Effects of hollow particle shape and distribution on the elastic properties of syntactic foams: 3D computational modeling

Syntactic foams, i.e., hollow particles filled composites, attract intense studies due to their lightweight and excellent mechanical properties. A 3D computational model is developed to study the elastic properties of syntactic foams. The Young’s modulus and Poisson’s ratio predicted by this model with spherical hollow particles agree well with the available experimental and analytical results. This model is further applied to investigate the effects of hollow particle shape and distribution on the elastic properties of syntactic foams. It is observed that particle shapes have strong influence on the elastic properties of syntactic foams when the particles are aligned unidirectionally. The relationship between the elastic constants and the hollow particle orientation angle θ depends on the hollow particle shape. This study is useful for optimizing the microstructure of syntactic foams.