Simulation and Analysis of Transverse Interface Cracking of Carbon Fiber Reinforced Composite

Abstract

Abstract. The Carbon fiber composite material has been widely used for its high specific strength, stiffness and many other excellent properties. But for the unidirectional carbon fiber composite, the transverse performance is much poorer than the longitudinal performance. Under the transverse load, interface debonding and matrix cracking tend to occur. In this paper the software ABAQUS was used to model the mechanical behavior of the carbon fiber composite under the transverse load, the extended finite element method (XFEM) and surface-based cohesive behavior were applied to simulate the interface and matrix transverse cracking in the composite. This simulation method laid a foundation for further studies on the interface and transverse property of the carbon fiber composite.