In a Cosserat solid the points in the continuum have the freedom to rotate as well as to translate. Act along the lines joining pairs of atoms and are proportional to changes in distance between them. C., Foundation of Solid Mechanics, Prentice-Hall, Englewood, NJ, p.353, 1968.

The material system is considered as heterogenous medium of actual microstructural elements. These elements exhibit random geometric and physical characteristics and are further disturbed by a latitude of randomly oriented, second phase particles. A stochastic model is presented for the occurring damage process due to the nucleation and growth of microvoids under external loading.

From a micromechanical point of view, the nucleation of a void at a partile-matrix interface is considered to be associated with the cut-off of the interfacial binding potential. The growth of an elemental void is seen, then, to follow a random walk of the discrete Markov type. The latter is associated with the build-up of strain in front of the tip of the advancing void and the redistribution of local stress. John Bannon Dear Mr Fantasy Crosby there.

As the void reaches the boundary between neighbouring elements, a dicrete inter-elemental fracture process is examined in relation to the intensities of transformation within the elemental boundary. • Previous article in issue • Next article in issue.