Efficient High-Precision Modeling of Irregularities in Laminated Systems

Abstract

This study is concerned with the accurate prediction of response of structural components under mechanical loads in the presence of various types of irregularities in homogeneous as well as inhomogeneous systems like laminated composites and bonded patch repaired plates. For accurate modeling of such systems, new two-dimensional models are developed to represent the three-dimensional stress field near an irregularity and two-dimensional ones away from it. The developed scheme is implemented using MATLAB as the computational platform. Apart from such implementation, a number of other advanced computational procedures like VCCT based fracture mechanics computations, ordinary Kriging interpolation scheme for adaptive model refinement, geometrically nonlinear analysis, and a simple but novel approach to delamination analysis are implemented. The software is verified and/or validated with a number of critical examples. Also, it is used to predict the behavior of damaged homogeneous and laminated plates with and without bonded patch repair. Important conclusions are drawn regarding the behavior of patch repaired plates as well as the efficiency of the proposed modeling schemes.