Delamination buckling of a laminated composite shell panel using cohesive zone modelling

Laminated composite shell panels take part in several engineering structures. Due to their complex nature, failure modes in composites are highly dependent on the geometry, direction of loading and orientation of the fibers. However, the design of composite parts is still a delicate task because of these fiber failure modes, which includes matrix failure modes or other so-called interlaminar interface failure such as delamination, that corresponds to the separation of adjacent layers of the laminate as a consequence of the weakening of interface layer between them. In this work, impact-induced delamination represented as a circular single delamination is investigated, as it can reduce greatly the structural integrity without getting detected. Furthermore, attention is focused on its effect upon the post-buckling response and the compressive strength of a composite panel. The delamination buckling was modelled using the cohesive element technique under Abaqus software, in order to predict delamination growth and damage propagation while observing their effects on the critical buckling load.

Compressive Failure Mechanism of Structural Bamboo Scrimber

Bamboo scrimber is one of the most popular engineering bamboo composites, owing to its excellent physical and mechanical properties. In order to investigate the influence of grain direction on the compression properties and failure mechanism of bamboo scrimber, the longitudinal, radial and tangential directions were selected. The results showed that the compressive load–displacement curves of bamboo scrimber in the longitudinal, tangential and radial directions contained elastic, yield and failure stages. The compressive strength and elastic modulus of the bamboo scrimber in the longitudinal direction were greater than those in the radial and tangential directions, and there were no significant differences between the radial and tangential specimens. The micro-fracture morphology shows that the parenchyma cells underwent brittle shear failure in all three directions, while the fiber failure of the longitudinal compressive specimens consisted of ductile fracture, and the tangential and radial compressive specimens exhibited brittle fracture. This is one of the reasons that the deformation of the specimens under longitudinal compression was greater than those under tangential and radial compression. The main failure mode of bamboo scrimber under longitudinal and radial compression was shear failure, and the main failure mode under tangential compression was interlayer separation failure. The reason for this difference was that during longitudinal and radial compression, the maximum strain occurred at the diagonal of the specimen, while during tangential compression, the maximum strain occurred at the bonding interface. This study can provide benefits for the rational design and safe application of bamboo scrimber in practical engineering.

Study On The Formation Mechanism of Cutting Surface of Carbon Fiber Reinforced Composites

Carbon fiber-reinforced plastic (CFRP) is used widely in aerospace. The cutting mechanism of CFRP is markedly different from that of metals due to anisotropic and non-homogeneous material structure. The cutting mechanisms are highly dependent on the fiber orientation. The quality of the machined surface can be affected by the fiber fracture models. In this paper, based on the elastic foundation beam theory and the Hertzian contact theory, the cutting mechanics are established. And the cutting model is simulated by the three-dimensional micro-scale numerical model. Then, the continuous varying cutting mechanism and the sub-damage are deeply studied in detail by combining the cutting mechanics model and the simulation model. The results indicate that the fiber orientation θ=80° and θ=150° is the transition critical point of the fracture form. When θ=0°, the fiber failure mode is buckling-dominated. When 0°<θ<80° and 150°<θ<180°, the fiber failure mode is dominated by contact fracture. When 80°<θ<150°, the fiber failure mode is bending-dominated. The cutting mechanics model and finite element model can effectively reflect the evolution law of CFRP machined surface.

A Reliable Fracture Angle Determination Algorithm for Extended Puck’s 3D Inter-Fiber Failure Criterion for Unidirectional Composites

Determination of the fracture angle and maximum exposure value of extended Puck’s 3D inter-fiber failure (IFF) criterion is of great importance for predicting the failure mechanism of unidirectional fiber-reinforced composites. In this paper, a reliable semi-analytical algorithm (RSAA) is presented for searching fracture angle and corresponding exposure value for the extended Puck’s failure criterion. One hundred million cases are tested for verifying the accuracy of the present and other algorithms on Python using the strength-value-stress-state combinations more universal than those in previous literatures. The reliability of previous algorithms is discussed and counterexamples are provided for illustration. The statistical results show RSAA is adequate for implementation in extended Puck’s criterion and much more reliable than previous algorithms. RSAA can correctly predict the results with a probability of over 99.999%.

