A three-dimensional progressive failure model for laminated composite plates subjected to transverse loading

A novel, three-dimensional computational model is presented for the simulation of progressive failure in laminated composites subjected to out-of-plane loading conditions. Solid-like shell elements are used to model the thin plies of the laminate. In order to model mesh independent matrix cracking, a discontinuous solid-like shell element (DSLS) is utilized. A partition of unity approach is exploited to incorporate the discontinuity in the shell mid-surface, shell director and internal stretching field. A shell interface model is presented for the modeling of delamination damage. The model allows for the computationally efficient simulation of delamination and the evaluation of a consistently linearized tangent stiffness matrix for large deformation problems, which is essential for convergence. To model the coupled response of matrix cracking and delamination under large deformations, a computational framework is developed. The combined modeling of matrix cracking and delamination is achieved without incorporation of additional degrees of freedom. Numerical results are presented to show the performance and several distinct features of the model to simulate progressive failure in laminated composite shell structures. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.