A Multiscale Reliability-Based Design Optimization Method for Carbon-Fiber-Reinforced Composite Drive Shafts

Carbon fiber composites,characterized by their high specific strength and low weight,are becoming increasingly crucial in automotive lightweighting.However,current research primarily emphasizes layer count and orientation,often neglecting the potential of microstructural design,constraints in the layup process,and performance reliability.This study,therefore,introduces a multiscale reliability-based design optimization method for carbon fiber-reinforced plastic(CFRP)drive shafts.Initially,parametric modeling of the microscale cell was performed,and its elastic performance parameters were predicted using two homogenization methods,examining the impact of fluctuations in microscale cell parameters on composite material performance.A finite element model of the CFRP drive shaft was then constructed,achieving parameter transfer between microscale and macroscale through Python programming.This enabled an investigation into the influence of both micro and macro design parameters on the CFRP drive shaft’s performance.The Multi-Objective Particle Swarm Optimization(MOPSO)algorithm was enhanced for particle generation and updating strategies,facilitating the resolution of multi-objective reliability optimization problems,including composite material layup process constraints.Case studies demonstrated that this approach leads to over 30%weight reduction in CFRP drive shafts compared to metallic counterparts while satisfying reliability requirements and offering insights for the lightweight design of other vehicle components.

INTERFACIAL DEBONDING OF COATED-FIBER-REINFORCED COMPOSITES UNDER TENSION-TENSION CYCLIC LOADING

A new degradation function of the friction coefficient is used.Based on the double shear-lag model and Paris formula,the interracial damage of coated- fiber-reinforced composites under tension-tension cyclic loading is studied.The effects of strength and thickness of the coating materials on the debond stress,debond rate as well as debond length are simulated.

A parallel fast multipole BEM and its applications to large-scale analysis of 3-D fiber-reinforced composites

In this paper, an adaptive boundary element method （BEM） is presented for solving 3-D elasticity problems. The numerical scheme is accelerated by the new version of fast multipole method （FMM） and parallelized on distributed memory architectures. The resulting solver is applied to the study of representative volume element （RVE） for short fiberreinforced composites with complex inclusion geometry. Numerical examples performed on a 32-processor cluster show that the proposed method is both accurate and efficient, and can solve problems of large size that are challenging to existing state-of-the-art domain methods.

A refined finite element method for bending analysis of laminated plates integrated with piezoelectric fiber-reinforced composite actuators

This research presents a finite element formulation based on four-variable refined plate theory for bending analysis of cross-ply and angle-ply laminated composite plates integrated with a piezoelectric fiber-reinforced composite actuator under electromechanical loading. The four-variable refined plate theory is a simple and efficient higher-order shear deformation theory, which predicts parabolic variation of transverse shear stresses across the plate thickness and satisfies zero traction conditions on the plate free surfaces. The weak form of governing equations is derived using the principle of minimum potential energy, and a 4-node non-conforming rectangular plate element with 8 degrees of freedom per node is introduced for discretizing the domain. Several benchmark problems are solved by the developed MATLAB code and the obtained results are compared with those from exact and other numerical solutions, showing good agreement.

Influence of Low-velocity Impact on Damage Behavior of Carbon Fiber-reinforced Composites

A combination of experimental measurements and numerical analysis was utilized to study the low-velocity impact damage of domestic carbon fiber-reinforced composites(CFRCs).The results indicated that the low-velocity impact damage induced pits and longitudinal cracks on the front side,oblique cracks and delaminationin on the back side.The pit depth increased with the increasing impact energy.It was demonstrated that the numerical analysis strain history curve was similar to the experimentally measured strain history curve,which verified the accuracy of numerical analysis in which the Hashin failure criterion was used.The work provides basic data and theoretical basis for the promotion and application of the domestic carbon fiber,and demonstrates the feasibility of replacing imported carbon fibers with domestic carbon fibers.

