Triaxial failure analysis using multicontinuum decomposition has been employed at the constituent level to predict nonlinear damage behavior and failure envelopes, all involving through-thickness stresses. In addition, a structural analysis algorithm is presented and is found to be numerically highly efficient in that the relationships between composite properties and damaged or failed constituent properties are completely determined prior to structural analysis. As a part of the Second World-Wide Failure Exercise, three-dimensional failure envelopes and stress-strain curves involving isotropic materials as well various unidirectional and multi-directional materials are presented for 12 test cases requested by the organizers. The present paper provides new developments in the multicontinuum methodology including: (a) modification of the constituent failure criteria, (b) incorporation of pressure effects, (c) new damage analyses, and (d) implementation into a commercial finite element package. Correlation with experimental results is provided in a second article addressing Part B of the Second World-Wide Failure Exercise.
This article presents progressive failure predictions, and comparisons against experimental data, for a variety of continuous fiber composite laminates subjected to multiaxial stress states. The work is part of a broader effort known as the Second World-Wide Failure Exercise. The emphasis of Second World-Wide Failure Exercise is a study of the influence of hydrostatic compressive stress on the stress–strain response and ultimate failure of the composite laminates studied. Polymers tend to exhibit significant increases in ultimate strength in the presence of hydrostatic compressive stresses. Nonlinear stress–strain behavior is also commonly observed. The complex material behavior of polymers presents several challenges in the analysis of composite materials where polymer resins are used as the matrix constituent. Failure simulations presented are multiscale in nature, consisting of a nonlinear finite element formulation with resolution extending down to the lamina level. The finite element analysis is further coupled to a multicontinuum theory where fiber and matrix constituents are treated as separate but linked continua. In general, the results of the multicontinuum theory failure simulations are in excellent agreement with the experimental data. The simulations were able to capture a variety of interesting material behaviors that are illuminated by the unique constituent level information provided in a multicontinuum theory analysis.
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