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Numerical predictions of intralaminar and interlaminar damage in thin composite shells subjected to impact loads

Marques Ferreira, Luis Miguel; Coelho, Carlos A.C.P.; Reis, Paulo Nobre Balbis

Abstract

This paper investigates the impact dynamics of thin semicylindrical woven composite laminate shells, with a particular focus on understanding the influence of thickness. Utilizing the finite element (FE) method, the study evaluates both intralaminar and interlaminar damage associated with the impact response. The findings show that the implementation of the explicit FE method, along with a continuum damage mechanics model, for the intralaminar damage, and a surface-based cohesive model, for the interlaminar damage, may be used to correctly predict the load histories, as well as the maximum impact force, maximum displacement, contact time and impact bending stiffness (IBS). The numerical predictions reproduce well the linear response of the maximum impact force and maximum displacement to the thickness variation, as well as the 2nd order polynomial curve of the IBS, with errors ranging from 2.7% to 15.9%. Moreover, the damage areas and the effect of thickness on the damage severity were accurately replicated. These results’ validation enables the prediction of the energy histories and the ensuing energy dissipation forms. According to the findings, the intralaminar damage is around 5 times more significant than the other energy dissipation forms. The accuracy of the simulation creates the possibility for more impact investigations using a similar numerical approach, reducing the expenditures of experimental testing.

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Depósi o de In es igación de la Uni e sidad de Se illa h ps://idus.us.es/ This is an Accep ed Manusc ip o an a icle published by Else ie in Thin- Walled S uc u es, Vol. 192, on No embe 2023, a ailable a : h ps://doi.o g/10.1016/j. ws.2023.111148 Copy igh 2023 Else ie . En idUS Licencia C ea i e Commons CC BY-NC-ND Highligh s Nume ical p edic ions o in alamina and in e lamina damage in hin composi e shells subjec ed o impac loads L.M. Fe ei a, C.A.C.P. Coelho, P.N.B. Reis •In es iga ion o he impac dynamics on composi e shells using he explici ini e elemen me hod. •Nume ical p edic ions o in alamina damage using a con inuum damage mechanics model. •Nume ical p edic ions o in e lamina damage using a su ace-based cohe- si e model. •P edic ion o ene gy dissipa ion o ms o di↵e en hicknesses. Nume ical p edic ions o in alamina and in e lamina damage in hin composi e shells subjec ed o impac loads L.M. Fe ei aa,b,⇤ , C.A.C.P. Coelhoc, P.N.B. Reisd aG upo de Elas icidad y Resis encia de Ma e iales. Escuela T´ecnica Supe io de Ingenie ´ıa. Uni e sidad de Se illa. Camino Descub imien os, S/N 41092 Se illa. Espa˜na bEscuela Poli ´ecnica Supe io . Uni e sidad de Se illa. C/ Vi gen de ´ A ica, 7, Se illa, 41011. Espa˜na cUnidade Depa amen al de Engenha ias. Escola Supe io de Tecnologia de Ab an es. Ins i u o Poli ´ecnico de Toma . Rua 17 de Agos o de 1808 S/N 2200-370 Ab an es. Po ugal dUni e si y o Coimb a, CEMMPRE, ARISE, Depa men o Mechanical Enginee ing, 3030-194 Coimb a, Po ugal Abs ac This pape in es iga es he impac dynamics o hin semicylind ical wo en composi e lamina e shells, wi h a pa icula ocus on unde s anding he in lu- ence o hickness. U ilising he ini e elemen (FE) me hod, he s udy e al- ua es bo h in alamina and in e lamina damage associa ed wi h he impac esponse. The indings show ha he implemen a ion o he explici FE me hod, along wi h a con inuum damage mechanics model, o he in alamina damage, and a su ace-based cohesi e model, o