Alberto CARPINTERI, Prof

Fracture Mechanics and Complexity Sciences

Alberto Carpinteri, Simone Puzzi

Politecnico di Torino, Department of Structural and Geotechnical Engineering

Corso Duca degli Abruzzi 24, 10129 Torino, Italy

Summary

The so-called Complexity Sciences are a topic of fast growing interest inside the scientific community. Actually, researchers did not come to a definition of complexity, since it manifests itself in so many different ways [1]. This field itself is not a single discipline, but rather a heterogeneous amalgam of different techniques of mathematics and science. In fact, under the label of Complexity Sciences we comprehend a large variety of approaches: nonlinear dynamics, deterministic chaos theory, nonequilibrium thermodynamics, fractal geometry, intermediate asymptotics, complete and incomplete similarity, renormalization group theory, catastrophe theory, self-organized criticality, neural networks, cellular automata, fuzzy logic, etc.

Complex systems lie somehow in between perfect order and complete randomness –the two extreme conditions that are likely to occur only very seldom in nature– and exhibit one or more common characteristics, such as: sensitivity to initial conditions, pattern formation, spontaneous self-organization, emergence of cooperation, hierarchical or multiscale structure, collective properties beyond those directly contained in the parts, scale effects.

Aim of this paper is to provide an insight into the role of complexity in the field of Materials Science and Fracture Mechanics. The included examples will be concerned with the snap-back instabilities in the structural behaviour of composite structures (Carpinteri [2-3]), the occurrence of fractal patterns and self-similarity in material damage and deformation of heterogeneous materials, and the apparent scaling on the nominal mechanical properties of disordered materials (Carpinteri [4,5]). Further examples will deal with criticality in the acoustic emissions of damaged structures and with scaling in the time-to-failure (Carpinteri et al. [6]). Eventually, results on the transition towards chaos in the dynamics of cracked beams will be reported (Carpinteri and Pugno [7]).

References

1. Garrido, M.S. and Vilela Mendes, R., Complexity in physics and technology, World Scientific, Singapore, 1992.

2. Carpinteri, A., In Application of Fracture Mechanics to Cementitious Composites (Proceedings of a NATO Advanced Research Workshop, Evanston, USA, 1984), edited by S.P. Shah, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, Dordrecht, 1985, 287-316.

3. Carpinteri, A., J. Mech. Phys. Solids, vol. 37, 567-582, 1989.

4. Carpinteri, A., Mech. Mater., vol. 18, 89-101, 1994.

5. Carpinteri, A., Int. J. Solids Struct., vol. 31, 291-302, 1994.

6. Carpinteri, A., Lacidogna, G. and Pugno, N., In Fracture Mechanics of Concrete and Concrete Structures (Proceedings of the 5th International FraMCoS Conference, Vail, Colorado, USA, 2004), edited by V.C. Li et al., 2004, vol. 1, 31-40.

7. Carpinteri, A. and Pugno, N., J. Appl. Mech., in print.

Alberto CARPINTERI, Prof. Ph.D.

Professor of Structural Mechanics

Politecnico di Torino

   Department of Structural Engineering and Geotechnics
   Corso Duca degli Abruzzi 24
   10129 Torino, Italy
   e-mail: alberto.carpinteri@polito.it

Phone: +39 011 564 4850

Fax: +39 011 564 4899

Web pages: http://staff.polito.it/alberto.carpinteri/

Alberto Carpinteri was born in Bologna (Italy), on December 23, 1952

PhD in Nuclear Engineering cum laude, University of Bologna, Bologna-Italy, 1976

PhD in Mathematics cum laude, University of Bologna, Bologna- Italy, 1981

Academic Positions:

- Professor of Structural Mechanics, Politecnico di Torino, Torino-Italy, 1986-.

- Director Dept. Structural Engineering, Politecnico di Torino, Torino-Italy, 1989-95.

- Founding Member and Director – Graduate School in Structural Engineering, Politecnico di Torino, Torino-Italy, 1990-.

- Member of the Academy of Sciences of Torino (founded by G.L. Lagrange in 1783), Torino-Italy, 1995-.

- Member of the New York Academy of Sciences (founded in 1817), New York, USA, 1997-.

- Member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (founded in 1848 at the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA), 1999-.

- Member of the American Academy of Mechanics, USA, 2003-.

- Visiting Professor, Lehigh University, Bethlehem-Pennsylvania, USA, 1982-83.

Scientific Activity:

- President of the European Structural Integrity Society (ESIS), 2002-06.

- President of the International Association of Fracture Mechanics for Concrete and Concrete Structures (IA-FraMCoS), 2004-07.

- Vice-President of the International Congress on Fracture (ICF), 2005-09.

- Chairman of the Organizing Committee of the 11th International Conference on Fracture (ICF11), Torino, Italy, March 20-25, 2005.

- Member of the Congress Committee of the International Union of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics (IUTAM), 2004-08.

- President of the Italian Group of Fracture (IGF), 1998-2005.

- Co-Editor of the International Journal “Strength, Fracture & Complexity”, 2003-; Member of the Editorial Board of different international journals.

- Author of over 350 papers on fracture mechanics, material fatigue, thermoelasticity, seismic structures, reinforced concrete, structural monitoring, contact mechanics, drilling, fragmentation and comminution.

- Author or Editor of 27 volumes.

Honours and Awards:

- Recipient of Robert l'Hermite International Prize, R.I.L.E.M., Paris, 1982.

- Recipient of J.S.M.E. Medal, Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers, Tokyo, 1993.

- Doctor of Physics Honoris Causa, The Constantinian University, Cranston-Rhode Island, USA, 1994.

- Recipient of International Cultural Diploma of Honor, American Biographical Institute, 1995.

- Honorary Professor, Nanjing Architectural & Civil Engineering Institute, Nanjing, China, 1996.

- Honorary Professor, Albert Schweitzer University, Geneva, Switzerland, 2000.

- Recipient of WIT Eminent Scientist Award, Wessex Institute of Technology, Southampton, U.K., 2000.

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