Effect of forced assembly on bearing performance of single-lap, countersunk composite bolted joints-Part II: Numerical investigation

A progressive damage model with the combination of 3D Hashin criterion and exponential material degradation was developed and validated according to the experimental results of the Part I. The effect of forced assembly on stress distribution and bearing damage of single-lap, countersunk composite bolted joints were revealed by utilizing the present model. It is found that the joints with forced assembly show higher contact stress levels. The stress distribution of the countersunk hole tends to be uniform, while that of the non-countersunk hole is more uneven, and the maximum contact stress occurs at the non-countersunk hole. Furthermore, the forced assembly made a bolt sustain additional axial tensile load, introducing high failure risks to the bolts. With forced assembly, the fiber compressive damage and in-plane matrix compressive damage are more serious, and the most serious damage is transferred from the countersunk hole to the non-countersunk hole.