ANALYTICAL SOLUTIONS FOR ELASTOSTATIC PROBLEMS OF PARTICLE-AND FIBER-REINFORCED COMPOSITES WITH INHOMOGENEOUS INTERPHASES

By transforming the governing equations for displacement components into Riccati equations, analytical solutions for displacements, strains and stresses for Representive Volume Elements (RVEs) of particle_ and fiber_reinforced composites containing inhomo geneous interphases were obtained. The analytical solutions derived here are new and general for power_law variations of the elastic moduli of the inhomogeneous interphases. Given a power exponent, analytical expressions for the bulk moduli of the composites with inho mogeneous interphases can be obtained. By changing the power exponent and the coefficients of the power terms, the solutions derived here can be applied to inhomogeneous interphases with many different property profiles. The results show that the modulus variation and the thickness of the inhomogeneous interphase have great effect on the bulk moduli of the composites. The particle will exhibit a sort of “size effect”, if there is an interphase.

Properties of frictional bridging in fiber pull-out for fiber-reinforced composites

Stress equilibrium equations, boundary- and continuity-conditions were used to establish a theoretical model of progressive debonding with friction at the debonded interface. On a basis of the minimum complementary energy principle, an expression for the energy release rate G was derived to explore the interfacial fracture properties. An interfacial debonding crite- rion G≥Γi was introduced to determine the critical debond length and the bridging law. Numerical calculation results for fi- ber-reinforced composite SCS-6/Ti-6Al-4V were compared with those obtained by using the shear-lag models.

NUMERICAL SIMULATION OF 2D FIBER-REINFORCED COMPOSITES USING BOUNDARY ELEMENT METHOD

The boundary dement method was improved for the 2D elastic composites with randomly distributed inclusions. This problem can be reduced to a boundary integral equation for a multi-connected domain. Further, considering the matrices of the tractions and displacements for each group of the identical inclusion were the same, an effective computational scheme was designed, since the orders of the resulting matrix equations can be greatly reduced. Numerical examples indicate that this boundary element method scheme is more effective than the conventional multi-domain boundary element method for such a problem. The present scheme can be used to investigate the effective mechanical properties of the fiber-reinforced composites.

A Biomimetic Model of Fiber-reinforced Composite Materials

In thjs paper. bamboo fiber has been. on micro scale. investigated as a helical. multi-layered hollow cylinder, the stiffness featu res of bamboo bast fiber were compared with those of a multifilament yarn in traditional fiber-reinforced composite materials, Moreover. a biomimetic model of the reinforce ment of fiber-reinforced composite materials was proposed by imitating the fine structure of bamboo bast fiber. The results show that the comprehensive stiffness properties of the cornplicated fine struc ture of bamboo fiber is superior over those of traditional fiber-reinforced composites.

The finite element analysis of articular cartilage fiber-reinforced composite model under rolling load

Articular cartilage is a layer of low-friction,load-bearing soft hydrated tissue covering bone-ends in diarthrosis,which plays an important role in spreading the load,reducing the joint contact stress,joint friction and wear during exercise.The vital mechanical function

INFLUENCE OF LOADING RATE ON DYNAMIC FRACTURE BEHAVIOR OF FIBER-REINFORCED COMPOSITES

The effect of loading rate on the dynamic fracture properties and the failure mechanisms of glass fiber-reinforced composite materials under mode I fracture is studied. Dynamic reflective caustic experiments are carried out for two loading rates. By measuring the characteristic dimensions of the shadow spots during the caustic experiments, the dynamic SIFs are calculated for different loading rates. The experimental results indicate that the dynamic fracture toughness Kid increases remarkably with increasing loading rate, and the crack grows faster under the high-velocity impact. Moreover, by examining the crack growth routes and the fracture surfaces, it is shown that the loading rate also greatly affects the failure mechanisms at micro-scale.

Mechanical and Microstructural Characteristics of the Fiber-Reinforced Composite Materials

Composite fiber materials are superior materials due to their high strength and light weight. Composites reflect the properties of their constituents, which is proportional to the volume fraction of each phase. There are different fiber reinforcement types and each affects its flexural, tensile and compression strength. When selecting a composite for a specific application, the forces excreted on the composite must be known in order to determine the reinforcement type. Unidirectional fiber reinforcement will allow very strong load resistance but only in one direction where as a random orientated fiber reinforcement can resist less load but can maintain this quota in all directions. These materials are said to be anisotropic. Certain composite fibers, taking into consideration their weights, are physically stronger than conventional metals. In this paper, specific light-weight components with different reinforcement types, volume fraction and phase content were newly composed, tested, characterized and evaluated. By applying a novel method, a model which including the various matrix compositions, reinforcement types of each specific component, and its dual-properties was developed according to the structure characteristics. It was shown that certain reinforced composites such as carbon fiber, tend to be much stronger than metals when taking account its weight ratio. The outcome of this research lays a good foundation for the further carbon fiber-based material design work.

