Prediction of the Inelastic Behaviour of Radius Segments: Damage-based Nonlinear Micro Finite Element Simulation vs Pistoia Criterion.

The Pistoia criterion (PC) is widely used to estimate the failure load of distal radius segments based on linear micro Finite Element (µFE) analyses. The advantage of the PC is that a simple strain-threshold and a tissue volume fraction can be used to predict failure properties. In this study, the PC is compared to materially nonlinear µFE analyses, where the bone tissue is modelled as an elastic, damageable material. The goal was to investigate for which outcomes the PC is sufficient and when a nonlinear (NL) simulation is required. Three types of simulation results were compared: (1) prediction of the failure load, (2) load sharing of cortical and trabecular regions, and (3) distribution of local damaged/overstrained tissue at the maximum sustainable load. The failure load obtained experimentally could be predicted well with both the PC and the NL simulations using linear regression. Although the PC strongly overestimated the failure load, it was sufficient to predict adequately normalized apparent results. An optimised PC (oPC) was proposed which uses experimental data to calibrate the individual volume of overstrained tissue. The main areas of local over-straining predicted by the oPC were the same as estimated by the NL simulation, although the oPC predicted more diffuse regions. However, the oPC relied on an individual calibration requiring the experimental failure load while the NL simulation required no a priori knowledge of the experimental failure load.

Efficient materially nonlinear [Formula: see text]FE solver for simulations of trabecular bone failure.

An efficient solver for large-scale linear [Formula: see text] simulations was extended for nonlinear material behavior. The material model included damage-based tissue degradation and fracture. The new framework was applied to 20 trabecular biopsies with a mesh resolution of [Formula: see text]. Suitable material parameters were identified based on two biopsies by comparison with axial tension and compression experiments. The good parallel performance and low memory footprint of the solver were preserved. Excellent correlation of the maximum apparent stress was found between simulations and experiments ([Formula: see text]). The development of local damage regions was observable due to the nonlinear nature of the simulations. A novel elasticity limit was proposed based on the local damage information. The elasticity limit was found to be lower than the 0.2% yield point. Systematic differences in the yield behavior of biopsies under apparent compression and tension loading were observed. This indicates that damage distributions could lead to more insight into the failure mechanisms of trabecular bone.

Generalized inverse patchy colloid model.

We generalize the inverse patchy colloid model that was originally developed for heterogeneously charged particles with two identical polar patches and an oppositely charged equator to a model that can have a considerably richer surface pattern. Based on a Debye-Hückel framework, we propose a coarse-grained description of the effective pair interactions that is applicable to particles with an arbitrary patch decoration. We demonstrate the versatility of this approach by applying it to models with (i) two differently charged and/or sized patches, and (ii) three, possibly different patches.