Finite element method of a progressive intralaminar and interlaminar damage model for woven fibre laminated composites under low velocity impact

A novel three-dimensional damage model based on continuum damage mechanics (CDM) is established for the analysis of damage and fracture in woven carbon fibre reinforced plastic (CFRP) laminates. The damage model was developed in LS-DYNA, a nonlinear explicit finite element software, and the model was incorporated with the user-defined material. The multiple dimensions damage model was applied to predict the intralaminar damage initiation and propagation. A cohesive zone model was used to simulate the delamination induced by interlaminar cracks. The simulation results of four different impact energies (5 J, 8 J, 10 J, and 15 J) were analysed by impact responses. Moreover, the results of different damage modes and fracture modes of two representative ply orientations ([0]8 and [45]8) are discussed in detail.The impact peak force, energy absorption, and maximum crack length in the results of simulating woven carbon fibre laminated composites with different ply orientations are within 5% of the experimental results. Accordingly, the established model can accurately predict the crack evolution of [0]8 and [45]8, thus demonstrating that the proposed methodology is more suitable for damage simulations of woven CFRP laminates with different ply orientations under low velocity impact than existing methods.