Nonlinear behaviour and failure analysis of fibre-reinforced composites (Nichtlineares Verhalten und Versagensanalyse von Faserverbundwerkstoffen)

• Applicant: Professor Dr.-Ing. Dieter Weichert
• Subject Area: Mechanics
• Term: from 2006 to 2012
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 25760704

Object of this project is the problem of failure analysis of periodic fibre-reinforced composites. The problem will be studied from theoretical point of view and analytical solutions will be derived. An asymptotic technique, based on the homogenization method and singular perturbation technique, are going to be used. The proposed method allows not only to obtain effective characteristics but also to investigate non-homogeneous distributions of mechanical stresses in different materials and structures which is of great significance for evaluating their strength.The influence of each material component (matrix, fibre and interface) on the behaviour of the composite will be investigated. Three possible scenarios of composite failure will be studied: plastic failure of matrix; interface failure and breaking of fibres.The proposed approach fills the substantial gap between numerical methods lacking in generality and the possibility to grasp the common features of the behavior of the considered structures, and approximate design schemes, based on heuristic hypotheses. The proposed methods are wide-ranged in applications and lead to simple and clear design formulae, useful for practical analyses.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants