Showing papers by "Giuseppe Catalanotti published in 2020"
TL;DR: In this paper, the effect of ply thickness scaling on several aspects of the mechanical response of composite laminates is reviewed, and the current state-of-the-art and recent developments in manufacturing, design and application of thin plies on novel engineered composite Laminates are presented.
Abstract: The introduction of the spread-tow thin-ply technology enabled the development of composite plies as thin as 0.020 mm. The availability of composite plies with a broader thickness range makes the understanding of the effects of ply thickness more pertinent than ever, therefore, a comprehensive literature review is presented in this paper. The micro-structural effects of ply thickness and ply uniformity on the mechanical response of unidirectional laminae is described. Then, the effect of ply thickness scaling on several aspects of the mechanical response of composite laminates is reviewed. Finally, the current state-of-art and recent developments in manufacturing, design and application of thin plies on novel engineered composite laminates are presented. This review demonstrates that thin plies not only bring improvements to the plain strengths and design flexibility of composite laminates, but can also enhance the performance of primary structural applications, namely those driven by residual strength and damage tolerance requirements. This can be achieved by either combining thin plies with existing material technologies, or through novel design principles. Moreover, it is shown that thin plies provide increased flexibility for multifunctional optimisation and for adoption of more efficient manufacturing technologies, with great potential gains in terms of weight savings and cost reduction during conceptual and detailed design and operation.
61 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the mechanical behaviour and progressive damage of two-dimensional plain woven carbon-epoxy fabrics are modelled at different length scales, taking into account the geometric and material variability of the weave, by subjecting the dry preforms to compaction simulations.
27 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a three-dimensional micromechanical framework that is capable of analysing in detail the longitudinal tensile and compressive failure mechanisms which are inherent in unidirectional composites is presented.
24 citations
University of Porto1, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte2, Hanyang University3, Massachusetts Institute of Technology4, Kanazawa Institute of Technology5, California State University, Long Beach6, Munich University of Applied Sciences7, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais8, Embraer9, National University of Singapore10, Seoul National University11, University of Dayton Research Institute12, Stanford University13, Air Force Research Laboratory14, Seconda Università degli Studi di Napoli15, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur16, Marshall Space Flight Center17, Queen's University Belfast18, National Institute of Statistics and Geography19, Wichita State University20, University of California, Santa Barbara21, University of California, Los Angeles22
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors proposed Tsai's Modulus (Tsai's modulus) to simplify the design, analysis and optimization of composite laminates, thus enabling lighter, stronger and better parts.
24 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors assess the simplified block approach used in F1 to computationally predict crashworthiness, and present quasi-static and dynamic crush experiments of flat and tubular coupons to generate data for the modelling of a F1 Side Impact Structure.
Abstract: Current methods for designing Formula One (F1) crash structures are mainly based on costly iterative experiments, aimed at minimising the component mass and maximising driver safety. This paper assesses the simplified block approach used in F1 to computationally predict crashworthiness. Quasi-static and dynamic crush experiments of flat and tubular coupons are presented, to generate data for the modelling of a F1 Side Impact Structure (SIS). The crushing efficiency of these coupons is found to be dependent on geometry, ply orientation, and crushing velocity. This modelling strategy yields results which compare favourably with those obtained from the quasi-static and dynamic experimental testing of a full-scale SIS, but also highlight areas which require further work to improve accuracy.
24 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a low-cost Thermoelastic Stress Analysis (TSA) experimental setup is proposed which uses an ordinary micro-bolometer and in-house developed signal processing scripts.
19 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the mode I fracture parameters for an orthotropic body are directly calculated from full-field deformation measurements provided by Digital Image Correlation (DIC), and three complementary and direct approaches are evaluated and compared: (i) the determination of the stress intensity factor (SIF) by fitting the displacement field using the analytical expression proposed by Lekhnitskii; (ii) the determined of the J-integral by using the Energy Domain Integral (EDI) formulation on the raw DIC data; and (iii) the calculation of the
18 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a 3D representative volume element (RVE) of UD carbon/epoxy composites is generated, taking into consideration a realistic misalignment of the fibres.
18 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the impact of specimen representation on the modeling of the plasma and the resulting impact on specimen composite damage has been studied, where four distinct specimen designs have been modelled, with a magnetohydrodynamic FE multiphysics model employed to simulate the plasma, and a FE thermalelectric modelling approach used to predict composite material damage.
16 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a modification of the Double Edge Notch Compression (DENC) specimen geometry is proposed, to fit the Combined Loading Compression(CLC) standard fixture, and shown to reduce peak load dispersion.
16 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the elastic parameters, strength, and intralaminar fracture toughness for an E-glass polymer composite material system, statically and at high strain rate, adapted methodologies previously developed by the authors for different carbon composites.
TL;DR: In this article, the welding of thermoplastic materials by means of embedded fully-aligned carbon nanotube (CNT) web was reported, and the tensile strength reached 96% of the strength of the pristine material, even before optimizing the processing conditions.
TL;DR: In this paper, the waveform parameters of waveform peak, rise time, and time to reach the post-peak value have been modelled and the effect of varying these parameters on the predicted plasma behavior and resulting specimen damage has been quantified.
Abstract: Previous works have established strategies to model artificial test lightning plasma with specific waveform parameters and use the predicted plasma behavior to estimate test specimen damage. To date no computational works have quantified the influence of varying the waveform parameters on the predicted plasma behavior and resulting specimen damage. Herein test standard Waveform B has been modelled and the waveform parameters of ‘waveform peak’, ‘rise time’ and ‘time to reach the post-peak value’ have been varied. The plasma and specimen behaviors have been modelled using the Finite Element (FE) method (a Magnetohydrodynamic FE multiphysics model for the plasma, a FE thermalelectric model for the specimen). For the test arrangements modelled herein it has been found that ‘peak current’ is the key parameter influencing plasma properties and specimen damage. A 10% increase in peak current magnitude (and resulting 21% increase in action integral) results in a 12% increase in plasma peak pressure, a 5% increase in specimen surface current density, and subsequently a 8.7% increase in thermal damage volume and a 15.2% increase in thermal damage depth. Overall action integral has the strongest correlation with four of the five considered damage measures. Peak current has the strongest correlation with the other damage measure.