Hashin–Shtrikman bounds of periodic linear elastic media with cubic symmetry

Abstract

Based on the Hashin–Shtrikman variational principle, novel bounds on the effective shear moduli of a two-phase periodic composite are derived. The composite constituents are assumed to be isotropic, while the microstructure is assumed to exhibit cubic symmetry. A solution of the subsidiary boundary value problem is expressed as a double contraction of a fourth-order cubic tensor with the applied macroscopic strain. The bounds for cubic shear moduli are new, while the bounds for the bulk modulus are equal to the classical ones. The new bounds are verified for composites with the cubic, frame, octet and cubic + octet structures. It is shown that they are nearly attained for the cubic, octet and cubic + octet structures.