Numerical analysis of mechanical behavior of unidirectional thermoplastic-based carbon fiber composite for 3D-printing

Abstract

The paper is dedicated to the simulation of mechanical behavior of a unidirectional thermoplastic-based composite material reinforced with carbon fibers. The influence of microstructure imperfections on mechanical characteristics of the composite material has been studied, and numerical parameters that ensure a good correlation between nonlinear two-scale simulation of progressive damage and experimental data have been identified. Results of the study revealed limited importance of accounting for such imperfections of composite microstructure as deviation in fiber laying direction and fiber curvature. The two-scale simulation approach based on submodeling technique was proved to describe the nonlinear behavior of the thermoplastic-based carbon fiber material with a reasonable accuracy.