Effects of Processing Parameters on Mechanical Properties and Structure of Banana Fiber-Reinforced Composites

The mechanical properties of unidirectional natural fiber-reinforced composites are generally affected by several processing parameters during compression molding.This study investigates the effects of processing temperature,time,and pressure on the tensile and flexural properties of acrylonitrile butadiene styrene reinforced by banana fibers.X-ray CT imaging was employed to find the relationship between the mechanical properties and structure of the processed composite.Besides,the water absorption of composites was observed and the way in which the mechanical properties evolved after water absorption was analyzed.The tensile and flexural properties of the unidirectional banana fiber-reinforced composite were found to be inversely proportional to the porosity.In addition,high-pressure compression molding might result in cracks and floating fibers that would significantly reduce its mechanical properties.The composite with the highest strength,smallest porosity and lowest water absorption was optimally prepared at T=170℃,t=20 min,and P=100 kg cm^-2.

Effective Elastic Properties of Honeycomb Core with Fiber-Reinforced Composite Cells

Sandwich construction incorporating a honeycomb cellular core offers the attainment of structures that are very stiff and strong in bending while the weight is kept at a minimum. Generally, an aluminum or Nomex honeycomb core is used in applications requiring sandwich construction with fiber-reinforced composite facesheets. However, the use of a fiber-reinforced composite core offers the potential for even lower weight, increased stiffness and strength, low thermal distortion compatible with that of the facesheets, the absence of galvanic corrosion and the ability to readily modify the core properties to suit specialized needs. Furthermore, the material of the core itself will exhibit anisotropic material properties in this case. In order to design, analyze and optimize these structures, knowledge of the effective mechanical properties of the core is essential. In this paper, the effective three-dimensional mechanical properties of a composite hexagonal cell core are determined using a numerical method based on a finite element analysis of a representative unit cell. In particular, the geometry of the simplest repeating unit of the core as well as the appropriate loading and boundary conditions that must be applied is presented.

Buckling optimization of curvilinear fiber-reinforced composite structures using a parametric level set method

Owing to their excellent performance and large design space,curvilinear fiber-reinforced composite structures have gained considerable attention in engineering fields such as aerospace and automobile.In addition to the stiffness and strength of such structures,their stability also needs to be taken into account in the design.This study proposes a level-set-based optimization framework for maximizing the buckling load of curvilinear fiber-reinforced composite structures.In the proposed method,the contours of the level set function are used to represent fiber paths.For a composite laminate with a certain number of layers,one level set function is defined by radial basis functions and expansion coefficients for each layer.Furthermore,the fiber angle at an arbitrary point is the tangent orientation of the contour through this point.In the finite element of buckling,the stiffness and geometry matrices of an element are related to the fiber angle at the element centroid.This study considers the parallelism constraint for fiber paths.With the sensitivity calculation of the objective and constraint functions,the method of moving asymptotes is utilized to iteratively update all the expansion coefficients regarded as design variables.Two numerical examples under different boundary conditions are given to validate the proposed approach.Results show that the optimized curved fiber paths tend to be parallel and equidistant regardless of whether the composite laminates contain holes or not.Meanwhile,the buckling resistance of the final design is significantly improved.

Influence of Mass Ratio of Resin and Stabilizer on Mechanical Properties of Mo Fiber-reinforced Granite Polymer Composite

Because inferior mechanical strength of granite polymer composite(GPC)has become the main drawback limiting its application and popularization,Mo fibers were added into(GPC)to improve its mechanical strength.Mechanical properties of matrix materials with different mass ratio of resin and stabilizer(MRRS)were investigated systematically.The influences of MRRS on interface bonding strength of Mo fiber-matrix,wettability and mechanical strength of GPC were discussed,respectively,and the theoretical calculation result of MRRS k was obtained,with the optimal value of k=4.When k=4,tensile strength,tensile strain and fracture stress of the cured resin achieve the maximum values.But for k=7,the corresponding values reach the minimum.With the increase of MRRS k,surface free energy of the cured resin first increases and then decreases,while contact angles between Mo sample and matrix have displayed the opposite trend.Wettability of resin to Mo fiber is the best at k=4.Pulling load of Mo fiber and interface bonding strength appear the maximum at k=4,followed by k=5,k=3 the third,and k=7 the minimum.When k=4,mechanical properties of Mo fiber-reinforced GPC are optimal,which is consistent with the result of theoretical calculation.This study is of great significance to get better component formulas of Mo fiber reinforced GPC and to improve its application in machine tools.

