Failure behavior of laminated composite plates under anticlastic bending

Abstract

In this study, the failure behavior of laminated composite plates subjected to anticlastic bending is investigated. Anticlastic bending is a special case of bi-axial out-of-plane loading that produces predominantly twisting moment. A test fixture is designed to actualize anticlastic loading condition. Carbon-fiber-reinforced epoxy composite is selected as the material of the specimens. Totally nine different layup configurations are chosen and at least four specimens are tested for each configuration. Acoustic emission monitoring (AEM) is utilized to detect the first-ply-failure load and the accumulation of damage in the laminates. In this method, elastic waves resulting from initiation and progression of damage are detected, and then AE signals are processed to identify the failure modes and determine the first-ply-failure load. A finite element model is developed to simulate the anticlastic bending test. A code is developed using ANSYS parametric design language to predict the first-ply-failure loads using various failure criteria like Tsai–Wu, Hashin, and Puck. The experimental and numerical results are then compared. Relative strengths and weaknesses of the failure criteria in estimating failure of laminated composite plates under anticlastic bending are discussed.