Fig. 2.

Components of the discrete network. (A) Connectivity of a staggered {6,5} network, comprising six platelets (hard elements) per layer and five layers, where $N$ denotes the number of platelets per layer and $M$ denotes the number of layers. Hard elements, cohesive tensile (CT) elements, and cohesive shear (CS) elements are represented by gray lines, red lines, and blue lines, respectively. Boundary nodes are highlighted: teal for fixed nodes and purple for nodes with externally applied displacement; BC stands for boundary conditions. (B) Stress–strain curve for uniaxial tension of the hard elements, where $E_{\mathit{hard}}$ denotes the Young’s modulus. (C) Constitutive cohesive law of the CT elements featuring a linear regime, controlled by the maximum traction ${\sigma }_{max,CT}$, and the elastic separation ${\delta }_{e,CT}$ which define the stiffness $K_{\mathit{CT}}^{+}$, and a softening regime defined by the reduced stiffness $K_{\mathit{CT}}^{-}$ and the critical separation ${\delta }_{cr,CT}$. (D) Constitutive cohesive law of the CS elements featuring a linear regime, controlled by the maximum traction ${\tau }_{max,CS}$, and the elastic separation ${\delta }_{e,CS}$ which define the stiffness $K_{\mathit{CS}}^{+}$, and a softening regime defined by the reduced stiffness $K_{\mathit{CS}}^{-}$ and the critical separation ${\delta }_{cr,CS}$. Solid lines and shaded bands represent the mean values and SD, respectively, highlighting the variability in the properties of the recyclates, while dashed lines indicate the unloading path of the material.