Layerwise Theories of Laminated Composite Structures and Their Applications: A Review

It is very challenging to accurately analyze the displacement and stress fields in the laminated composite structures due to the transverse anisotropy and higher transverse flexibilities. The equivalent single-layer theory (EST) is first developed to simplify this complex 3D problem to a pure 2D problem based on a displacement assumption in the thickness direction. The EST gives good results for the global responses of the very thin laminates with minimum computation cost, but poor results for the local responses at the interfaces and can not presents the zig-zag distribution of in-plane displacements. The elasticity solutions based on the 3D displacement-based finite element method (FEM) can present the accurate displacement and stress fields, but requires huge computational cost. As a quasi 3D method, the layerwise theories (LWT) is more accurate than most of the ESTs, and its computational cost is less than that of the 3D-based displacement FEMs, so it is attracting more and more attention with the rapid development of computer technology. This paper presents an overall review for the LWTs of the laminated composite structures and their applications. In general, there are two basic schemes employed to establish a LWT according to the construction of the displacements fields in the thickness direction. In the first scheme, the laminated composite structures are described as an assembly of individual layers, and these individual layers are combined by the interlaminar relationships to keep the displacement continuity and stress equilibrium. All of the individual layers are simulated by using the EST. In the second scheme, the displacement and/or stress fields along the thickness direction are constructed by a 1D interpolation functions and the in-plane displacement and/or stress fields are discretized by the 2D finite elements. The review in this paper is organized by the this classification.