he in e lamina damage, may be used o co ec ly p edic he load his o ies, as well as he maximum impac o ce, maximum displacemen , con ac ime and impac bending s i↵ness (IBS). The nume ical p edic ions ep oduce well he linea esponse o he maximum im- pac o ce and maximum displacemen o he hickness a ia ion, as well as he 2nd o de polynomial cu e o he IBS, wi h e o s anging om 2.7% o 15.9%. Mo eo e , he damage a eas and he e↵ec o hickness on he damage se e i y we e accu a ely eplica ed. These esul s’ alida ion enables he p edic ion o he ene gy his o ies and he ensuing ene gy dissipa ion o ms. Acco ding o he indings, he in alamina damage is a ound 5 imes mo e signi ican han he o he ene gy dissipa ion o ms. The accu acy o he simula ion c ea es he possibili y o mo e impac in es iga ions using a simila nume ical app oach, educing he expendi u es o expe imen al es ing. Keywo ds: Fini e elemen me hod (FEM), Con inuum damage mechanics (CDM), Cohesi e beha iou , Low- eloci y impac , Wo en- ab ic composi es, Composi e shells P ep in submi ed o Thin-Walled S uc u es Feb ua y 1, 2024 1. In oduc ion Composi e ma e ials ha e become inc easingly popula due o hei unique combina ion o high s eng h, low weigh , and excellen a igue esis ance. How- e e , hey a e suscep ible o damage om low- eloci y impac s ha can occu du ing handling, anspo a ion, main enance, and se ice. These impac s can5 cause localised damage o he s uc u e, which can esul in educed s eng h, s i↵ness, and du abili y o he composi e ma e ial [1–5]. The e o e, unde s and- ing he damage mechanisms and beha iou o composi e ma e ials unde low- eloci y impac s is o u mos impo ance o ensu e he eliabili y and sa e y o composi e s uc u es. In his con ex , i is no su p ising ha li e a u e p esen s10 se e al s a egies o inc ease impac s eng h, such as he use o nanopa icles [6], mul iaxial mesh ab ics [7], hyb id lamina es [8], sandwich composi es [9, 10] o simply changing he s acking sequence o he lamina es [11]. Since he ea ly 1990s, impac analysis on composi e s uc u es has been a subjec o s udy. The ea e , se e al nume ical esea ch s udies ha e been done15 using di↵e en abs ac ion scales and applied me hods. The ini e elemen (FE) me hod has been used ex ensi ely o de elop models o unidi ec ional composi e pla es and e alua e a ious pa ame e s such as ma e ial cha ac e is ics, impac ene gy, and geome y. Ye , he e a e ela i ely ew s udies ha analyse he impac dynamics on cylind ical shells, pa icula ly when i comes o composi es20 made o wo en ab ics. The mos ele an s udies ound in li e a u e ega ding low- eloci y impac on cylind ical shells, a e dedica ed o analyse he e↵ec o cu a u e o he shell on he impac o ce, displacemen (de lec ion) and con- ac ime [12–15]. The indings o hese s udies a e consis en and e eal ha he impac o ce inc eases wi h he inc ease in cu a u e, while de lec ion and25 con ac ime dec ease. In es iga ions ha e also been conduc ed o de e mine how hickness a↵ec s he impac esponse o composi e lamina e pla es and shells [16–21]. These s udies ha e shown ha inc easing he hickness o he lamina es leads o no able e↵ec s on se e al impac - ela ed pa ame e s. I was ound ha inc easing he hickness o he composi e lamina es esul s in in-30 c eased s i↵ness. This highe s i↵ness impa s he lamina es wi h he abili y o wi hs and highe impac loads. As a esul , he lamina es exhibi smalle de lec ions and educed con ac imes du ing impac e en s. Fu he mo e, he damage onse and damage e olu ion we e s udied in [22], and i was ound ha o unidi ec ional composi e pla es and shells, damage p og esses di↵e en ly.35 Al hough he nume ical app oach u ilizing FE models allows he simula ion o complica ed s uc u es unde os ensibly