Macro/Meso/Micro Elastic-Viscoplastic Analysis of Plain-Woven Laminates Using Homogenization Theory

Abstract

In this study, macro/meso/micro elastic-viscoplastic analysis of plain-woven laminates is conducted based on a homogenization theory for nonlinear time-dependent composites. For this, a plain-woven laminate is modeled with respect to three scales by considering the laminate as a macrostructure, fiber bundles (yarns) and a matrix in the laminate as a mesostructure, and fibers and a matrix in the yarns as a microstructure. Then, an elastic-viscoplastic constitutive equation of the laminate is derived by dually applying the homogenization theory for nonlinear time-dependent composites to not only the meso/micro but also the macro/meso scales. Using the present method, the elastic-viscoplastic analysis of a plain-woven glass fiber/epoxy laminate subjected to on-and off-axis loading is performed. It is shown that the present method successfully takes into account the effects of viscoplasticity of the epoxy in yarns on the elastic-viscoplastic behavior of the plain-woven GFRP laminate. It is also shown that the results of analysis are in good agreement with experimental data.