Compressive failure behaviour of glass epoxy and graphite epoxy composite laminates due to the effects of different cut-out sizes and variations in fibre orientation

Abstract

Composite laminates consisting epoxy are widely used in major industries. Hence, the mechanical property of these materials needs to be fully understood. Currently, there is limited studies on the effect of various square cut-out sizes related to glass epoxy and graphite epoxy composite laminates, therefore, the behaviour of these laminates is not fully understood. This paper aims to study the effect of the square cut-out sizes on the failure performance of glass epoxy and graphite epoxy composite laminates with various fibre orientations. Prior to the compressive failure analysis, convergence and numerical validation were conducted. The failure analysis is conducted by using the finite element method (FEM) using ANSYS with maximum stress theory as the failure criteria. The results show a substantial difference in the strength of the laminates without and with cut-outs. The main finding that can be deduced from the study is, the presence of cut-out reduces the strength of the composite laminates. Different fibre orientations effected graphite epoxy composite laminate at a considerable amount compared to glass epoxy laminates. From the results, it is proven that the present study is important in understanding the compressive failure behaviour of the composite plate in which can be useful in contributing the knowledge for further study.