complex ex e nal loads and bounda y condi ions, om he nume ical pe spec i e, simula ing impac is s ill a complex ask. Mo eo e , achie ing a sui able le el o accu acy in a ai amoun o ime con inues o be a challenge [23, 24].40 Composi e ma e ials expe ience se e al di↵e en damage modes unde im- ⇤Co esponding au ho Email add ess: [email p o ec ed] (L.M. Fe ei a) 2 pac loads such as ma ix c acking, delamina ion, ib e ailu e and pe o a ion, which can conside ably lessen he ma e ial’s s eng h and s i↵ness [25]. I is hen c ucial o de elop c edible FE models capable o o ecas ing hese dam- age modes. Focus is he e on ab ic- ein o ced composi e lamina e shells wi h45 a semicylind ical c oss-sec ion. These composi es ha e p ac ical in e es o impac - esis an cons uc ions like wind u bine blades o ai c a s uc u es. The buil -in con inuum damage mechanics model (CDM) o ab ic ein o ced composi es a ailable in ABAQUS [26] and de eloped by Johnson [27], is em- ployed o model he in alamina damage, while he in e lamina damage, know50 as delamina ion, is modelled using he su ace-based cohesi e damage model (S-BCM). The wo-s ep homogeniza ion me hod p oposed by Liu e al. [28] is used o p edic he laminas’ p ope ies om he cons i uen s p ope ies. This s udy ollows he expe imen al and nume ical wo k p e iously de eloped by he au ho s [29–31]. Fi s ly, he e↵ec o hickness on he mul i-impac esponse55 o semicylind ical composi e lamina ed shells wi h 6-, 9-, and 12-laye s was ex- pe imen ally analysed in [29]. Subsequen ly, based on he expe imen al esul s ob ained, a FE model o a single hickness was gene a ed, and in which he physical in alamina and in e lamina p og essi e damage models we e in o- duced [30]. This wo k ocused on e↵ec o he FE mesh disc e iza ion and60 mass-scaling on he load his o y p edic ions and in e alua ing he e iciency and eliabili y o he nume ical model. A e wa ds, he in luence o in e lamina p ope ies on delamina ion p edic ions o a single hickness was s udied in [31]. Finally, he p esen pape ep esen s an expansion o he analysis and alida- ion p ocess o encompass di↵e en hicknesses, while s i ing o comp ehend65 he unde lying damage mechanisms a bo h he in alamina and in e lamina le els. The e o e, o summa ize, he cu en wo k se es as a con inua ion o he p e ious nume ical in es iga ion and complemen s he expe imen al indings. I in oduces no el con ibu ions, including he de elopmen and alida ion o FE70 models capable o in es iga ing he impac dynamics o semicylind ical wo en composi e lamina e shells wi h di↵e en hicknesses. Mo eo e , he s udy o- cuses on p edic ing and e alua ing he in alamina and in e lamina damage modes, as well as iden i ying he ene gy dissipa ion mechanisms ha occu du - ing low- eloci y impac e en s. As a as he au ho s a e awa e, hese opics75 in he domain o hin semicylind ical composi e shells, a e s ill lacking comp e- hensi e unde s anding and esea ch. 2. Damage models Low- eloci y impac s on composi e lamina es can cause ib e ailu e and ma- ix c acking (in alamina damage), as well sepa a ion o he in e ace egions,80 known as delamina ion (in e lamina damage) [32, 33]. To model hese damage mechanisms in semicylind ical wo en composi e lamina e shells, a CDM a he lamina le el o add ess he in alamina damage, and a S-BCM a he lamina’s in e ace o accoun o he in e lamina damage, we e implemen ed. These 3 damage models a e ully desc ibed in [26, 34, 35], hus only he main aspec s o 85 he CDM and S-BCM will be b ie ly desc ibed in he ollowing subsec ions. 2.1. In alamina damage model To e alua e he complex damage e olu ion a he in alamina le el, he buil -in cons i u i e model o ab ic ein o ced composi es a ailable in ABAQUS/Explici [36], de