Experimental and Numerical Investigation of Static and Dynamic Analysis of Delaminated Composite Plate

Abstract

Laminated composites are extensively used in various engineering industries like aerospace, civil, marine, automotive and other high performance structures due to their high stiffness to weight and strength to weight ratios, excellent fatigue resistance, long durability and many other superior properties compared to the conventional materials. Delamination is an insidious kind of failure, without being distinct on the surface which causes the layers of a laminated composite plate to detach. It is well known that the propagation of delamination is not only serious but also major concern for the designers in connection to the structural safety. Hence the presence of such defect has to be detected in time to plan the remedial action well in advance. The study aims to analyse mathematically the static, free vibration and transient behaviour of laminated structure with and without delamination by developing numerical models in MATLAB environment based on the higher order shear deformation theory in conjunction with finite element method. Also, a simulation model was developed using finite element software, ANSYS 15.0 and was used for analysis purpose. The static and dynamic analysis of laminated and delaminated plates has also been extended for an experimental validation. Three point bend test via UTM INSTRON 5967 and Modal test via PXIe-1071 was carried out on laminated and delaminated composite specimens and their responses were validated with those of numerical models and simulation model. Based on different numerical illustrations, the effectiveness and the applicability of the presently developed higher order models has been emphasised.