ABSTRACT
The concept of a contiguity factor that is some expression of the continuity of one phase of a composite material relative to another, is more easily seen to affect the tensile properties of a lamina than the compressive properties. Micromechanics—The study of composite material behavior wherein the interaction of the constituent materials is examined in detail as part of the definition of the behavior of the heterogeneous composite material. Real design power is demonstrated when the micromechanical predictions of the properties of a lamina agree with the measured properties. The objective of all micromechanics approaches is to determine the elastic moduli or stiffnesses or compliances of a composite material in terms of the elastic moduli of the constituent materials. In the fabrication of fibrous composite materials, the fibers are often somewhat randomly placed rather than being packed in a regular array. Stephen W. Tsai conducted experiments to measure the various moduli of glass-fiber-epoxy-resin composite materials.
