AEM Seminar: TODAY, November 7th - Midwest Mechanics Speaker: Prof Laura De Lorenzis, Dept of Mechanical and Process Engineering, ETH Zürich
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Molly Schmitz
Nov 7, 2025, 9:01:47 AM (6 days ago) Nov 7
to AEM Seminar, AEM Regular Faculty
University of Minnesota
Aerospace Engineering and Mechanics
Fall 2025 Seminar Series
Fall 2025 Seminar Series
Friday, November 7, 2025
209 Akerman Hall
2:30pm-4:30pmAEM Seminar:
Variational phase-field modeling of fracture: toward second-generation models
Abstract:
Variational
phase-field modeling of fracture, first introduced in 2000 for brittle
fracture of homogeneous and isotropic materials under predominant mode-I
loading, has since evolved in multiple directions. Extensions now cover
multiaxial stress states, heterogeneous and anisotropic materials, as
well as ductile, dynamic, and rate-dependent fracture. The original
model was derived from a variational reformulation of Griffith’s
fracture criterion through regularization. However, in many subsequent
extensions, the inherent rigidity of the variational framework has
prompted the development of non-variational models, which trade the
theoretical and practical advantages of the variational setting for
greater flexibility in reproducing experimental observations.
In
this presentation, we explore strategies to enrich variational
phase-field models with sufficient flexibility to overcome current
limitations, potentially paving the way for a second generation of
variational phase-field fracture models. Preliminary results will be
shown on fracture under multiaxial stress states, fracture of
anisotropic materials, and dynamic fracture.
Bio:
Laura
De Lorenzis received her Engineering degree and her PhD from the
University of her hometown Lecce, in southern Italy, where she first
stayed as Assistant and later as Associate Professor of Solid and
structural mechanics. In 2013 she moved to the TU Braunschweig,
Germany, as Professor and Director of the Institute of Applied Mechanics. There she was founding member and first Chair (2017-2020) of the Center for Mechanics, Uncertainty and Simulation in Engineering. Since 2020 she is Professor of Computational Mechanics at ETH
Zürich, in the Department of Mechanical and Process Engineering. She was visiting scholar in several renowned institutions, including Chalmers University of Technology, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (as holder of a Fulbright
Fellowship in 2006), the Leibniz University of Hannover (with an Alexander von Humboldt Fellowship in 2010-2011), the University of Texas at Austin and the University of Cape Town. She is the recipient of several prizes, including the RILEM L’Hermite Medal 2011, the AIMETA Junior Prize 2011, the IIFC Young Investigator Award 2012, the Euromech Solid Mechanics Fellowship 2022, the IACM Fellowship 2024, two best paper awards and two student teaching prizes. In 2011 she was awarded a European Research Council Starting Researcher Grant. She has delivered over 30 plenary lectures at international conferences and authored or co-authored more than 160 papers on international journals on different topics of computational and applied mechanics. Since 2023 she is Editor of Computer Methods in Applied Mechanics and Engineering.
Germany, as Professor and Director of the Institute of Applied Mechanics. There she was founding member and first Chair (2017-2020) of the Center for Mechanics, Uncertainty and Simulation in Engineering. Since 2020 she is Professor of Computational Mechanics at ETH
Zürich, in the Department of Mechanical and Process Engineering. She was visiting scholar in several renowned institutions, including Chalmers University of Technology, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (as holder of a Fulbright
Fellowship in 2006), the Leibniz University of Hannover (with an Alexander von Humboldt Fellowship in 2010-2011), the University of Texas at Austin and the University of Cape Town. She is the recipient of several prizes, including the RILEM L’Hermite Medal 2011, the AIMETA Junior Prize 2011, the IIFC Young Investigator Award 2012, the Euromech Solid Mechanics Fellowship 2022, the IACM Fellowship 2024, two best paper awards and two student teaching prizes. In 2011 she was awarded a European Research Council Starting Researcher Grant. She has delivered over 30 plenary lectures at international conferences and authored or co-authored more than 160 papers on international journals on different topics of computational and applied mechanics. Since 2023 she is Editor of Computer Methods in Applied Mechanics and Engineering.
** Make sure to stick around after the seminar for the AEM Grad Student Trivia Night! We'll have an ice cream sundae bar and give out prizes to the winning teams. Dust off your quizzing skills!
For more information regarding current or future seminars and speakers, or other AEM events, please visit https://cse.umn.edu/aem/aem-events-0
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Molly Schmitz (She/Her/Hers)
Principal Accountant, Purchasing & Payroll Specialist, Graduate Program Coordinator
Department of Aerospace Engineering & Mechanics, University of Minnesota - Twin Cities
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