Date of Award

5-2026

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

School

Polymer Science and Engineering

Committee Chair

Derek Patton

Committee Chair School

Polymer Science and Engineering

Committee Member 2

Boran Ma

Committee Member 2 School

Polymer Science and Engineering

Committee Member 3

Sergei Nazarenko

Committee Member 3 School

Polymer Science and Engineering

Committee Member 4

Jeffrey Wiggins

Committee Member 4 School

Polymer Science and Engineering

Committee Member 5

Sarah Morgan

Committee Member 5 School

Polymer Science and Engineering

Committee Member 6

Xiaodan Gu

Committee Member 6 School

Polymer Science and Engineering

Abstract

As a filler in high performance materials, graphene significantly enhances the mechanical properties of polymer composites. Experimental characterization of graphene composite enhancements is limited by labor-intensive processes in both synthesizing composites for different purposes and in characterizing the interactions between graphene and polymer composites that lead to these enhancements. Computational approaches such as finite element analysis (FEA) are suitable alternatives that go beyond experimental analysis. This dissertation demonstrates the utility of FEA in analyzing polymer graphene composites with an emphasis on modeling the interaction between graphene fillers and the matrix within the interphase formed between them. The accessible design framework in FEA is used to create composite models that incorporate interphases. FEA applications’ built-in testing suites can validate these models against experimental counterparts and predict composite properties.

Chapter I details interphase interactions within polymer composites and their influence on their mechanical properties. Chapter II elaborates on FEA and how it is used to define polymer composites, with a particular emphasis on modeling interphase interactions. Chapter III covers modeling and methods of testing these composite materials. Chapter IV focuses on the development of a multiscale framework for modeling composites. To investigate the effects of filler orientation and filler loading on composite laminate mechanical strength, representative volume elements (RVE) with fillers, polymer matrices, and interphases with isotropic properties were used to derive composite properties. These properties then served as inputs for macroscopic multi-layered laminate structures under pure and open-hole tensile tests. Chapter V focuses on the use of FEA to model gradient interphase properties in 2-D microscopic RVEs. By calibrating initial gradient-interphase parameters against the bulk thermomechanical properties of polymer–graphene composites, more realistic and physically representative composite models were created.

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Available for download on Sunday, May 31, 2026

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