Research

Research topics

The header shows some figures which are representative for the Research Unit Strength of Materials and Biomechanics. On the left, a railroad tunnel is shown with the tunnel shell colored according to the stress distribution from numerical calculations. This figure is overlaid by the calculated tunnel load factor, the ratio of the actual load on the tunnel shell and the maximum load capacity. On the right of the header, a bone organ is shown, with the cortical and trabecular microstructure of the bone partially visible. Also shown is a representative volume element representing the microstructure of cortical bone consisting of bone matrix and Haversian pores. Next to the image of the bone are two cross-sectional images of the bone microstructure, again showing Haversian pores as well as lacunae. A DNA structure is shown at the bottom of the header. In the center of the header, mathematical formulas can be seen distributed over three lines. The formula in the first line represents the principle of virtual power, the formula in the second line shows the relationship between microscopic and macroscopic virtual velocities, and the formulas in the third line describe the relationship between macroscopic stress tensors and the associated microscopic quantities, once at the continuum level and once for beam systems.

© ÖBB (Tunnel), antonel – stock.adobe.com (Hintergrund), Ch. Hellmich, S. Scheiner