Aircraft

Structures & Optimisation Kyle Crawford (12035068)

Aircraft Structures & Optimisation - Strength Analysis

1. Recommendations for designers and researchers resulting from the worldwide failure exercise (WWFE). (P.D. Soden et al. 2004)

Current failure prediction theories have shortcomings adding to complexity for designers. This may result in the uneconomic design of a composite part due to safety and performance criteria. The point of the WWFE is to help define a unified approach for composite design, encompassing a wide range of laminates and loading conditions, and predicting as much behaviour as possible. The WWFE examined unidirectional laminates to understand the issues more fundamentally. The two main approaches used were meso-modelling, and to a lesser extent micro-mechanics, however the latter proved more conservative in strength prediction. Simplicity, speed, and availability when put in the context of available design time, are important factors identified for practical purposes. Quick and simple methods such as the netting and 10% rules, and guidelines set out by standards organisations often outperform more complex theories but only within their well defined and limited scope. Some promising methods were identified for a range of laminates and loading conditions, but the WWFE wasnt able to provide wide-ranging recommendations. Even the experimental data provided could not define the entire failure envelope, which prevented full evaluation of some theories. Producing test rigs and specimens to obtain all necessary data requires high levels of engineering and effort and is an area for future work. No theories were able to predict non-linear stress strain curves at high strains where the matrix dominates behaviour. Improved access to computer codes of promising theories is essential to improving design processes, as is the codes integration into FEA packages. Significant issues not addressed by the WWFE include; delamination, ply thickness & stacking sequence, environmental conditions and exposure to high and low temperatures. Theres a lot of work still to do, and a lot left to exploit from composites.

The principal methodology used for certification is the building block approach (meso modelling).

2. Composite Materials Strength Determination Within the Current Certification Methodology for Aircraft Structures.

Although relying extensively on testing, this approach provides the highest probability of safety - especially key in aerospace - but is expensive and time consuming. Though failures theories exist in

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Aircraft Structures & Optimisation Kyle Crawford (12035068)

the research world they are incomplete to the level where they are not yet suitable for the design for certification process, and arent good enough to predict the onset of damage across a wide range of loading and structural configurations. Elastic behaviour is relatively well understood, post-elastic however, the non-homogeneous nature of the composites has been a challenge, e.g. matrix type failure is more variable than fibre-based, 11-18% vs. 6-10%. Using micromechanics is currently not feasible due to the computing costs and the difficulty in measuring several physical properties of the composites. Lamina based strength criteria (e.g. Tsai-Wu) are not accepted for certification of margin of safety. Laminate based non- interactive are however, but again rely on experimental data. The cost of introducing new materials is very expensive and has a long lead-time due to the material certification process. Materials & processes are developed, which gives allowables. Structural elements are tested based on these allowables for a wide range of loading conditions. These then form the basis for component design, and finally component testing for certification. The better the design tools and the earlier they can be used the greater the reduction in cost for the development of the final component. Future challenges are; breaking the dependence on test data, and determining the level (micro, molecular etc.) of modelling for sufficiently accurate prediction.

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