Abstract
In the present paper, advanced numerical methodologies have been adopted to investigate the influence of impact angle on the crashworthiness behavior of a composite fuselage section. The analyzed fuselage section, made of unidirectional fiber-reinforced material, woven fabric material, and aluminum material, is representative of a regional aircraft fuselage. Two different angles of impact with rigid ground have been investigated and reported: Perpendicularly to the ground and with a pitch angle of 3 degrees with respect to the ground. The adopted numerical models have been preliminarily validated with experimental data from a drop test on a full-scale fuselage section, in terms of deformations and failure location and progression. The correlation between the numerical model and the experimental test has enabled evaluation of the effect of the impact angle on the deformation and damage in the sub-cargo floor area.
Highlights
The increasing use of civil aircraft transport requires more and more attention to aircraft design to ensure occupant safety and structural integrity by means of controlled kinetic energy absorption, ensuring a level of deceleration within a given threshold [1,2,3,4] under an impact event
An advanced numerical model was presented, able to predict—in the initial phases—the behavior of the sub-cargo floor area when subjected to impact with the ground
The numerical analyses were preliminarily correlated to experimental data from a drop test on a full-scale composite fuselage section in terms of deformation and failure onset and propagation
Summary
The increasing use of civil aircraft transport requires more and more attention to aircraft design to ensure occupant safety and structural integrity by means of controlled kinetic energy absorption, ensuring a level of deceleration within a given threshold [1,2,3,4] under an impact event. This design approach, known as the crashworthiness design, is deeply influenced by the geometrical conditions, impact parameters, and material interactions [5,6] related to the impact phenomena’s great complexity [7,8,9,10].
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