Mechanical simulation of open hole compressive behavior for high-modulus and high-strength composite laminates

Abstract

Compression is a design limiting for composites as its much lower strength than tension. And it is still a challenge to predict the damage process for open-hole composite laminate under compression precisely Therefore, we proposed a progressive finite element model to demonstrate the failure behavior of open-hole laminates under compressive loading(OHC) for high-modulus and high-strength fiber reinforced composite laminates. The model was established in commercial code ABAQUS, with Puck failure theory and zigzagging softening law considered. It is shown that the model can predict the compressive strength and failure modes accurately. Sublaminate scaled laminates failed in a brittle manner caused by fiber failure with failure plane almost perpendicular to the loading direction. Ply-level scales laminates failed in a brittle manner with fiber splitting and delamination. Thus, the open-hole compressive strength for high-modulus and high-strength composite laminates depends on the fiber compressive strength and in-plane shear strength.