BUSAN, South Korea,
Aug. 7, 2024 /PRNewswire/ --
Composite laminates, consisting of bonded layers of different
materials, find extensive applications in various industries,
including aerospace, automobiles, and shipbuilding sectors due to
their exceptional strength-to-body-weight ratio and tailored
mechanical properties. Due to different strength and properties
resulted from different fiber directions, the design analysis and
optimization of composite laminates requires repetitive numerical
simulations to explore various layer materials and stacking
sequences.
For such simulations, researchers typically use the renowned
finite-element (FE) analysis based on three-dimensional (3-D)
elasticity theory. However, the large degrees of freedom (DOF) of
composite laminates make 3-D FE analysis resource-heavy,
time-intensive, and impractical for repetitive simulations.
Therefore, a numerical technique that is as accurate as FE analysis
while being faster and more flexible, is needed.
Addressing these issues, Professor Kyunghoon Lee and Shinseong Kang from the
Department of Aerospace Engineering at Pusan National University developed an innovative
Lego-like construction and analysis method for composite laminates.
"Inspired by substructuring and reduced order modeling (ROM)
techniques, we developed a two-stage, offline-online framework that
leverages component-based ROM. Like Lego bricks, our technique
allows us to readily change layer materials including fiber angles,
the number of layers, and their stacking sequence to build a
composite laminate on the fly, enabling rapid yet accurate
simulations," explains Prof. Lee. Their study was published in
the International Journal of Mechanical Sciences on June 21, 2024.
In component-based ROM, complex systems are broken down into
simpler subsystems that are individually analyzed using ROM. This
ROM technique involves developing reduced models with lower DOFs.
To achieve this goal, the researchers utilized static condensation
(SC) combined with port reduction (PR) and reduced basis element
(RBE) methods, leading to PR-SC and PR-SCRBE analysis methods. The
SC method allows the stacking of any number of layers in any
sequence as needed, by treating each layer of the composite
laminate as a component. Next, the PR method reduces the DOFs of
the connected boundaries of layers, accelerating the solution
process. Lastly, the RBE method allows rapid and accurate
evaluation of intradomain solutions of layers for the changes in
layer materials.
This technique operates in two stages: the offline stage and the
online stage. In the offline stage, a library of composite layers,
parametrically representing various layer materials and fiber
angles, is compiled. In the online stage, a composite laminate is
constructed on demand by setting up the layer materials, fiber
angles, and stacking sequence. This constructed laminate is then
analyzed using the PR-SC method, or the PR-SCRBE method if
more computational efficiency is required than accuracy.
The researchers demonstrated the technique in a three-point
bending test and a tensile test, assessing the accuracy and
efficiency of the PR-SC and PR-SCRBE methods. For each example,
they used three different composite laminates with different
layers. Results revealed that the PR-SC analysis had negligible
accuracy loss compared to the FE analysis while improving speed. On
the other hand, PR-SCRBE showed moderate accuracy loss with a much
larger improvement in speed. The researchers suggest employing
PR-SC for accuracy and PR-SCRBE for efficiency as required.
"By utilizing the proposed technique for virtual testing of
composites, we can identify optimal designs while minimizing time
and material costs. Better composites can lead to lighter and
stronger airplanes and automobiles with improved fuel economy and
reduced pollution. Additionally, energy industries can utilize this
technique to develop digital twins of assets," remarks a
hopeful Prof. Lee.
Reference
Title of original paper: Lego-Like Composite
Laminate Construction and Analysis on the Fly
Journal: International Journal of Mechanical
Sciences
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijmecsci.2024.109458
About the institute
Website:
https://www.pusan.ac.kr/eng/Main.do
Media Contact:
Jae-Eun
Lee
82 51 510 7928
381439@email4pr.com
View original content to download
multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/pnu-researchers-achieve-fast-and-accurate-composite-laminate-analysis-through-lego-like-construction-302215556.html
SOURCE Pusan National University