New Trends in Nanoscale Mechanics of Nanostructures, Graphene Sheets and Nanocomposites

Editor’s notes first introduce special examples of nanostructures to illustrate a useful nanoscale homogenization criterion. Later editor’s notes introduce chapters on graphene sheets, nanocomposites, molecular modeling of nanocomposites and new analysis of safety of carbon nanotubes along with reviews of new studies and applications. A review of a new registry matrix analysis and a nanoscale analog of the Newton’s friction law are presented in chapter “Nanomechanics of Graphene Sheets:​ Registry Matrix Analysis and Interfacial Sliding” along with examples of interfacial sliding of the adjacent graphene sheets. Enhancement of material properties of nanocomposites and their molecular modeling analysis are lucidly presented in chapter “Molecular Mechanics of Polymer Nanocomposites”. A new parametric map for geometric parameters of carbon nanotubes and different types of phagocytosis is presented to improve understanding of safety issues in nanotechnology (see chapter “Carbon Nanotubes and Safety,” which points out the growing importance of safety in nanotechnology).