Investigation of the Damage Tolerance of Aircraft Polymer Composite Structures under Conditions of Cyclic Compression after Impact

Aeronautical and Space-Rocket Engineering


Аuthors

Pogosyan M. A.1*, Turbin N. V.1**, Staroverov O. A.2***, Melnikova V. A.2****

1. Moscow Aviation Institute (National Research University), 4, Volokolamskoe shosse, Moscow, А-80, GSP-3, 125993, Russia
2. Perm National Research Polytechnic University, PNRPU, 29, Komsomolsky Prospekt, Perm, 614990, Russia

*e-mail: kaf101@mai.ru
**e-mail: turbinnv@mai.ru
***e-mail: oastaroverov@pstu.ru
****e-mail: vamelnikova@pstu.ru

Abstract

This article presents the results of developing a new approach that allows for the experimental assessment of damage growth in structural composites under cyclic loading conditions. Based on a review of existing studies, the analysis of damage accumulation processes, particularly the mechanisms related to delamination growth, can be examined using a standard specimen in the form of a laminated composite plate subjected to a preliminary impact followed by cyclic compression. The review also indicates that methods utilizing optical diagnostics for damage growth, supported by mechanical testing results, are the most informative, as the findings can be used to introduce characteristic constants that define acceptable damage levels in materials and structures.
A testing methodology for laminated composites has been developed, involving preliminary impact and subsequent cyclic compression with intermediate quasi-static compression-unloading modes to assess the kinetics of delamination following dynamic impacts. The proposed methodology was validated using aerospace-grade carbon fiber reinforced plastic with a structural layup.
The test samples were made from unidirectional carbon-epoxy prepreg ACM 102 C130UD. The stacking sequence, with a predominance of zero-degree layers, was chosen such that approximately 50% of the layers were oriented at 0°, 40% were oriented at +45° and –45° combined, and 10% were oriented at 90°. The nominal thickness of the laminate was 4.94 mm.
The acquisition and processing of experimental data were conducted using a digital image correlation (DIC) system. A calculation zone was defined on the surface of the test specimen, and the Z direction was marked to determine deflections during static compression tests. The size of the calculation area was 50×25 mm. For the correlation processing of the recorded images for the composite samples, the recommended values for step size (ΔX = 5) and sub-region (X = 25) were selected. The size of the sub-region significantly affects the accuracy of the correlation analysis and the level of detail in the displacement fields. The choice of sub-region size and step is made according to the conditions of the recording, the calibration results of the stereo system, and the geometric parameters of the research object and structural features of the sample material.
As a result of analyzing the obtained data, a quantitative metric was introduced: it was proposed to use the maximum deflection values obtained from the surface profiles as a criterion for the onset of delamination and the process of fatigue failure. The relationships between maximum deflection and cyclic loading exhibited two regions: I – in the range of up to 100,000 cycles with longitudinal displacements, relative to the orientation of the reinforcing layers, not exceeding 0.5 mm, and II – in the range from 150,000 to 300,000 cycles with a significant increase in displacement values by more than three times, which may be related to the loss of stability of the specimen and progressive delamination.
Thus, the study of damage accumulation and failure processes in composites under cyclic compression based on DIC data proved to be effective. The developed approach can be used during special qualification testing of composite materials with layups corresponding to real structures, as well as for validating models predicting the durability of composite elements in aircraft constructions. The use of the obtained experimental relationships and their interpretation appears justified from the perspective of assessing the damage tolerance of composite structures.

Keywords:

composite structures, damage tolerance of composites, progressive delamination in composites, compression fatigue after impact, mechanical tests of composites, fracture mechanics of composites, digital image correlation method

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