Progressive Fatigue Failure Analysis of a Filament Wound Ring Specimen with a Hole

A progressive FEA mechanical fatigue degradation model for composites was developed and implemented using a UMAT user material subroutine in Abaqus. Numerical results were compared to experimental strain field data from high frequency digital image correlation (DIC) of split disk fatigue testing of pressure vessel cut outs with holes. The model correctly predicted the onset and evolution of damage in the matrix as well as the onset of fiber failure. The model uses progressive failure analysis based on the maximum strain failure criterion, the cycle jump method, and Miner’s sum damage accumulation rule. A parameter study on matrix properties was needed to capture the scatter in strain fields observed experimentally by DIC. S-N curve for the matrix material had to be lowered by 0% to 60% to capture the experimental scatter. The onset of local fiber failure had to be described by local S-N curves measured by DIC having 2.5 times greater strain than that of S-N curves found from standard coupon testing.

A machine learning framework for damage mechanism identification from acoustic emissions in unidirectional SiC/SiC composites

In this work, we demonstrate that damage mechanism identification from acoustic emission (AE) signals generated in minicomposites with elastically similar constituents is possible. AE waveforms were generated by SiC/SiC ceramic matrix minicomposites (CMCs) loaded under uniaxial tension and recorded by four sensors (two models with each model placed at two ends). Signals were encoded with a modified partial power scheme and subsequently partitioned through spectral clustering. Matrix cracking and fiber failure were identified based on the frequency information contained in the AE event they produced, despite the similar constituent elastic properties of the matrix and fiber. Importantly, the resultant identification of AE events closely followed CMC damage chronology, wherein early matrix cracking is later followed by fiber breaks, even though the approach is fully domain-knowledge agnostic. Additionally, the partitions were highly precise across both the model and location of the sensors, and the partitioning was repeatable. The presented approach is promising for CMCs and other composite systems with elastically similar constituents.

Progressive Fatigue Failure Analysis of a Filament Wound Ring Specimen with a Hole

A progressive FEA fatigue degradation model for composites was developed and implemented using a UMAT user material subroutine in Abaqus. Numerical results were compared to experimental strain field data from high frequency Digital Image Correlation (DIC) of split disk fatigue testing of pressure vessel cut outs with holes. The model correctly predicted the onset and evolution of damage in the matrix as well as the onset of fiber failure. The model use progressive failure analysis based on the maximum strain failure criterion, the cycle jump method and Miner sum damage accumulation rule. A parameter study on matrix properties was needed to capture the scatter in strain fields observed experimentally by DIC. S-N curve for the matrix material had to be lowered by 0% to 60% to capture the experimental scatter. The onset of local fiber failure had to be described by local S-N curves measured by DIC having 2.5 times greater strain than that of S-N curves found from standard coupon testing.

I-fiber implantation robot for composite parts

I-fiber implantation is a new stitching technology that can effectively enhance the interlayer performance of laminated composites. This paper presents and evaluates the design and implementation of the I-fiber robot implantation system integrated for producing high-performance fiber preforms for advanced composites. The system was constructed and validated through I-fiber robot implantation experimentation. It was demonstrated that automated I-fiber implantation could be achieved by use of an industrial robot. The programming method and computer-aided manufacturing software of the I-fiber implantation robot were feasible and effective. The double-cantilever-beam (DCB) experiments showed that the implantation of I-fiber significantly improved the interlaminar fracture toughness of the laminated composite, where the maximum load value increased by up to 106%. The DCB load–displacement curve presented a zigzag shape, where the peaks and valleys were the location points of the I-fiber break. It was also found that for the reinforced laminated composite without an I-fiber head, the delamination failure was manifested as resin cracking and I-fiber pullout, while for the I-fiber with a certain head length, the I-fiber failure mechanism was brittle fracture. I-fiber with a certain head length could significantly improve the interlayer performance of the composite. In addition, DCB experiments also revealed that the implantation matrix had little effect on the interlayer performance of I-fiber reinforced composites, and the failure load value and the I-fiber implantation volume showed an obvious proportional relationship.