Fiber-reinforced composites in milling and grinding:machining bottlenecks and advanced strategies

Fiber-reinforced composites have become the preferred material in the fields of aviation and aerospace because of their high-strength performance in unit weight.The composite components are manufactured by near netshape and only require finishing operations to achieve final dimensional and assembly tolerances.Milling and grinding arise as the preferred choices because of their precision processing.Nevertheless,given their laminated,anisotropic,and heterogeneous nature,these materials are considered difficult-to-machine.As undesirable results and challenging breakthroughs,the surface damage and integrity of these materials is a research hotspot with important engineering significance.This review summarizes an up-to-date progress of the damage formation mechanisms and suppression strategies in milling and grinding for the fiber-reinforced composites reported in the literature.First,the formation mechanisms of milling damage,including delamination,burr,and tear,are analyzed.Second,the grinding mechanisms,covering material removal mechanism,thermal mechanical behavior,surface integrity,and damage,are discussed.Third,suppression strategies are reviewed systematically from the aspects of advanced cutting tools and technologies,including ultrasonic vibration-assisted machining,cryogenic cooling,minimum quantity lubrication(MQL),and tool optimization design.Ultrasonic vibration shows the greatest advantage of restraining machining force,which can be reduced by approximately 60%compared with conventional machining.Cryogenic cooling is the most effective method to reduce temperature with a maximum reduction of approximately 60%.MQL shows its advantages in terms of reducing friction coefficient,force,temperature,and tool wear.Finally,research gaps and future exploration directions are prospected,giving researchers opportunity to deepen specific aspects and explore new area for achieving high precision surface machining of fiber-reinforced composites.

Additively manufactured fiber-reinforced composites:A review of mechanical behavior and opportunities

Recent developments in additive manufacturing techniques have facilitated the fabrication of fiberreinforced composite materials.In this paper,the mechanical properties and deformation mechanisms of discontinuous and continuous fiber-reinforced composites fabricated by various additive manufacturing techniques are comprehensively reviewed.The effects of fiber type,orientation and weight/volume fraction,printing path,and stacking sequence on the mechanical properties of additively manufactured composites are discussed.In addition,the applications of additively manufactured composites,the main challenges of the current additive manufacturing techniques,and recommendations for future work are also presented.

Large Scale Analysis of Mechanical Properties in 3-D Fiber-Reinforced Composites Using a New Fast Multipole Boundary Element Method

Fiber-reinforced composites are commonly used in various engineering applications. The mechanical properties of such composites depend strongly on micro-structural parameters. This paper presents a new boundary element method （BEM） for numerical analysis of the mechanical properties of 3-D fiberreinforced composites. Acceleration of the BEM is achieved by means of a fast multipole method （FMM）, in allowing large scale simulations of a finite elastic domain containing up to 100 elastic fibers to be performed on one personal computer. The maximum number of degrees of freedom can reach a value of over 250 000. The effects of several key micro-structural parameters on the local stress fields and on the effective elastic moduli of fiber-reinforced composites are evaluated. The numerical results are compared with analytical predictions and good agreement is observed. The results show that the fast multipole BEM could be a promising tool for further understanding of the mechanical behavior of such composites.

Prediction model for determining the optimum operational parameters in laser forming of fiber-reinforced composites

Composite materials are widely employed in various industries,such as aerospace,automobile,and sports equipment,owing to their lightweight and strong structure in comparison with conventional materials.I aser material processing is a rapid technique for performing the various processes on composite materials.In particular,laser forming is a flexible and reliable approach for shaping fiber-metal laminates(FML.s),which are widely used in the aerospace industry due to several advantages,such as high strength and light weight.In this study,a prediction model was developed for determining the optimal laser parameters(power and speed)when forming FML composites.Artificial neural networks(ANNs)were applied to estimate the process outputs(temperature and bending angle)as a result of the modeling process.For this purpose,several ANN models were developed using various strategies.Finally,the achieved results demonstrated the advantage of the models for predicting the optimal operational parameters.