Numerical Simulation of Composite Structure Failure in the Areas of Geometric Discontinuities

Ivana Ilić, BSc (Eng)

 

The paper is directed to the failure analysis in layered composite structures with a special view on the impact of geometrical discontinuities on the stress level during which initial failure occurs.

A special attention in the paper has been directed to the strength analysis of layered composite structures in the area of mechanically fastened joints. The emphasis of the paper is on establishing a suitable numerical procedure for the initial failure analysis of mechanically fastened joints of layered composites. To determine stress distribution around the hole, the finite element method (FEM) was used. The failure of a mechanically fastened joint was determined by combining the Chang-Scott-Springer model of the characteristic curve [1] and the Tsai-Wu initial failure criterion. The finite element model, which simulates the contact between the lug and the pin, was used for the analysis. The numerical results were compared to author’s own experimental results where good agreement is obtained.

Key words: composite materials, layered structure, mechanically fastened joint, initial failure, failure analysis, stress analysis, finite element method.