An Integrated Approach for Efficient and High-fidelity Analysis of Composite Structures

Abstract

An integrated approach for efficient and accurate analysis of composite structures is introduced in this work by connecting high-fidelity models of composite beams, plates, and shells with a versatile multibody dynamic environment. The high-fidelity models are those implemented in the computer programs VABS and VAPAS which are constructed using the variational asymptotic method without invoking any ad hoc kinematic assumptions. The mutlibody dynamic environment we choose is DYMORE, a general-purpose, finite element based flexible multibody dynamic code. This integrated approach can carry out various analyses of multibody systems involving components made with composite materials. Several examples including buckling, free vibration, and forced vibration of composite structures are studied and compared with other theories to demonstrate the efficiency and accuracy of high-fidelity models and the versatility of this approach for analysis of general composite structures.