Numerical and Experimental Assessment of Post Impact Fatigue Life of Glass-fiber-reinforced Aluminum Laminates

In this research, dynamic progressive failure of Glass-Fiber-Reinforced aluminum laminates under low-energy impact was modelled. Intralaminar damage models, strain-based damage evolution laws, Puck failure criteria were used in ABAQUS-VUMAT software for modelling. Bilinear cohesive model was used for interface delamination, and the Johnson-Cook models were employed for aluminum layers. Damage evolution behaviours of this hybrid composite were calculated. After that, energy dissipation mechanisms were examined to identify the progressive failure and delamination of composite layers and plastic deformation of aluminum layers. In order to determine stress intensity at crack tip, the analytical model for constant-amplitude fatigue crack propagation according to Paris law was applied. Also, bridging stress along crack length in aluminum layer was investigated by correlation between the delamination growth rate and energy release rate in hybrid composite layers. The obtained findings indicated that the highest amount of peak low velocity impact force belonged to Glare 4 3/2. The presented numerical method based on bridging stress phenomena can successfully be used for predicting the post impact fatigue life of Glare.