Damage mechanics of composite materials: II— a damaged-based notched strength model

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Abstract

A new model of the notched strength of graphite-epoxy composites has been developed. In this second paper of a four-part series, a finite element model has been used to simulate observed subcritical notch tip cracking patterns in cross-ply laminates. The model produced maps displaying tensile stress contours in the 0° ply, and it was found that all specimens failed when the maximum tensile stress in the 0° ply exceeded the strength of that ply. The strength of the 0° ply in the vicinity of the notch tip was determined independently using a Weibull statistical strength model.

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  • Cited by (60)

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      A comparison with experiments is also detailed. Here we refer to Kortschot and Beaumont’s experimental works on a tensile test with a large number of double-edge-notched cross-ply laminates published in a four-part series [29–32] as well as to those of the VERTEX project dedicated to validation of continuum damage models performed by Airbus Group Innovations (AGI) on open-hole laminates with more complex lay-up forms. The mesomodel for laminates aims at modeling the physics of degradation and its evolution at the ply’s scale thanks to the continuum damage mechanics.

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      Due to the importance of the notched strength in the design of composite structures, considerable research has been undertaken to investigate the notched behaviour of these materials [1–5]. Many parameters such as notch size and geometry, laminate size and thickness, machining quality, ply orientation and thickness, and material constituents affect the complex failure mechanisms during the loading of notched laminates [6–14]. These parameters change the damage mechanisms during loading and have a profound effect on laminate strength and notch sensitivity.

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      2013, Composite Structures
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      In the (0/±45)2s specimens failure occurred through fibre breakage and fibre–matrix shearing. Kortschot and Beaumont [19–21] developed an FE model that explicitly meshed the shape of the damage zones in graphite/epoxy composites with a (0n/90n)ns general layup [19]. Delamination and splitting was modelled using two layers of plane stress elements with damage embedded using coincident nodes.

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    Present address: Department of Chemical Engineering and Applied Chemistry, University of Toronto, 200 College Street, Toronto, Canada M5S 1A4.

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