EFFECT OF PROCESS-INDUCED DEFECTS ON MODE I BEHAVIOR OF PMCS: RANDOM DEFECTS VS. CONTROLLED DEFECTS

With advances in composite manufacturing, the need to establish process-microstructure-property relations remains an ongoing challenge. Effective property predictions, including damage tolerance behavior of advanced composites, often requires explicit modeling of defects and investigating the onset and propagation of damage. The high porosity level is a more commonly encountered defect in heterogeneous composite materials. The current work uses the cohesive zone modeling (CZM) approach adapted for explicit defects in the crack path within a finite element (FE) numerical framework. Random and controlled pore distributions have been modeled and numerically compared. Experimental efforts toward creating controlled pores in the crack path are ongoing. The execution of the current approach will enable better material behavior predictions for advanced composite materials.
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