Microstructural and mechanical modelling of multiphase materials: a case study on copper-infiltrated Tungsten (W-Cu) composites

© 2015 Dr. Paul John MignoneW-Cu is a candidate material for ultra-high temperature applications; however, little is understood about how its microstructure influences performance under mechanical loading. This is due to difficulties in capturing and digitising the microstructure due to the dense Tungsten matrix. This thesis presents both experimental and analytical methods to obtain a W-Cu microstructure for finite element analysis. The thesis also determines the correct representative volume of W-Cu for mechanical simulations, as well as the effect of porosity on its mechanical properties