Thin walled stiffened composite panels, which are among the most utilized structural elements in engineering, possess the unfortunate property of being highly sensitive to geometrical imperfections. Existing analysis codes are able to predict the nonlinear postbuckling behavior of a structure with specified imperfections. However, it is impossible to determine the geometric imperfection profile of a nonexistent composite panel early in the design. This is due to the variety of uncertainties that are involved in the manufacturing of these panels. As a mater of fact, due to the very nature of the manufacturing processes, it is hard to imagine that a given manufacturing process could ever produce two identical panels. The objective of this study is to introduce a new design methodology in which a manufacturing model and a convex model for uncertainties are used in conjunction with a nonlinear design tool in order to obtain a more realistic, better performing final design. First a finite element code for the nonlinear postbuckling analysis of stiffened panels is introduced. Next, a manufacturing model for the simulation of the autoclave curing of epoxy matrix composites is presented. A convex model for the uncertainties in the imperfections is developed in order to predict the weakest panel profile among a family of panels. Finally, the previously developed tools are linked in a closed loop design scheme aimed at obtaining a final design that incorporates the manufacturing tolerances information through more realistic imperfections. / Ph. D.

The growth in the extent of applications of composite materials, particularly in commercial products, has been dramatic and carries an implied mandate for effective methods for material quality evaluation. The cost of composite materials dictates that non-destructive test methods be used. At the same time, the nature of composites limits the use of conventional techniques such as radiography , eddy-current or ultrasonics. Recently, a new technique known as the Acousto-Ultrasonic (AU) technique, has been developed and appears to hold promise as a method for the evaluation of composite material quality. Implementation of the AU method is examined using the zeroth moment method developed by Henneke et.al. A new parameter termed as Acousto Ultrasonic Factor (AUF) has been defined for this purpose. The behavior of the AUF response to specimens of known quality is investigated statistically. It is found that the transformed/actual readings follow a Beta distribution and that specimens of different quality are readily distinguishable using the statistical analysis of the AUF response. Reasonable future steps for translating these findings into efficient quality evaluation methods have been suggested.</p / Master of Science

The ability to predict failure of laminated composites in compression has been doggedly pursued by researchers for many years. Most have, to a limited extent, been able to predict failure for a narrow range of laminates. No means, as yet, exist for predicting the strength of generic laminates under various load conditions. Of primary concern has been the need to establish the mode at failure in compression. Even this has been known to vary for fiber and matrix dominated laminates. This study has been carried out to analyze the failure of specimens with a hole made of laminates with various quasi-isotropic stacking sequences. Different stacking sequences are achieved by rotating a [±45/90/0]s stacking sequence laminate as a whole with respect to the loading axis of the specimens. Two- and three-dimensional finite element models, using commercial packages, were generated to evaluate the stresses in the region of the hole. Two different compressive failure prediction techniques based on distinctly different failure modes have been used. The validity of these techniques was measured against experimental data of quasi-isotropic specimens tested. To investigate the applicability of the failure criteria for different laminated composite plates, analyses were repeated for specimens with different stacking sequences resulting from the rotation of the laminate. The study shows the need for the use of three-dimensional analysis of the stress state in the vicinity of the hole in order to be able to accurately predict failure. It also shows that no one mode of failure is responsible for limiting the strength for all laminate orientations but rather the mode changes with change in stacking sequence. The failure of the laminate with a hole was seen to be very sensitive to the stacking sequence. Experimental data presented also shows that the peak strength obtainable from the laminate analyzed, [±45/90/0]s, is going to be in the off-axis configuration rather than on-axis placement of the stacking sequence with respect to the loading direction. / Master of Science

