Discrete ply modelling of aeronautical intermediate-scale notched carbon fibre reinforced thermoplastic specimens subjected to multiaxial loading

Abstract

Several finite element models developed at the mesoscale level are available for predicting the strength and failure progression of composite materials. However, this kind of damage models are commonly validated by comparing with typical coupon-scale testing specimens under uniaxial loading, which are not fully representative of aeronautical structures subjected to complex multiaxial loads. In this work, the Discrete Ply Model (DPM) is employed to reproduce intermediate-scale experimental tests carried out on carbon fibre reinforced thermoplastic samples, with a sharp central notch of 100 mm, tested in the VERTEX rig under tension, shear, and combined tension and shear loading. The tests show early buckling (particularly for the shear and combined cases) and development of post-buckling for almost the entire loading. The numerical results obtained demonstrate that the strengths, the fluxes as a function of the applied strains, deformed shapes, buckling modes, crack propagations and failure patterns are predicted with reasonable accuracy