Damage evolution in composite pipes using a continuum damage mechanics formulation

Abstract

International audienceComposite pipes are replacing conventional steel pipes in oil and gas transport applications. Their strength is determined by specific failure criteria for composite materials, however, once the damage has initiated there exists an interest in knowing how it propagates or evolves in order to determine the remaining life of a pipe. After damage initiation, mechanisms like micro cracking, fiber rupture, fiber-matrix debonding and delamination can occur [1]. Continuum damage mechanics is a phenomenological theory for taking into account these mechanisms in the effects of the mechanical material behavior [2]. Currently, it exists a variety of damage models for composites laminates [3]. Ferry et al. [4] have proposed an anisotropic damage model for pipes with good agreement with experimental data. Other models are also developed or implemented for composite pipes for example in [5]. Solution of these models are indeed not very easy and usually an implementation in a FEA (Finite Element Analysis) code is needed. A common numerical method to solve for these equations is the return mapping algorithm. In this work, we study the numerical methods available for the solution of damage evolution in composite laminates by the application of an industrial example: composite pipes