Progressive failure analysis of thick imperfect composite plates using nonlinear plate theory

摘要

The work presented here alludes to the application of a semi-analytical method for ultimate strength predictions of square composite plates with geometric imperfections that are subjected to uniaxial in-plane compressive load. The Ritz method is developed with the assumptions of large deflections and higher-order shear deformation theory that accounts for through-the-thickness deformation. Therefore, some thick and relatively thick simply-supported square laminates are analyzed in this study. To obtain the ultimate strength of the plates, we consider two geometric degradation models to assess the degradation zone around the failed location. To predict the first ply failure load and also nonlinear response in the progressive damage analysis, we use the Hashin-Rotem failure criteria. We present results with respect to the number of plies, thickness of the laminates and different magnitudes of imperfection for some symmetric lay-ups.