<p dir="ltr">Defects in composite manufacturing often lead to compromised structural integrity and reduced performance of the final product. A robust constitutive modeling framework is needed to efficiently and accurately predict the deformation responses of dry fabrics and pre-impregnated fibers, paving the way for defect simulation. This thesis presents a comprehensive study on the development and application of a novel constitutive model of fabric preforms and pre-impregnated fibers during composite manufacturing processes.</p><p dir="ltr">This work proposes an integrated constitutive study for textile fabrics in the aspects of mesoscale tow and macroscale fabric behavior. First, a textile architecture-based discrete modeling approach was developed to predict and visualize fiber tow and fabric deformation. The fabrics consist of interlacing virtual fiber tows which are represented by Timoshenko beams joined by translational and rotational springs and rotary dashpots, which are used to capture the energy dissipation during in-plane shear deformation. Second, an anisotropic hyper-viscoelastic model was developed using the strain energy density function of a homogenized unit cell to predict the fabric deformation as a continuous field. A Maxwell model consisting of one Maxwell element and an additional spring is used to consider the nonequilibrium stresses generated during in-plane shear, transverse shear, and through-thickness compaction deformations. Both approaches were experimentally characterized and applied to a hemisphere draping model in the commercial Finite Element Analysis (FEA) software, Abaqus, to demonstrate the predictive capabilities.</p><p dir="ltr">Then, the robust hyper-viscoelastic model is extended to predict prepreg compaction and bending behavior. In the compaction aspect, a coupling term of energy that captures the effect of squeezing flow and a highly nonlinear transverse compression energy are proposed to predict the compaction response of prepreg with liquid and rubbery resin. The viscoelastic parameters were characterized by a Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) model for liquid resin and a discrete micromechanics model for rubbery resin. The method was applied to stepwise compaction simulation at different temperatures in Abaqus and compared to experiments for validation. In the bending aspect, the effective shear modulus is expressed as a function of the second-order gradient of deformation. Modeling parameters were characterized by an analytical model that captures the underlying fiber and matrix deformation mechanism. Parametric study was conducted to illustrate the influence of each parameter and the capability to enhance the accuracy of bending prediction.</p>

Wood construction platforms are a common method for inexpensive, temporary soil stabilization under heavy machinery; however, platforms are not typically thought of as an engineered product. Review of literature has shown that only one design method is currently available and is specific to one type of platform configuration. The purpose of this thesis is to develop a design method that is simple, versatile and accurate. The proposed design method was intentionally developed so that the designer would have input in multiple areas of the design. Instrumentation allowed for increased insight into the mechanical behavior of the platforms. The objective of this research is to use measured strain, load, and deflection in conjunction with fundamental engineering mechanics principles to predict a single platform’s mechanical behavior on the ground. Results from this method compare favorably with the only other design guide available and improves the knowledge base by developing design guidance for any type of wood construction platform.

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This report presents the first steps of development aiming towards making, the open-source aeroelastic code, GEBTAero flight dynamics capable. The implementation was done partly in the Fortran code and part in the GEBTAero Python API with the objective of reusing as much of the existing code as possible with as little substantial architecture modification. The added capacities include the widening of the purview of the software to take into account beam assembly arranged in a plane-like structure, a trim function for the steady level flight was also implemented and the twelve degree of freedom flight mechanics system of equations was introduced in the algorithm. In this short time, unfortunately, few tests were performed fully but important foundation work giving preliminary results was carried out. This includes the verification of the structural modes simulation as well as several bug and inacuracy fixes. / Den här rapporten presenterar de första utvecklingsstegen som syftar till att göra, öppen käll aeroelastisk koden, GEBTAero flygdynamik kapabel. Implementeringen gjordes dels i Fortran-koden och dels i GEBTAero Python API med målet att återanvända så mycket av den befintliga koden som möjligt med så lite väsentlig arkitekturändring. De tillagda kapaciteterna inkluderar utvidgningen av programvaransräckvidd för att ta hänsyn till strålmontering anordnad i en flygplansliknande struktur, en “trim” funktion för jämn nivåflygning implementerades också och de tolv frihetsgraderna flygmekanik system av ekvationer introducerades i algoritmen. Under denna korta tid utfördes tyvärr få tester helt men viktigt grundarbete med preliminära resultat utfördes. Detta inkluderar verifiering av strukturlägen simulering samt flera korrigeringar av fel och felaktigheter.

