Fatigue damage simulation of tension-tension loaded glass/polyester fiber composites with thickness tapering effects

Abstract

This study evaluates the capability of a progressive damage method in predicting the fatigue failure in glass/polyester fiber composite materials. Residual material properties in different failure modes have been obtained from testing fatigue-loaded specimens to their ultimate limits. A numerical tool utilizes the experimentally obtained values to simulate the process of damage in more complex models with high interlaminar shear stresses. The tool accounts for fatigue damage through stiffness and strength degradation rules without relying on prior calibration/modifications. Benchmark ply-drop problems under constant and variable amplitude fatigue loadings are simulated and compared against experimental results. Verification case studies show that the numerical tool can predict damage initiation and final fatigue life, successfully.

Progressive fatigue damage modeling of laminated composites using strain-based failure criteria

“…This model consists of stress analysis, failure analysis (using stress-based failure criteria), material property degradation rules, and life calculation as the main components. Their PFD model has been widely used [7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25] to evaluate the fatigue behavior of composite structures under different loading conditions.…”

“…Furthermore, Mousavi et al 10 used the PFD model by considering the in-plane shear stress-strain nonlinearity to increase the accuracy of simulating the fatigue behavior of cross-ply laminated composites. Hosseiny and Jakobsen 11 assessed the fatigue behavior of glass/polyester composites using the PFD model. Rivera et al 12 applied the PFD model to analyze thin-walled beam composite structures.…”