Graduation Semester and Year

Summer 2024

Language

English

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science in Aerospace Engineering

Department

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

First Advisor

Dr. Paul Davidson

Abstract

The high specific strength and specific stiffness of composite materials makes them highly desirable for structural applications, but their laminated nature makes them susceptible to impact damage. Even low velocity impacts (LVI), generally, result in barely visible impact damage (BVID) and delamination, which can go unnoticed and grow during service, eventually leading to catastrophic failure. Due to this, the study of impact resistance and damage tolerance is typically studied through LVI followed by compression after impact (CAI) experiments. However, conducting LVI experiments are time consuming and expensive, as they require specialized equipment and extensive pre-test preparations.

In this study, the possibility of using quasi-static indentation experiments to replace dynamic impact testing is explored for specially orthotropic laminates. Analytical models are used to compare the response of plates under quasi-static central point loads and dynamic impact loading. Quasi-static indentation is modeled using first order shear deformation theory (FSDT), whereas the dynamic impact is modeled using a non-linear two degree of freedom spring mass model. Parametric analyses were conducted to study the influence of aspect ratio, laminate plate stiffness, and impact energy on feasible range where quasi-static indentation can replace dynamic impact tests.

Keywords

Composite Materials, Analytical

Disciplines

Structures and Materials

License

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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