Composite Reliability Enhancement Via Reloading

Abstract

Composite strength is an inverse function of the size of the composite. As the use of composites expands into larger applications, such as airplane wings, missile components and ship superstructures the ability to accurately predict composite performance for large applications has become more important. The composite failure process is sequential and initiates with early breaking of the weak fibers. Concentration of breakage sites accumulate and lead to ultimately catastrophic failure. Prestressing fibers prior to solidification of the matrix has been demonstrated to increase the reliability of the composite by minimizing the spatial concentration of the breakage sights. This study concentrates on quantifying the level of preload and gauge length to optimize the prestress effect. Computer simulations of graphite bundle tests were used to validate actual AS-4 graphite bundle tests. The simulations were then extended to predict prestress performance.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Sep 01, 1988
Accession Number
ADA201861

Entities

People

  • Mark C. Jones

Organizations

  • Naval Postgraduate School

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Ground and Sea Platforms

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Force
  • Composite Materials
  • Computational Science
  • Computer Programming
  • Computer Programs
  • Computers
  • Materials
  • Materials Laboratories
  • Materials Testing
  • Mechanics
  • Personal Computers
  • Probabilistic Models
  • Probability
  • Reliability
  • Spreadsheet Software
  • Statistical Analysis
  • Test Methods

Readers

  • Computational Modeling and Simulation
  • Mechanical Engineering/Mechanics of Materials.
  • Reinforced Composite Materials