eloped by Johnson [27] and based on Lade eze and Ledan ec wo k90 [37], was employed. This damage model is applied as a buil -in VUMAT use sub ou ine and accessed by naming he use -de ined ma e ial wi h he s ing “ABQ PLY FABRIC” [26]. This VUMAT sub ou ine is compa ible only wi h plane-s ess elemen s and conside s each ab ic ein o ced lamina as a homo- geneous o ho opic elas ic ma e ial ha wi hs ands s i↵ness educ ion due o95 ib e ailu e and/o ma ix c acking and plas ic de o ma ion unde shea load- ing. I uses he maximum s ess ailu e c i e ion o de e mine he damage onse o he ib es, and a damage e olu ion model based on he ac u e ene gies o con ol he s i↵ness educ ion. The Hooke’s law o a deg aded o ho opic ma e ial is exp essed as,100 "=2 6 4 S1 (1d1)S12 0 S21 S2 (1d2)0 00S6 (1d12) 3 7 5(1) whe e Sij a e he componen s o he compliance ma ix o he undamaged o - ho opic ma e ial, is he nominal Cauchy s ess enso , "is he elas ic s ain enso , and d1,d2and d12 a e he damage coe icien s. No ice ha he damage coe icien s d1and d2a e associa ed wi h ib e ac u e along di ec ions 1 and 2, espec i ely, and d12 is associa ed wi h he ma ix mic o-c acking due o shea 105 de o ma ion. As men ioned be o e, he CDM uses he maximum s ess c i e ion o de- e mine he damage onse o he ib es, and o simula e he wo ailu e modes ( ib e ension and ib e comp ession). The e o e, he elas ic domain, a any gi en ime, is calcula ed in e ms o he damage ac i a ion unc ions, F↵, as110 F↵=˜↵ X↵  ↵0wi h↵=1±,2±,12 (2) whe e ˜↵and X↵a e he ensile/comp essi e/shea e↵ec i e s esses and s eng hs, espec i ely, and ↵a e he damage h esholds, which a e ini ially de ined wi h a alue o 1. A e eaching he damage onse , ha is, when ˜↵ X↵= 1, he e olu ion he damage coe icien s, d1and d2, associa ed wi h he ensile and comp essi e loading, a e ob ained using equa ions 3 and 4, while he damage115 coe icien d12 associa ed wi h shea loading, is ob ained by equa ion 5, d1,2=11 1,2 eA1,2( 1,21) (3) A1,2=2g1,2 0Lch G1,2 g1,2 0Lch wi h g1,2 0=X2 1,2 2E1,2 (4) 4 d12 =min [↵12 ln ( 12),d max 12 ] (5) whe e 1,2and 12 co espond o he damage h esholds o he ensile/comp essi e and shea loading, espec i ely, G1,2 o he ac u e ene gies pe uni a ea, g1,2 0 o he elas ic ene gy densi y a he damage onse , and Lch o he cha ac e is ic leng h o he elemen . The shea damage pa ame e ↵12 is ob ained h ough a120 calib a ion p ocedu e de ailed in [26]. A he in alamina le el, he shea damage esponse is d i en by he ma ix’s nonlinea beha io caused by he ma ix mic oc acking, and i in ol es bo h s i↵ness loss and plas ici y. The yield and ha dening unc ions ep esen ed in equa ions 6 and 7, espec i ely, a e used by he VUMAT sub ou ine o de ine125 he plas ici y esponse o he ma ix, Fpl =|˜12|˜0(¯"pl)0 (6) ˜0(¯"pl)=˜y0+C(¯"pl)p(7) whe e ˜12 is he e↵ec i e shea s ess, ˜y0is he ini ial e↵ec i e shea s ess, and ¯"pl is plas ic s ain due shea de o ma ion. The ha dening unc ion’s coe icien and powe e m a e deno ed by Cand he supe sc ip p, espec i ely. To be able o alida e he nume ical models based on he expe imen al e -130 idence p esen ed in [29], he s i↵ness p ope ies o he wo en ab ic composi e laminas we e es ima ed om he cons i uen s’ p ope ies o he es ed speci- mens, using he wo-s ep homogeniza ion me hodology p esen ed by Liu e al. [28]. The ob ained elas ic p ope ies a e consis en wi h hose epo ed in li e - a u e o plain wea e E-glass wo en ab ic composi es [38–40]. This mul iscale135 app oach in ol es i s es ima ing he e↵ec i e p ope ies o he ows om he ib e and ma ix p ope ies and hen p edic ing he lamina p ope ies om he p ope ies o he ows and he ma ix. This me hodology was implemen ed us- ing he so wa e TexGen4SC [41, 42]. Each lamina is