Coursework - Determination of Mechanical Properties of Composite Materials and Design of a Composite Plate

In this session we will do some tests to obtain values for E1 E2 Youngs Modulus along the fibre direction and Youngs Modulus transverse to the fibre direction

First we will determine it by using the three point bend test. From ETB you wiill have come across that for a simply supported beam, the deflection at the centre is where P = applied load L = Distance between supports 48 E I I = 2nd moment of Area and E = Young's Modulus By re-arranging, we can therefore get the E value by knowing the Force/Displacement slope = P L
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P L 48I Depending on the facilities in the lab, we will try to obtain a graph. We might end up taking a limited number of measurements using the edges of the cut-outs as references. We will assume that the Load-Displacement relationship is linear. E =

The other method is to use modal analysis. For this we will clamp one end of the specimen and then determine the natural frequency using visual and audio method. The equation to determine the natural frequency is (you might need to check this) fn = 3.52 2 E I m L
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where m=Mass of the beam

So let us assume some nominal values and to determine what frequency range we are working with E = 160 10 I = w t
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m = 0.006 3.52 2 E I m L
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L = 0.2 = 153.424

w = 0.01

t = 0.003

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Now let us do the some audio analysis of the tone produced when the cantilevered beam is loaded at the free end and then released suddenly. The following is a typical spectrum. You can either do an FFT or import it into excel and determine the time interval between adjacent peaks. This gives you the fundamental frequency.

The other experiment we can do is a visual experiment using a high speed camera. Due to frequency ranges involved, we need a camera with a frame capture rate of at least 600 fps. We also need a good light source. Finally, we need to compare this using ANSYS. For this we will use the SHELL99 element. Last week I introduced you to the SHELL63 element type which is for isotropic materials. The relevant commands are. /prep7 *set,L,??? *set,w,??? You need to substitute numerical values for L and w et,1,99 k,1,0,0 k,2,L,0 k,3,L,w k,4,0,w a,1,2,3,4 esize,w/2 amesh,all Then specify the real constants using the following steps

Now for the material properties, do the following

For the boxes shown in 6 you need to assume for the time being the values as shown. As part of the coursework, carry out a sensitivity analysis to determine how changes in these values affect the natural frequencies. For the Ex value, you need to keep on changing the values until the natural frequency that you obtain matches that from the vibrational test. Now apply full constraints along one the short lines

Now we are ready to do the solution. We are going to do a modal analysis so we need to tell ANSYS what we want it to do

Finally type Solve and then look at the DOS Screen output

Once you have obtained the 'correct' value of E1, save this file as E1.db Start a fresh session of ANSYS and go through the same steps from page 2 onwards. However, you need to change the values for L and w. Also for the material properties the following needs to be changed For Ey substitute the values you obtained from the 1st analysis As with the 1st analysis, keep changing the value for Ex until you correlate to the vibrational test result

Then proceed as with the 1st analysis For the report (Groups of 2 students), I need the following Static Test Method (1) Brief description of test setup (2) Brief description of assumptions made (3) Assessment of the accuracy of the results Vibrational Test (1) Literature search on other techniques used for carrying out modal analysis (2) Brief description of the test set-up (3) Approximate value for the damping coefficient based on the decay time of oscillations (4) Souces of errors ANSYS Analysis (1) Sensitivity analysis of the results (2) Design of a laminate plate(0.003 m thick), 1x1 metre edge dimensions, fully restrained at one end and a uniform stress applied to the opposite edge to exhibit the following (a) Shearing Deformation (b) Twisting Deformation (3) Design of a laminate sandwich panel (core thickness = 0.05 m and skin thickness = 0.003 m) 1x1 metre edge dimensions, fully restrained at one end and an out-of-plane load at the opposite edge.