3D Multi Delamination/Fracture Analysis of Composites Subjected to Impact Loadings

Abstract

This paper presents a combined finite/discrete element method for 2D/3D modeling of composite specimens subjected to dynamic/impact loadings. Simulation of various composite failure modes, such as delamination and layer cracking, requires a sophisticated numerical approach capable of handling anisotropic behavior of individual layers as well as potential interaction phenomena. The combined finite/discrete element (FE/DE) methodology has proved to be an efficient approach for the simulation of progressive fracture in brittle and quasi-brittle media. Therefore, an existing FE/DE approach has been adopted and modified in this study for the simulation of delamination and fracture in composites subjected to impact loadings. The paper comprises a section on fundamental aspects of adopted FE/DE algorithm and discusses the basics of a general node to face nonlinear frictional contact algorithm. It is followed by details of formulation for composite failure mechanisms, including the Hoffman material model and the 3D Hashin interface model. Several numerical simulations are then discussed to assess the performance of the proposed approach. Full progressive fracture and fragmentation behavior as well as potential post-cracking interactions caused by the newly created crack sides and segments are automatically controlled. The same procedure is capable of modeling the application of fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) layers to other engineering structures in order to improve their flexible behavior in static and dynamic loading conditions.