composed o a polyes e esin ma ix (AROPOL FS 1963 wi h MEKP-50 ha dene ) ein o ced wi h a140 bi-axial E-glass plain wea e ab ic (EC9 68×2). The lamina’s s i↵ness p op- e ies we e es ima ed om he elas ic cons an s ex ac ed om [43–46]. The emaining p ope ies and coe icien s equi ed o implemen he VUMAT sub- ou ine, such as he s eng h p ope ies, ac u e oughness and shea plas ici y, we e aken om li e a u e [38, 47–51]. The lamina’s in alamina p ope ies145 a e shown in Table 1. No ice ha a good ag eemen be ween he expe imen al esul s and he nume ical p edic ions was a ained in p e ious wo k de eloped by he au ho s, and in which he same p ope ies and coe icien s we e employed [30, 31]. The ans e se shea s i↵ness o he laminas mus be de ined o he VUMAT150 sub ou ine [26] because i canno be calcula ed by ABAQUS/Explici [36] o composi e shell elemen s. Conside ing ha each lamina can be hough o as a homogeneous shell wi h o ho opic elas ic p ope ies, equa ions 8 we e used o calcula e he ans e se shea s i↵ness, 5 Table 1: In alamina p ope ies de ined o each lamina [30]. P ope y Symbol Uni s Value Densi y ⇢kg/m31900 S i↵ness p ope ies E+, 1=E+, 2GPa 21.9 E3GPa 8.6 G12 GPa 3.4 G13 GPa 2.4 ⌫12 - 0.14 S eng h p ope ies X+ 1=X+ 2MPa 250 X 1=X 2MPa 200 X12 MPa 40 F ac u e oughness G1,2 J/m24500 Shea plas ici y dmax 12 -1 ˜y0MPa 25 C- 800 p- 0.552 k s 1=5 6G13 , k s 2=5 6G23 , k s 12 = 0 (8) whe e G13 and G23 a e he ou -o -plane shea moduli o he lamina, is he155 hickness o he lamina, and 5/6 is a shea co ec ion coe icien ha is ob- ained by compa ing he ans e se shea ene gy o ha o an 3D s uc u e in pu e bending, as sugges ed in [36]. Conside ing he ou -o -plane shea mod- uli calcula ed by he homogeniza ion p ocess, he ollowing alues we e used in he de ini ion o he in alamina p ope ies: k s 1=k s 2=3.5⇥105N/m and160 k s 12 = 0. 2.2. In e lamina damage model To accoun o he in e lamina damage, i.e. delamina ion, he bond be ween he laminas o he composi e lamina e was modelled using a S-BCM. This model is p ima ily in ended o negligible small in e ace hicknesses and o↵e s e y165 simila capabili ies o cohesi e elemen s. The cohesi e beha iou is de ined as a su ace in e ac ion p ope y, and iden ically o he cohesi e elemen s i is go e ned by a ac ion-sepa a ion cons i u i e model. Hence, he in e lamina ac u e beha iou (delamina ion) is de ined as a cons i u i e ela ion be ween he ac ion ⌧and he sepa a ion , see Fig. 1.170 The ini ial linea esponse un il he damage onse i eached is con olled by he alue de ined o he no mal knand angen ial ks,k cohesi e s i↵nesses. These pa ame e s in luence he pe o mance o he FE model and o which he e a e di↵e en app oaches a ailable in li e a u e o ob ain i s alue [52–55]. Fo ins ance, Daude ille e al. [52] de e mined he cohesi e s i↵ness as a unc ion175 6 Figu e 1: Bilinea ac ion-sepa a ion esponse o he cohesi e su ace. o he in e ace’s hickness and he elas ic modulus o he esin- ich laye , while Zou e al. [53] sugges ed he use o in e ace s i↵ness alues be ween 105and 107 imes he in e ace s eng h di ided by leng h uni . Ano he app oach was p esen ed by Tu on e al. [55], in which he in e ace s i↵ness is calcula ed as unc ion o he elas ic p ope ies o he lamina e. The cohesi e s i↵ness in his180 s udy is se a 106N/mm3, as sugges ed by Camanho e al. [54]. Also, i is conside ed ha i s alue is he same o all di ec ions, ha is, kn=ks=k , as used in [30, 31, 55–57] wi h sa is ac o y esul s. I is no ewo hy ha conside ing high alues o he cohesi e s i↵ness po en ially leads o con e gence p oblems, on he o he hand, he use o low alues may a↵ec he global s i↵ness and hus185 comp omise he alida ion o he FE model [56]. The ollowing s ess-based quad a ic ailu e c i