313

A post-print is available at www.empaneda.com

The mode I crack tip asymptotic response of a solid characterised by strain gradient plasticity is investigated. It is found that elastic strains dominate plastic strains near the crack tip, and thus the Cauchy stress and the strain state are given asymptotically by the elastic K-field. This crack tip elastic zone is embedded within an annular elasto-plastic zone. This feature is predicted by both a crack tip asymptotic analysis and a finite element computation. When small scale yielding applies, three distinct regimes exist: an outer elastic K field, an intermediate elasto-plastic field, and an inner elastic K field. The inner elastic core significantly influences the crack opening profile. Crack tip plasticity is suppressed when the material length scale L of the gradient theory is on the order of the plastic zone size estimation, as dictated by the remote stress intensity factor. A generalized J-integral for strain gradient plasticity is stated and used to characterise the asymptotic response ahead of a short crack. Finite element analysis of a cracked three point bend specimen reveals that the crack tip elastic zone persists in the presence of bulk plasticity and an outer J-field.

In this paper, we investigate the formation of band-gaps and localisation phenomena in an elastic strip nearly disintegrated by an array of transverse cracks. We analyse the eigenfrequencies of finite, strongly damaged, elongated solids with reference to the propagation bands of an infinite strip with a periodic damage. Subsequently, we determine analytically the band-gaps of the infinite strip by using a lower-dimensional model, represented by a periodically-damaged beam in which the small ligaments between cracks are modelled as ‘elastic junctions’. The effective rotational and translational stiffnesses of the elastic junctions are obtained from an ad hoc asymptotic analysis. We show that, for a finite frequency range, the dispersion curves for the reduced beam model agree with the dispersion data determined numerically for the two-dimensional elastic strip. Exponential localisation, boundary layers and standing waves in strongly damaged systems are discussed in detail.

<img src="http://i725.photobucket.com/albums/ww258/giorgio_carta/Figure%20Proceedi...">