This book presents the latest findings on mechanical and materials engineering as applied to the design of modern engineering materials and components. The contributions cover the classical fields of mechanical, civil and materials engineering, as well as bioengineering and advanced materials processing and optimization. The materials and structures discussed can be categorized into modern steels, aluminium and titanium alloys, polymers/composite materials, biological and natural materials, material hybrids and modern nano-based materials. Analytical modelling, numerical simulation, state-of-the-art design tools and advanced experimental techniques are applied to characterize the materials' performance and to design and optimize structures in different fields of engineering applications.

Autorentext
Prof. Dr.-Ing. habil. Holm Altenbach lehrt Technische Mechanik an der Otto-von-Guericke-Universität Magdeburg. Seine Forschungsschwerpunkte liegen auf verschiedenen Gebieten der Kontinuumsmechanik (Plattentheorie, Kriechschädigungsmechanik, Mechanik der Komposite).

Inhalt
1 Effect of Alloying Elements on Corrosion, Microstructure and Mechanical Properties for Casted Free-Nickel Duplex Stainless Steels.- 2 Influence of Al2O3 Nano-dispersions on Mechanical and Wear Resistance Properties of Semisolid Cast A356 Al Alloy.- 3 Evaluation of Mechanical Properties of Natural and Synthetic Rubber Material.- 4 Influence of laser feeding on structure and properties of cast aluminium alloy surface.