Walter Drugan Walter J. Drugan
Professor
University of Wisconsin
527 Engineering Research Building
1500 Engineering Drive
Madison, WI 53706
Main Research Students Publications Teaching Links
  Back to M+M Homepage drugan@engr.wisc.edu  
Research

Continuum mechanics analysis of modern material behavior:
  • Fracture mechanics of ductile materials and interfaces
  • Nanoscale fracture mechanics
  • Dynamic fragmentation modeling
  • Discontinuites and shock waves in solids
  • Nonlocal constitutive models of composite materials


Research Highlights

Nonlinear fracture mechanics, plasticity theory, advanced materials, shock waves in solids, continuum mechanics, applied mathematics.

Fracture Mechanics of Ductile Materials & Interfaces
We develop analytical continuum mechanics solutions for material behavior near cracks in ductile single crystals (and compare with Prof. Crone’s experiments ) and on ductile/ductile and ductile/brittle interfaces

analytical solution crystal structure and orientation

Analytical Modeling of Dynamic Fragmentation
Rapid energy input into a body (by impact, lasers, x-rays, etc.) can cause shattering. We develop fundamental mechanics models of this.

schematic diagram of fragmentation event

Nanoscale Fracture Mechanics of Layered Materials
Fracture properties change dramatically at small scales! The effects of individual dislocations become important!

schematic diagram of layer structure with dislocations
analytical resutls for silicon

Back to top
[Main] [Research] [Students] [Teaching] [Links]