Experimental characterisation of rate-dependent compression behaviour of fibre reinforced composites

Fibre reinforced polymers (FRP) materials are being increasingly used for aerospace and automotive structural applications. One of the critical loading conditions for such applications is impact, consequently, understanding of the composite behavior under such loads becomes critical for structural design. The analysis and design process for achieving impact-resistant composite structures requires rate-dependent constitutive models, which, in turn, requires material properties of the composite over a range of strain rates. It is, therefore, the objective of the research to investigate the strain rate-dependent behavior of fiber reinforced composites under compressive loads for a wide range of fiber orientations. Quasi-static (≈ 1e-3 s-1) and high loading (≈ 200 s-1) rates are considered for the experimental study. Accordingly, two different test setups are utilized, a screw-driven universal testing machine for quasi-static tests and a Split Hopkinson Pressure Bar (SHPB) system for dynamic tests. The stress-strain response of the composite is reported for the different fiber orientations and the strain rates, revealing the rate-dependent characteristics of the carbon fiber reinforced composite. From the test results, it is observed that, the dependency of the fracture strength on the loading rate is significant. The results are summarised in terms of the failure envelope in the transverse compression-in-plane shear σ22-σ12 plane for the two strain rates

A Wedge-DCB Test Methodology to Characterise High Rate Mode-I Interlaminar Fracture Properties of Fibre Composites

A combined numerical-experimental methodology is presented to measure dynamic Mode-I fracture properties of fiber reinforced composites. A modified wedge-DCB test using a Split-Hopkinson Bar technique along with cohesive zone modelling is utilised for this purpose. Three different comparison metrics, namely, strain-displacement response, crack propagation history and crack opening history are employed in order to extract unique values for the cohesive fracture properties of the delaminating interface. More importantly, the complexity of dealing with the frictional effects between the wedge and the DCB specimen is effectively circumvented by utilising right acquisition techniques combined with an inverse numerical modelling procedure. The proposed methodology is applied to extract the high rate interlaminar fracture properties of carbon fiber reinforced epoxy composites and it is further shown that a high level of confidence in the calibrated data can be established by adopting the proposed methodology

On the Rate-dependent Plasticity Modelling of Unidirectional Fibre-reinforced Polymeric Matrix Composites

Three different approaches to plasticity are investigated to model the experimentally-observed non-linear behaviour of unidirectional fibre-reinforced polymeric matrix materials. The first and simplest approach consists on assuming independent one-dimensional rate-dependent plasticity on in-plane (12) and through-thickness longitudinal (13) shear components of the Cauchy stress tensor. The second, employs a 3D extension of the plane stress Hill'48 anisotropic plastic surface. The third and the last is formulated as a quadratic yield function inspired by Puck's fracture initiation criterion. It searches for a plastic localisation plane in which a certain combination of normal and shear stresses is maximum. Numerical simulations are conducted to analyse the off-axis compression behaviour of carbon fibre reinforced epoxy composite under varying loading rates. The afore-mentioned three different approaches are explored with an aim to predict the experimentally-observed non-linear response of such composites. The model parameters are determined using a deterministic inverse modelling strategy employing an iterative domain reduction optimisation technique. As far as the experiments are concerned, the quasi-static and medium rate tests were carried out in universal testing machines, while the experiments at high rate were conducted in a Split Hopkinson Pressure Bar system. The effectiveness in terms of accuracy and robustness of the three approaches are discussed

Predictions of the mechanical properties of unidirectional fibre composites by supervised machine learning

We present an application of data analytics and supervised machine learning to allow accurate predictions of the macroscopic stiffness and yield strength of a unidirectional composite loaded in the transverse plane. Predictions are obtained from the analysis of an image of the material microstructure, as well as knowledge of the constitutive models for fibres and matrix, without performing physically-based calculations. The computational framework is based on evaluating the 2-point correlation function of the images of 1800 microstructures, followed by dimensionality reduction via principal component analysis. Finite element (FE) simulations are performed on 1800 corresponding statistical volume elements (SVEs) representing cylindrical fibres in a continuous matrix, loaded in the transverse plane. A supervised machine learning (ML) exercise is performed, employing a gradient-boosted tree regression model with 10-fold cross-validation strategy. The model obtained is able to accurately predict the homogenized properties of arbitrary microstructures

A Microbial-Based Biostimulant Enhances Sweet Pepper Performance by Metabolic Reprogramming of Phytohormone Profile and Secondary Metabolism

Microbial-based biostimulants can improve crop productivity by modulating cell metabolic pathways including hormonal balance. However, little is known about the microbial-mediated molecular changes causing yield increase. The present study elucidates the metabolomic modulation occurring in pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) leaves at the vegetative and reproductive phenological stages, in response to microbial-based biostimulants. The arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi Rhizoglomus irregularis and Funneliformis mosseae, as well as Trichoderma koningii, were used in this work. The application of endophytic fungi significantly increased total fruit yield by 23.7% compared to that of untreated plants. Multivariate statistics indicated that the biostimulant treatment substantially altered the shape of the metabolic profile of pepper. Compared to the untreated control, the plants treated with microbial biostimulants presented with modified gibberellin, auxin, and cytokinin patterns. The biostimulant treatment also induced secondary metabolism and caused carotenoids, saponins, and phenolic compounds to accumulate in the plants. Differential metabolomic signatures indicated diverse and concerted biochemical responses in the plants following the colonization of their roots by beneficial microorganisms. The above findings demonstrated a clear link between microbial-mediated yield increase and a strong up-regulation of hormonal and secondary metabolic pathways associated with growth stimulation and crop defense to environmental stresses

On the dynamic response of adhesively bonded structures

Fracture mechanics experiments are used to investigate the rate-dependent failure of adhesively bonded structures under different deformation modes: I, II and I/II. First, the high-rate mechanical response of the adhesive interface is analysed with a newly developed method – which relies entirely upon digital image correlation. The method was purposely designed to avoid any dynamic effects which may be present. This novel method is verified against quasi-static standard methods showing good agreement. Finally, simulations of the experiments are used to validate a cohesive zone model of the adhesive. The ability of the model to predict cohesive failure under a wide range of strain rates and deformation modes is demonstrated

An integrated inverse numerical–experimental approach to determine the dynamic Mode-I interlaminar fracture toughness of fibre composites

A combined numerical–experimental methodology is presented to determine the dynamic Mode-I fracture properties of Fibre-Reinforced Polymer (FRP) composites. The experimental aspect consists of a modified Wedge-Double cantilever Beam (WDCB) test using a Split Hopkinson Pressure Bar (SHPB) set-up followed by a numerical inverse modelling strategy using cohesive-zone approach. The proposed method is inherently robust due to the use of three independent comparison metrics namely, the strain–displacement response, the crack length history and the crack opening history to uniquely determine the delamination properties. More importantly, the complexity of dealing with the frictional effects between the wedge and the DCB specimen is effectively circumvented by utilising appropriate acquisition techniques. The proposed methodology is applied to extract the high-rate interlaminar fracture properties of a carbon fibre reinforced composite, IM7/8552 and it is further shown that a high level of confidence in the calibrated data can be established by adopting the proposed methodology

Spalling uniaxial strength of Al2O3 at high strain rates

In this article research into the uniaxial tensile strength of Al2O3 monolithic ceramic is presented. The experimental procedure of the spalling of long bars is investigated from different approaches. This method is used to obtain the tensile strength at high strain rates under uniaxial conditions. Different methodologies proposed by several authors are used to obtain the tensile strength. The hypotheses needed for the experimental set-up are also checked, and the requirements of the set-up and the variables are also studied by means of numerical simulations. The research shows that the shape of the projectile is crucial to achieve successfully tests results. An experimental campaign has been carried out including high speed video and a digital image correlation system to obtain the tensile strength of alumina. Finally, a comparison of the test results provided by three different methods proposed by different authors is presented. The tensile strength obtained from the three such methods on the same specimens provides contrasting results. Mean values vary from one method to another but the trends are similar for two of the methods. The third method gives less scatter, though the mean values obtained are lower and do not follow the same trend as the other methods for the different specimens