Impact damage analysis of composite plates

✍ Scribed by R.K. Luo; E.R. Green; C.J. Morrison

• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Year: 1999
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 683 KB
• Volume: 22
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0734-743X
• DOI: 10.1016/s0734-743x(98)00056-6

✦ Synopsis

An integrated modelling and testing procedure for carbon/epoxy composite plates has been developed to evaluate the impact damage initiation and propagation. Three failure modes have been investigated and implemented for the damage simulation. Three-dimensional dynamic finite element method was used to simulate the real impact events. A detailed comparison between the simulation and experiment has been made for 0.59 J impact. The damage has been identified as interlaminar delamination coupled with matrix failure from the simulation, which has been validated by the experiment. It has been revealed from both the simulation and experiment that there is a small non-delamination area immediately adjacent to the impact point, between the two halves of the peanut shape, because stress field in this area does not reach a failure level to induce any delamination. It is also noted that further work may be needed more precisely to evaluate the length of the matrix crack.