This thesis is about the development of a new numerical method for the analysis of composite shells. The present work is based on Reissner Mixed Variational Theorem (RMVT), the Sublaminate Generalized Unified Formulation (S-GUF), and the Ritz approximation. The present work investigates a more efficient way to compute transverse stresses (sigma_xz, sigma_yz, sigma_zz) based upon RMVT, allowing assigning their order of continuity a priori. This is a great advantage compared to a conventional displacement-based approach. In order to enable computing of both global and local responses (depending on the user’sneeds) the S-GUF framework was adopted. The Generalized Unified Formulation (GUF) enables the implementation of approximations with virtually unlimited algebraic order within a single code, and the order could also vary for different variables. In addition to the GUF, the concept of Sublaminate was utilized, allowing for sub-sectioning of the domain in the thickness direction into sublaminates, and it is then possible to apply different formulations in each of these sub-domains. The curvature of the shells is strictly defined by their radius-to- thickness ratio. The flexibility of S-GUF is helpful in the sense that curvature is only introduced and treated if needed by the particular case at hand. The governing equations obtained applying S-GUF to RMVT were solved in a weak formulation using the Ritz approximation. This choice was made to save computational time, which is one of the main benefits of the presented method. Validation of the code was made by comparing results from the present formulation with solutions available in the literature. Good to excellent agreement was found for several benchmark cases, supporting that the formulation is valid and provides reliable solutions.Finally, numerical and analytical considerations about the developed method were made: its numerical stability, how to tune its parameters, and which models result more correct from an analytical standpoint. / Denna avhandling handlar om utvecklingen av en ny numerisk metod för analys av kompositskal.Det aktuella arbetet är baserat på Reissner Mixed Variational Theorem (RMVT), Sublaminate Generalized Unified Formulation (S-GUF) och Ritz-approximationen.Arbetet går ut på att ta fram ett mer effektivt sätt att beräkna spänningar ut ur planet (sigma_xz, sigma_yz, aigma_zz) och utnyttjar RMVT, vilket möjliggör lokal hantering av kontinuitet i varierande ordning, definierad a priori. Detta innebär en stor fördel jämfört med en konventionell förskjutningsbaserad metod. För att möjliggöra beräkning av både global och lokal lösning, beroende påanvändarens behov, antogs S-GUF-ramverket. Den generaliserade enhetliga formuleringen (GUF) gördet möjligt att inom samma formulering implementera approximationer med i princip obegränsad algebraisk ordning, vilka dåocksåkan skilja mellan olika variabler. Förutom GUF används även konceptet Sublaminate som gör det möjligt att dela upp domänen i tjockleksriktningen i underregioner (sublaminate), och det är dåmöjligt att tillämpa olika formuleringar i var och en av dessa subdomäner. Krökningen hos ett skal definiers strikt av förhållandet mellan dess radie och tjocklek. Flexibiliteten hos S-GUF är fördelaktig dåkrökning endast hanteras för de specifika fall där det förekommer. De ekvationer som erhålls genom att applicera S-GUF på RMVT löses påsvag formmed användning av Ritz approximation. Detta val gjordes för att möjliggöra en snabbare beräkningstid, vilket är en av fördelarna med denna metod. Genom att jämföra de resultat med lösningar tillgängliga i litteraturen var det möjligt att validera resultaten och därmed även själva formuleringen. God till utmärkt överensstämmelse påvisades för ett antal olika standardfall vilket styrker att metoden fungerar och attdess lösningar är pålitliga. Slutligen ritades numeriska och analytiska överväganden om metoden här utvecklad, såsom dess numeriska stabilitet, hur man ställer in dess parametrar och vilka modeller somär mer korrekta ur en analytisk synvinkel.