Macromechanics of Composites

Abstract

Laminated fibrous composites are made by bonding together two or more laminae. These composites, frequently referred to as laminates, are different from sheet laminates made by bonding flat sheets of materials. In a laminated fibrous composite, the individual unidirectional laminae or plies are oriented in such a manner that the resulting structural component has the desired mechanical and/or physical characteristics in different directions. Thus, one exploits the inherent anisotropy of fibrous composites to design a composite material with appropriate properties.