Damage prediction in cross-plied curved composite laminates

Analytical and experimental work is detailed which is required to predict delamination onset and growth in a curved cross plied composite laminate subjected to static and fatigue loads. The composite used was AS4/3501/6, graphite/epoxy. Analytically, a closed form stress analysis and 2-D and 3-D finite element analyses were conducted to determine the stress distribution in an undamaged curved laminate. The finite element analysis was also used to determine values of strain energy release rate at a delamination emanating from a matrix crack in a 90 deg ply. Experimentally, transverse tensile strength and fatigue life were determined from flat 90 deg coupons. The interlaminar tensile strength and fatigue life were determined from double cantilevered beam specimens. Cross plied curved laminates were tested statically and in fatigue to give a comparison to the analytical predictions. A comparison of the fracture mechanics life prediction technique and the strength based prediction technique is given

Estimation of Delamination Crack Depth Using Passive Thermography

Passive thermography is used to monitor small increases in temperature resulting from delamination damage formation in a composite hat-stiffened panel during quasi-static loading. The heating is composed of two heat generation components. The first component is an instantaneous response due to a strain release during quasi-static loading. The second component is mechanical heating, at the interface of failure, due to fracture damage. This second component produces a transient rise in temperature that is a function of the damage depth and thermal diffusivity. The first component defines the thermal start time for the transient response. A one-dimensional thermal model is used to determine the damage depth. The results are compared to ultrasonic and X-ray CT data. The advantages and limitations of the thermal technique for damage depth detection are discussed

Predicting The Compression Strength Of Impact-Damaged Sandwich Panels

The objective of this work was to develop a technique for predicting the residual compression strength of sandwich panels containing impact damage in one facesheet. The technique was tailored to predict the strength of specimens that exhibit a failure mode involving the formation of kink bands at locations of peak strain in the region of impact damage. Under continued compression loading, the kink bands propagate in a stable manner perpendicular to the applied load. When a critical kink-band length is reached, growth becomes unstable corresponding to panel failure. The analysis follows in two sections. The first section calculates the far-field stress required for stable kink-band growth and the second calculates that required for unstable growth. The residual strength prediction is made when the stress for stable growth becomes equal to that for unstable kink-band growth. Initial comparisons between analysis and experiment show good agreement

Mental Health Programs in Remote Divisions of General Practice: PARC Knowledge Harvesting Program Issues Report

Part of the Primary Mental Health Care Australian Resource Centre (PARC) knowledge management strategy for the Primary Mental Health Care Network.This discussion paper describes the mental health activities of Divisions of General Practice (DGPs) operating in remote areas of Australia , and documents the knowledge of the people who work in these programs.Primary Mental Health Care Australian Resource Centre (PARC) Primary Mental Health Care Network

Use of a New Portable Instrumented Impactor on the NASA Composite Crew Module Damage Tolerance Program

Damage tolerance performance is critical to composite structures because surface impacts at relatively low energies may result in a significant strength loss. For certification, damage tolerance criteria require aerospace vehicles to meet design loads while containing damage at critical locations. Data from standard small coupon testing are difficult to apply to larger more complex structures. Due to the complexity of predicting both the impact damage and the residual properties, damage tolerance is demonstrated primarily by testing. A portable, spring-propelled, impact device was developed which allows the impact damage response to be investigated on large specimens, full-scale components, or entire vehicles. During impact, both the force history and projectile velocity are captured. The device was successfully used to demonstrate the damage tolerance performance of the NASA Composite Crew Module. The impactor was used to impact 18 different design features at impact energies up to 35 J. Detailed examples of these results are presented, showing impact force histories, damage inspection results, and response to loading

Investigation of the Leak Response of a Carbon-Fiber Laminate Loaded in Biaxial Tension

