Prediction of tensile failure of stochastic tow-based discontinuous composites via mesoscale finite element analysis

Abstract

Stochastic tow-based discontinuous composite (STBDC) laminates are made from compression-molded tows of carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP). STBDCs are a material system that can be manufactured in complex three-dimensional geometries which provides an alternative to metallic components for primary and secondary structures. The effective elastic properties of STBDCs are often approximated as quasi-isotropic; however, this approximation does not adequately represent the material properties. A random sequential addition representative volume element (RVE) generation algorithm has been developed that considers the mesostructural morphology of STBDCs using a non-conforming voxel-based mesh framework. Using the framework, a full factorial design of experiments is performed on unnotched tension coupons. Simulations are performed using the Abaqus/Explicit solver. Results are compared to reported values found in the available literature, demonstrating good correlation compared effective stiffnesses and unnotched tensile failure strengths.