Mini course on mechanics of nonlinear elastic and viscoelastic material

Students and faculty members in McGill's Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences are invited to attend a mini course, Theory and Numerical Analysis of Nonlinear Elastic and Viscoelastic Material Models, held by the Department of Bioresource Engineering. From April 22 to 26, we will meet in the Raymond Building from 3pm to 5pm.

The seminar aims to introduce nonlinear elastic and viscoelastic material models that represent state of the art modeling for solid polymers. Long lasting practical experiences of industrial applications will be shared ranging from soft tissue modeling in biomedical engineering to critical applications of elastomer and thermoplastic components in mechanical engineering. Besides advanced material modeling special emphasis will be given to specific requirements in finite element modeling for nonlinear materials. Eventually, a link to current research activities is provided by presenting a structure-property correlation for elastomeric vulcanizates that allows a priori determination of mechanical material properties from elastomeric rubber compound ingredients without material testing.

About the speaker: Professor Robert Eberlein, Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW), Winterthur, Switzerland

Robert Eberlein received a PhD degree (Dr.-Ing.) from Darmstadt University of Technology (Germany) in 1997, after a student exchange at University of California in Berkeley, CA, USA. His research activities were devoted to finite element modeling, lightweight design, and biomechanical engineering. After finishing his PhD, he joined various positions in industry for about 15 years, where he gathered in-depth managerial experience as CTO and member of the group executive committee at Angst & Pfister, Zurich, Switzerland. In 2013 Robert Eberlein joined ZHAW as senior lecturer and became director of the Institute of Mechanical Systems (IMES) in 2017. Over the years he published various scientific papers and book chapters in the fields of biomechanics, finite element modeling of nonlinear materials and lightweight structures. He has been invited to deliver lectures in many international conferences and is a frequent referee in scientific journals. Currently he manages about 40 pax scientific staff at IMES.

Lecture Organizer: Prof. Hamid Akbarzadeh, hamid.akbarzadeh [at] mcgill.ca