Influence of pore geometry on the effective response of porous media

The generalized method of cells (GMC) is used to study the influence of por e geometry on the effective elastic properties and inelastic response of po rous materials. Periodic microstructures with four distinct pore geometries are studied and the results for effective elastic properties are compared with several other available models and experimental results. Predictions f or the inelastic response of porous alumina are presented for tensile loadi ng, as a function of pore geometry and pore volume fraction, with the inela stic behavior of the bulk material modeled using a unified visco-plasticity theory. All results are presented for discrete pore shape and discrete por osity. It is shown that pore geometry can have a significant influence on b oth elastic and inelastic response, that pore geometry can be associated wi th parameters from other models, and that the generalized method of cells i s an efficient, flexible and reliable method of analysis for such problems. (C) 1999 Kluwer Academic Publishers.