Unified nonlocal rational continuum models developed from discrete atomistic equations

Abstract: In this paper, a unified nonlocal rational continuum enrichment technique is presented for improving the dispersive characteristics of some well known classical continuum equations on the basis of atomistic dispersion relations. This type of enrichment can be useful in a wide range of mechanical problems such as localization of strain and damage in many quasibrittle structures, size effects in microscale elastoplasticity, and multiscale modeling of materials. A novel technique of transforming a discrete differential expression into an exact equivalent rational continuum derivative form is developed considering the Taylor's series transformation of the continuous field variables and traveling wave type of solutions for both the discrete and continuum field variables. An exact equivalent continuum rod representation of the 1D harmonic lattice with the non-nearest neighbor interactions is developed considering the lattice details. Using similar enrichment technique in the variational framework, other useful higher-order equations, namely nonlocal rational Mindlin-Herrmann rod and nonlocal rational Timoshenko beam equations, are developed to explore their nonlocal properties in general. Some analytical and numerical studies on the high frequency dynamic behavior of these novel nonlocal rational continuum models are presented with their comparison with the atomistic solutions for the respective physical systems. These enriched rational continuum equations have crucial use in studying high-frequency dynamics of many nano-electro-mechanical sensors and devices, dynamics of phononic metamaterials, and wave propagation in composite structures.