Electrical⁃Mechanical Coupling Behaviors and Thermal⁃Resistance Effects of 3D Braided Composites

Electrical-mechanical coupling behaviors and thermal-resistance effects of 3D braided composites under external loads are important for structural health monitoring(SHM). Electrical conductivity and electrical-mechanical coupling behaviors of 3D braided carbon fiber/epoxy composites under uniaxial tension were reported. It was found that the transverse resistance decreased and the axial resistance increased with the increasing braiding angle. The fractional change in resistance increased linearly as the strain was below 1.0%, and the nonlinearity appeared when the strain exceeded 1.0%. The negative temperature coefficient(NTC) effect was observed before the glass transition temperature Tg of epoxy resin, while there was a positive temperature coefficient(PTC) effect after Tg.

Defects Recognition of 3D Braided Composite Based on Dual-Tree Complex Wavelet Packet Transform

Textile-reinforced composites,due to their excellent highstrength-to-low-mass ratio, provide promising alternatives to conventional structural materials in many high-tech sectors. 3D braided composites are a kind of advanced composites reinforced with 3D braided fabrics; the complex nature of 3D braided composites makes the evaluation of the quality of the product very difficult. In this investigation,a defect recognition platform for 3D braided composites evaluation was constructed based on dual-tree complex wavelet packet transform( DT-CWPT) and backpropagation( BP) neural networks. The defects in 3D braided composite materials were probed and detected by an ultrasonic sensing system. DT-CWPT method was used to analyze the ultrasonic scanning pulse signals,and the feature vectors of these signals were extracted into the BP neural networks as samples. The type of defects was identified and recognized with the characteristic ultrasonic wave spectra. The position of defects for the test samples can be determined at the same time. This method would have great potential to evaluate the quality of 3D braided composites.

Numerical simulation on thermal expansion coefficient of 3D braided C/C composites

To effectively get the thermal expansion coef- ficient （CTE） of three-dimensional （3D） braided C/C composites and study the variations, a VC＋＋ program with graphical user interfaces was obtained, based on the yam unit model and numerical analysis. With the limited basic properties of carbon fibers and carbon matrix, CTE of 3D braided C/C composites is obtained at 85 ~C. The deviation between the simulated and exl^erimental axial CTE of 3D braided C/C composites is no more than 11%. The effects of different parameters （including the braiding angle of 3D braided preform, the fiber volume fraction and the porosity of 3D braided C/C composites, and the elastic modulus, Poisson＇s ratio and CTEs of carbon fibers and carbon matrix） were analyzed with the program. The results show that the axial CTE of C/C composites decreases with the increase of the braiding angle, the fiber volume fraction, and the porosity of 3D braided C/C composites. The transverse elastic modulus of carbon fibers has the greatest effect on the axial CTE among the studied mechanical parameters, followed by the elastic modulus and Poisson＇s ratio of carbon matrix.

Nonlinear bending analysis of a 3D braided composite cylindrical panel subjected to transverse loads in thermal environments

The aim of this study is to investigate nonlinear bending for a 3-Dimensional（3D）braided composite cylindrical panel which has transverse loads on its finite length. By refining a micro-macro-mechanical model, the 3D braided composite can be treated as a representative average cell system. The geometric structural properties of its components deeply depend on their positions in the section of the cylindrical panel. The embedded elastic medium of the panel can be described by a Pasternak elastic foundation. Via using the shell theory of the von Ka′rma′nDonnell type of kinematic nonlinearity, governing equations can be established to get higherorder shear deformation. The mixed Galerkin-perturbation method is applied to get the nonlinear bending behavior of the 3D braided cylindrical panel with a simply supported boundary condition.Based on the analysis of the braided composite cylindrical panel with variable initial stress, geometric parameter, fiber volume fraction, and elastic foundation, serial numerical illustrations are archived to represent the appropriate nonlinear bending responses.

Damage Simulation for 3D Braided Composites by Homogenization Method

In order to study the failure patterns and strength of 3D braided composites from the microscopic view, the damage propagation under tensile loading steps in three kinds of unit cells is simulated. The homogenization formula of micro-stress and the solving approach of finite element method are given firstly. A criterion is presented to determine the damage and its pattern of each element, and then the stiffness degradation method based on Murakami's geometric damage theory is used to simulate the status of damage under tensile loading steps for three kinds of unit cells. It can be seen that the damage percentage and damage pattern of damaged unit cell are totally different for different kind of unit cells. More damaged elements are observed for face cell and corner cell than that for body cell. It is also observed that the damage firstly occurs at the area of face cell, which agrees well with experimental results. It is verified that considering the effects of face and corner cells are important for the damage and strength analysis of 3D braided composites.

