Combined Approach for Modeling Progressive Damage in Unidirectional CFRP Composites

Abstract

This investigation addresses Finite Element (FE) modeling of unidirectional carbon fibre reinforced polymer (CFRP) behavior basing on uniaxial test. The progressive damage approach is specially used to predict the failure of composite laminates. Damage initiation and evolution of Carbon/Epoxy is modeled using Hashin-Puck combined criteria. Hashin criteria accounts for fibre tension, fibre compression and matrix tension failure modes while matrix compression mode was modeled referring to Puck criteria. In each failure mode, the initiation and evolution of damage are controlled by different internal variables. Uniaxial tension tests in transverse and longitudinal directions were simulated using VUMAT subroutine implemented upon ABAQUS/Explicit. The numerical inputs were calibrated basing on experimental data from referred literature. Stress-strain plots show high reliability of the proposed model when compared with experimental findings. Predictions exhibit physical failure modes owing to crack initiation and evolution as typically observed in experimental tests.