Academics
  /  
Courses
  /  
Course Descriptions
MECH_ENG 495: Fracture of Soft Materials


VIEW ALL COURSE TIMES AND SESSIONS

Prerequisites

Basic knowledge of solid mechanics and chemistry.

Description

ME 495: Fracture of Soft Materials (Winter 2024)



Instructor: Prof. Junsoo Kim

Email: junsoo.kim@northwestern.edu

Office: Catalysis 326

Office Hours: For 30 mins after each class at the classroom, 1:1 OH by appointment

Class Times: TTh 3:30 PM - 4:50 PM

Location: TBD


Course Description

In this course, students will develop a comprehensive understanding of the fracture of soft materials and experimental approaches to measure the fracture properties of soft materials. 


Prerequisites

Basic knowledge of solid mechanics and chemistry. Taking ME495 Elasticity of Soft Materials is recommended.


Course outline

  • Week 1: Review of thermodynamics
  • Week 2: Griffith theory
  • Week 3: Energy release rate
  • Week 4: Toughness
  • Week 5: Crack-tip field
  • Week 6: Crack bridging
  • Week 7: Rivlin-Thomas method
  • Week 8: J integral
  • Week 9: Fatigue
  • Week 10: Adhesion
  • Week 11: Case study

Homework

There are weekly homework assignments during the term, due in one week. The homework aims to digest the concepts taught in the class by giving an opportunity to have hands-on experience.


Final exam

The final exam is an oral exam. The student will receive a problem set 30 mins prior to the oral exam and present the answers to the instructor for 30 mins. The final exam is based on homework.


Grading

Homework (60%), Final exam (40%)


References

Course notes

Fracture Mechanics by Zhigang Suo


Books

Polymer Physics by M. Rubinstein, Ralph H. Colby

Fracture Behaviour of Polymers by Robert J. Young A. J. Kinloch, Anthony J. Kinloch 

Fracture of Brittle Solids by Lawn

Fracture Mechanics: Fundamentals and Applications by Ted L. Anderson