e ion was employed o p edic he damage ini ia ion, ✓h⌧ni ⌧0 n◆2 +✓⌧s ⌧0 s◆2 +✓⌧ ⌧0 ◆2 = 1 (9) whe e ⌧n,⌧ sand ⌧ ep esen he in e ace no mal and shea con ac s esses, and ⌧0 n,⌧0 sand ⌧0 ep esen he co esponding in e ace s eng hs. The Macaulay190 b acke s hiindica e ha he comp essi e s ess doesn’ con ibu e o damage. The ollowing in e lamina s eng hs we e used in he S-BCM: ⌧0 n= 15 MPa and ⌧0 s=⌧0 = 30 MPa [30]. Once he onse o damage is eached, ha is, when he quad a ic in e ac ion unc ion o he s ess a ios eaches 1, he cohe- 7 Figu e 7: E↵ec o hickness on he nume ical and expe imen al [29] maximum displacemen esul s. 4.2. De o ma ion his o ies The de o ma ion his o ies o he 6-, 9- and 12-laye composi e lamina es a di↵e en s ep imes a e shown in Fig. 8. The selec ed ime s eps o analysis a e ep esen ed in Fig. 4, deno ed as Ai,B iand Ci, which co espond o he ollowing con ac imes: Ai o hal o he peak o ce ime; Bi o he peak o ce340 ime; Ci o hal o he ime be ween he peak o ce and he o al con ac ime. He e, he subsc ip i=6,9,12, iden i ies he con igu a ion o he lamina e. A no able end can be obse ed whe ein an inc ease in hickness esul s in a co esponding inc ease in he s i↵ness o he composi e lamina e. Among he lamina es s udied, he 6-laye lamina e exhibi s he highes deg ee o de-345 o ma ion, ollowed by he 9-laye and 12-laye lamina es. As an icipa ed, he de o ma ion s eadily in ensi ies un il i eaches he peak o ce, a which poin he impac o ebounds and he specimen commences i s elas ic eco e y. 4.3. Impac bending s i↵ness The s udies de eloped by Liu [64] and Da id-Wes e al. [65] sugges ha 350 he impac bending s i↵ness is an impo an pa ame e o e alua e he damage esis ance o a composi e, in pa icula delamina ions. Acco ding o hese au- ho s, he slope o he ascending b anch o he load-displacemen cu e de ines he IBS, because he pla e is unde bending a he beginning o he impac 14 Figu e 8: De o ma ion his o ies o he 6-, 9- and 12-laye composi e lamina es. 15 Figu e 9: E↵ec o hickness on he nume ical and expe imen al [29] IBS esul s. egime [65]. In his s udy, he IBS is calcula ed om he expe imen al and nu-355 me ical cu es depic ed in Fig. 5, and Table 2 p esen s and compa es he alues ob ained. I should be no ed ha he IBS p edic ions o he 6-laye FE model had he la ges pe cen age o e o . This is mos likely because damage begins o appea a sligh ly di↵e en loads han simula ed. Ac ually, un il eaching he peak o ce, he expe imen s shown a smoo he damage g ow h han he360 simula ions. This di↵e ence in he ini ial beha iou can be a ibu ed o he use o he semi-au oma ic mass scaling echnique in he nume ical models [30]. Ne e heless, all he p edic ed IBS alues a e wi hin he limi s o he expe i- men al e idence. The e olu ion o he IBS wi h hickness is shown in Fig. 9. The igu e ou lines he FE models capabili y o accu a ely ep oduce he 2nd 365 o de polynomial cu e ollowed by he expe imen s, and which a e ep esen ed by he plo ed end lines. 4.4. Damage The nume ical p edic ions o he in alamina damage (ou pu a iables SDV1 o SDV5) and he in e lamina damage (ou pu a iable CSDMG>0.6)370 we e o e lapped o allow a comple e ep esen a ion o he damage se e i y o he di↵e en lamina e hicknesses, see Figs. 10, 11 and 12. No ice ha he ou pu iden i ie CSDMG, ep esen s he scala s i↵ness deg ada ion o cohesi e su aces, and measu es delamina ion a e damage ini ia ion. When i eaches 16 Figu e 10: Nume ically p edic ed ensile and comp essi e damage along he ib e di ec ions and delamina ed a ea o he 6-laye lamina e. he alue o 1, he in e ace is conside ed o be ully delamina ed. Mo eo e , he375 CDM o ab ic ein o ced composi es used in his s udy does no di↵e en ia e be ween ib e and ma ix damage a he in alamina