Use of enriched shell elements compared to solid elements for modelling delamination growth during impact on composites

• Simulation of damage in composite laminates using currently available three-dimensional finite element tools is computationally demanding often to the point that analysis is not practical. This paper presents an enriched shell element that can provide a computationally efficient means to simulate low-velocity impact damage in a composite. The enriched element uses the Floating Node Method and a damage algorithm based on the Virtual Crack Closure Technique that is capable of simulating progressive damage growth consisting of delamination and delamination-migrations from ply to ply during a dynamic impact load. This paper presents results from the shell model in a test-analysis correlation for impact testing of 7-ply and 56-ply laminates. Analysis results from a separate high-fidelity three-dimensional finite element analysis are included also for comparison in the case of the 7-ply laminate, but not in the case the 56-ply laminate due to excessive computational demand. This paper serves as the first application of both models in low-velocity impact simulation. The shell model is considerably more computationally efficient than the high-fidelity model by at least an order of magnitude and is shown to produce results, while not as accurate as the high-fidelity model, potentially sufficiently accurate for a wide range of engineering applications including structural design and rapid prototype assessments.

Ämnesord

TEKNIK OCH TEKNOLOGIER  -- Materialteknik -- Kompositmaterial och -teknik (hsv//swe)

ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY  -- Materials Engineering -- Composite Science and Engineering (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

Delamination

Laminates

Low-velocity impact

Mechanical testing

Computational efficiency

Crack closure

Finite element method

Impact testing

Shells (structures)

Composite laminate

Computationally efficient

Delamination growth

High fidelity models

Low velocity impact

Mechanical

Ply laminates

Shell element

Shell models

Solid elements

Publikations- och innehållstyp

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