Eshelby's tensor fields and effective conductivity of composites made of anisotropic phases with Kapitza's interface thermal resistance

Abstract

Eshelby's results and formalism for an elastic circular or spherical inhomogeneity embedded in an elastic infinite matrix are extended to the thermal conduction phenomenon with a Kapitza interface thermal resistance between matrix and inclusions. Closed-form expressions are derived for the generalized Eshelby interior and exterior conduction tensor fields and localization tensor fields in the case where the matrix and inclusion phases have the most general anisotropy. Unlike the relevant results in elasticity, the generalized Eshelby conduction tensor fields and localization tensor fields inside circular and spherical inhomogeneities are shown to remain uniform even in the presence of Kapitza's interface thermal resistance. With the help of these results, the size-dependent overall thermal conduction properties of composites are estimated by using the dilute, Mori–Tanaka, self-consistent and generalized self-consistent models. The analytical estimates are finally compared with numerical results delivered by the finite element method. The approach elaborated and results provided by the present work are directly applicable to other physically analogous transport phenomena, such as electric conduction, dielectrics, magnetism, diffusion and flow in porous media, and to the mathematically identical phenomenon of anti-plane elasticity.

Keywords:

• Eshelby problem
• Eshelby tensor
• Kapitza interface thermal resistance
• interfaces
• anisotropy
• composite materials
• conductivity
• micromechanics
• thermal transport