Predicting the elasto-plastic response of short fiber reinforced composites using a computationally efficient multi-scale framework based on physical matrix properties

Abstract

Predicting the nonlinear mechanical response of short fiber reinforced composites (SFRCs) is a crucial and challenging task. In this paper, a computationally efficient multi-scale strategy is proposed to predict the anisotropic elasto-plastic behavior of SFRCs using the intrinsic mechanical behavior of the pure polymer and fibers without the requirements for reverse engineering. In doing so, different simple unit cells are first examined to find the one that can adequately describe the nonlinear mechanical response of SFRCs' representative volume elements (RVE) with aligned fibers. Considering the effects of packing configuration, fiber aspect ratio, volume fraction and material properties, the performance of different unit cells is investigated. Then, the homogenized mechanical responses of unit cells are linked to Hill's anisotropic plasticity model to correlate the mechanical response of the suggested unit cell to the continuum domain. Using the pseudo-grain approach and a numerical orientation averaging framework, the effects of fiber misalignment are taken into account. A multi-step homogenization strategy is also employed to consider the variation of fiber orientation tensor and volume fraction through the thickness. Finally, the validity and robustness of the proposed multi-scale strategy are extensively investigated based on the RVE-generated results and the available experimental observations.