Structural Qualification of Composite Airframes

Abstract

The development of fundamental approaches for predicting failure and elongation characteristics of fibrous composites are summarized in this document. The research described includes a statistical formulation for individual fiber breakage and fragmentation and clustered fiber breakage, termed macrodefects wherein the aligned composite may represent a structural component such as a reinforcing bar element, a rebar. Experimental work conducted in support of the future exploitation of aligned composite rebar elements is also described. This work discusses the experimental challenges associated with rebar tensile test evaluation and describes initial numerical analyses performed in support of the experimental program.