Designers of pressurized structures have been reluctant to use composite materials because of concerns over leakage. Biaxial stress states are expected to be the worst-case loading condition for allowing leakage to occur through microcracks. To investigate the leakage behavior under in-plane biaxial loading, a cruciform composite specimen was designed that would have a relatively large test section with a uniform 1:1 biaxial loading ratio. A 7.6-cm-square test section was desired for future investigations of the leakage response as a result of impact damage. Many iterations of the cruciform specimen were evaluated using finite element analysis to reduce stress concentrations and maximize the size of the uniform biaxial strain field. The final design allowed the specimen to go to relatively high biaxial strain levels without incurring damage away from the test section. The specimen was designed and manufactured using carbon/epoxy fabric with a four-ply-thick, quasi-isotropic, central test section. Initial validation and testing were performed on a specimen without impact damage. The specimen was tested to maximum biaxial strains of approximately 4500micro epsilon without apparent damage. A leak measurement system containing a pressurized cavity was clamped to the test section and used to measure the flow rate through the specimen. The leakage behavior of the specimen was investigated for pressure differences up to 172 kP

A Finite Element Analysis for Predicting the Residual Compressive Strength of Impact-Damaged Sandwich Panels

A simple analysis method has been developed for predicting the residual compressive strength of impact-damaged sandwich panels. The method is tailored for honeycomb core-based sandwich specimens that exhibit an indentation growth failure mode under axial compressive loading, which is driven largely by the crushing behavior of the core material. The analysis method is in the form of a finite element model, where the impact-damaged facesheet is represented using shell elements and the core material is represented using spring elements, aligned in the thickness direction of the core. The nonlinear crush response of the core material used in the analysis is based on data from flatwise compression tests. A comparison with a previous analysis method and some experimental data shows good agreement with results from this new approach

Experimental and Numerical Analysis of Skin-Stiffener Separation Using a Seven-Point Bend Configuration

Skin-stiffener separation in stiffened composite panels consists of a complex interaction between multiple scales of progressive damage and failure mechanisms. This work used a superposed cohesive element method of modeling resistance curve effects that represents the structural interface of a unidirectional tape skin and a fabric stiffener. Finite element models using cohesive elements with input properties obtained from tape-to-fabric interface characterization tests were compared to experimental results of a stable skin-stiffener separation characterization test using a seven-point bend fixture. This fixture deformed the stiffened panel specimens into a buckled configuration which induced mixed-mode interlaminar stress states at the skin-stiffener interface. The advantage of this fixture was the potential for more stable damage initiation and delamination growth compared to a stringer-stiffened panel under axial compression. Use of the superposed cohesive elements showed promise, but the characterization of interface material properties as input to the cohesive elements remains a crucial component to be investigated to ensure accurate prediction of skin-stiffener separation

Out-of-plane properties

This paper summarizes three areas of research which were performed to characterize out-of-plane properties of composite materials. In the first investigation, a series of tests was run to characterize the through-the-thickness tensile strength for a variety of composites that included 2D braids, 2D and 3D weaves, and prepreg tapes. A new test method based on a curved beam was evaluated. Failures were significantly different between the 2D materials and the 3D weaves. The 2D materials delaminated between layers due to out-of-plane tensile stresses while the 3D weaves failed due to the formation of radial cracks between the surface plies caused by high circumferential stresses along the inner radius. The strength of the 2D textile composites did not increase relative to the tapes. Final failure in the 3D weaves was caused by a circumferential crack similar to the 2D materials and occurred at a lower bending moment than in other materials. The early failures in the 3D weaves were caused by radial crack formation rather than a low through-the-thickness strength. The second investigation focused on the development of a standard impact test method to measure impact damage resistance. The only impact tests that currently exist are compression after impact (CAI) tests which incorporate elements of both damage resistance and damage tolerance. A new impact test method is under development which uses a quasi-static indentation (QSI) test to directly measure damage resistance. Damage resistance is quantified in terms of the contact force to produce a unit of damage where a metric for damage may be area in C-scan, depth of residual dent , penetration, damage growth, etc. A final draft of an impact standard that uses a QSI test method will be presented to the ASTM Impact Task Group on impact. In the third investigation, the impact damage resistance behavior of a variety of textile materials was studied using the QSI test method. In this study, the force where large damage initiates was measured and the delamination size as a function of force was determined. The force to initiate large damage was significantly lower in braids and weaves. The delamination diameter - impact forace relationship was quanitfied using a damage resistance parameter, Q(*), which related delamination diameter to imapct force over a range of delamination sizes. Using this Q(*) parameter to rate the materials, the stitched uniweaves, toughened epoxy tapes, and through-the-thickness orthogonal interlock weave were the most damage resistant