Influence of reconstruction uncertainty in fiber orientation distribution on the effective elastic constants of composites reinforced with discontinuous fibers: a Monte Carlo simulation study

Abstract

The orientation distribution of fibers in discontinuous fiber composite materials is influenced by various factors associated with the manufacturing process. Predicting fiber orientation distribution can be achieved through software simulation of the process or experimental methods, such as X-ray computed tomography. As uncertainties related to the reconstruction of fiber orientation distribution may be unavoidable in practical cases, this paper investigates the impact of some of these uncertainties on the effective elastic constants of composites through Monte Carlo simulations. The primary objective of this study is to address how the ratio of fiber detection and the measurement error of individual fiber orientation influence the orientation tensors and effective elastic constants. To predict the elastic properties of composites under various scenarios of fiber orientation distributions, a micromechanical model incorporating an orientation averaging procedure has been used. Three cases of different fiber orientation distributions have been analyzed. The conducted Monte Carlo simulations enabled the presentation of a quantitative description of the uncertainty associated with the reconstruction of the orientation distribution of fibers, including the effective elastic constants. The resulting distributions of orientation tensors and elastic constants have been analyzed and discussed.