Effects of Microstructure on Quasi⁃Static Transverse Loading Behavior of 3D Circular Braided Composite Tubes

The effects of microstructure on quasi-static transverse loading behavior of 3D circular braided composite tubes were studied. Transverse loading tests were conducted. Transverse load-deflection curves were obtained to analyze the effects of braiding parameters including the braiding angle, the wall thickness, and the diameter on the transverse loading of 3D circular braided composite tubes. Breaking loads, moduli and strengths had also been used to describe the transverse loading behaviors. The failure morphologies were shown to reveal damage mechanisms. From the results, the increase in braiding angle, wall thickness and diameter increases the ability of anti-deformation and breaking load of braided tubes. The breaking load of specimen with a braiding angle of 45° is about 1.68 times that of specimen with a braiding angle of 15°. The breaking load of specimen with 4 layers of yarns is about 2.15 times that of specimen with 2 layers of yarns. The breaking load of the tube with a diameter of 25.5 mm is about 2.39 times that of the tube with a diameter of 20.5 mm.

Tensile Properties of 3-Dimension-4-directional Braided C_f/Si C Composite based on Double-scale Model

The longitude tensile properties of 3-Dimension-4-directional（3D-4d） braided C/Si C composites（CMCs） were investigated with the help of a double scale model. This model involves micro-scale and unit-cell scale. In micro-scale, the tensile properties of fiber tows which involves matrix cracking, interfacial debonding, and fiber failure are studied. The unit-cell scale model can reflect the braided structure and simulate the tensile properties of 3D-4d CMCs by introducing the tensile properties of fiber tows into it. Quasi-static tensile tests of 3D-4d braided CMCs were performed on a PWS-100 test system. The predicted tensile stressstrain curve by the double scale model is in good agreement with that of the experimental results.

Theoretical prediction of stiffness and strength of three-dimensional and four-directional braided composites

Based on unit cell model, the 3D 4-directional braided composites can be simplified as unidirectional composites with different local axial coordinate system and the compliance matrix of unidirectional composites can be defined utilizing the bridge model. The total stiffness matrix of braided composites can be obtained by the volume average stiffness of unidirectional composites with different local axial coordinate system and the engineering elastic constants of braided composites were computed further. Based on the iso-strain assumption and the bridge model, the stress distribution of fiber bundle and matrix of different unidirectional composites can be determined and the tensile strength of 3D 4-directional braided composites was predicted by means of the Hoffman＇s failure criterion for the fiber bundle and Mises＇ failure criterion for the matrix.

Elastic Modulus Prediction of Three-dimension-4 Directional Braided C_f/SiC Composite Based on Double-scale Model

Double-scale model for three-dimension-4 directional（3D-4d） braided C/SiC composites has been proposed to investigate its elastic properties. The double-scale model involves micro-scale that takes fiber/ matrix/porosity in fibers tows into consideration with unit cell which considers the 3D-4d braiding structure. Micro-optical photographs of composites have been taken to study the braided structure. Then a parameterized finite element model that reflects the structure of 3D-4d braided composites is proposed. Double-scale elastic modulus prediction model is developed to predict the elastic properties of 3D-4d braided C/SiC composites. Stiffness and eompliance-averaging method and energy method are adopted to predict the elastic properties of composites. Static-tension experiments have been conducted to investigate the elastic modulus of 3D-4d braided C/SiC composites. Finally, the effect of micro-porosity in fibers tows on the elastic modulus of 3D-4d braided C/SiC composites has been studied. According to the conclusion of this thesis, elastic modulus predicted by energy method and stiffness-averaging method both find good agreement with the experimental values, when taking the micro-porosity in fibers tows into consideration. Differences between the theoretical and experimental values become smaller.

Using Acoustic Emissions to Detect Damage in Three-Dimensional Braided Composites

Three-dimensional(3D)braided composites with better properties have been used in some particular industries.Some have had obvious signs of crack when they are braided.Others have had catastrophic failures occuring without warning.A new methodology for the analysis of failure modes in composite materials by means of acoustic emission techniques has been developed.The occurrence of fiber-breakage during tensile loading tests has been observed by the acoustic emission technology.Using acoustic emission technology is investigated as a means of monitoring 3D braided composites structures,detecting damage,and predicting impending damage.Some of the findings of the research project were presented.

A New Scheme and Microstructural Model for 3D Full 5-directional Braided Composites

Three-dimensional（3 D）braided composites are a kind of advanced ones and are used in the aeronautical and astronautical fields more widely. The advantages, usages, shortages and disadvantages of 3D braided composites are analyzed, and the possible approach of improving the properties of the materials is presented, that is, a new type of 3D full 5-directional braided composites is developed. The methods of making this type of preform are proposed. It is pointed out that the four-step braiding which is the most possible to realize industrialized production almost has no effect on the composites＇ properties. By analyzing the simulation model,the advantages of the material compared with the 3D 4-directional and 5-directional materials are presented. Finally, a microstructural model is analyzed to lay the foundation for the future theoretical analysis of these composites.