Folding of fiber composites with a hyperelastic matrix

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SOLIDS AND STRUCTURES

卷:49

Article

Jimenez, Francisco Lopez¹  Pellegrino, Sergio¹ 

[1] CALTECH, Grad Aerosp Labs, 1200 E Calif Blvd, Pasadena, CA 91125 USA

关键词: Fiber composites;    Hyperelastic matrix;    Bending;    Microbuckling;    Strain softening;    Random microstructure;   

DOI  :  10.1016/j.ijsolstr.2011.09.010

来源: Elsevier

【 摘 要 】

This paper presents an experimental and numerical study of the folding behavior of thin composite materials consisting of carbon fibers embedded in a silicone matrix. The soft matrix allows the fibers to micro-buckle without breaking and this acts as a stress relief mechanism during folding, which allows the material to reach very high curvatures. The experiments show a highly non-linear moment vs. curvature relationship, as well as strain softening under cyclic loading. A finite element model has been created to study the micromechanics of the problem. The fibers are modeled as linear-elastic solid elements distributed in a hyperelastic matrix according to a random arrangement based on experimental observations. The simulations obtained from this model capture the detailed micromechanics of the problem and the experimentally observed non-linear response. The proposed model is in good quantitative agreement with the experimental results for the case of lower fiber volume fractions but in the case of higher volume fractions the predicted response is overly stiff. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

【 授权许可】

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