le el, i includes only he ou pu s a iables o ensile/comp essi e damage along he ib e di ec ions and he shea damage. The e o e, i limi s a mo e de ailed iden i ica ion o he damage modes a he in alamina le el.380 The simula ions show ha lamina e’s hickness a↵ec s how se e e he dam- age is. The 6-laye FE model sus ained damage commencing a he poin o impac and ex ending he ull leng h o he shell. The 9-laye FE model p e- dic ed a less se e e damage bu qui e simila o he one ob ained wi h he hinne lamina e. On he o he hand, damage is es ic ed o he impac loca ion o 385 he 12-laye FE model. This esponse can be explained by he ac ha mo e in e aces a e a ailable o dissipa e he impac ene gy as hickness inc eases and consequen ly, he e is less ene gy a ailable o inc ease damage. These esul s a e consis en wi h he expe imen al indings, which showed ha he damaged se e i y inc eases wi h dec easing hickness [29]. Mo eo e , i co ela es wi h390 he la ge displacemen s obse ed in hinne lamina es, see Fig. 5. Mo eo e , i is also possible o app ecia e in Figs. 10 o 12, ha ega dless o he hickness, he damaged incu ed in he bo om laye s o he shell is mo e se e e in compa ison o he op laye s. I is known ha du ing a low- eloci y impac e en , he bo om laye s o he shell, loca ed opposi e o he395 impac side, expe ience ensile s esses esul ing in ma e ial ( ib e and ma ix) elonga ion. Con e sely, he op laye o he shell, which comes in o di ec con ac 17 Figu e 11: Nume ically p edic ed ensile and comp essi e damage along he ib e di ec ions and delamina ed a ea o he 9-laye lamina e. Figu e 12: Nume ically p edic ed ensile and comp essi e damage along he ib e di ec ions and delamina ed a ea o he 12-laye lamina e. 18 Figu e 13: Delamina ion p edic ions along he di↵e en in e aces o he 6-, 9-, and 12-laye composi e lamina es. wi h he impac o , expe iences comp ession o ces. These comp ession o ces induce localized de o ma ion in he impac ed egion which unde goes plas ic de o ma ion and comp ession. Al hough he CDM does no p o ide speci ic400 iden i ica ion o he a ious damage modes, he nume ical p edic ions sugges ha a he in alamina le el, he mos p ominen damage mechanisms a e ib e b eakage and/o ma ix c acking. These damage modes a e closely associa ed wi h he ensile s esses de eloped in he bo om laye s du ing he impac e en . The delamina ion a eas p edic ed o each in e ace o he lamina es a e il-405 lus a ed in Fig. 13. Once again, i is e iden ha delamina ion p ima ily occu s wi hin he impac egion. Howe e , as p e iously obse ed, he delamina ion in he 6- and 9-laye lamina es p opaga es along he leng h o he shell. Rega ding he in e aces, i is no ewo hy ha o he same lamina e hickness, hey gen- e ally exhibi simila delamina ion a eas in e ms o size and se e i y. Howe e ,410 he e is an excep ion obse ed o in e ace 7 o he 12-laye lamina e. This pa icula in e ace is loca ed app oxima ely in he middle o he lamina e’s hickness, be ween laye 7 and laye 8. The p edic ed delamina ion egion o his in e ace is sligh ly la ge and mo e se e e compa ed o he o he in e aces. Ne e heless, he o e all esul s ha e a good co ela ion wi h he expe imen al415 e idence p esen ed in Fig. 14. The p edic ed impac oo p in s, esul ing om he o e lapping o he in- alamina and in e lamina damage modes a e compa ed wi h he ac ual impac oo p in s ob ained expe imen ally, in Fig. 14. No ice ha he damage on he es ed specimens was cap u ed h ough pho og aphy using in ense backligh ,420 19 Figu e 14: Nume ical and expe imen al [29] impac oo p in s o he 6-, 9- and 12-laye composi e lamina es. aking ad an age o he anslucen cha ac e is ic o he lamina es. Despi e he limi a ions on he accu acy o he non-des uc i e es ing echnique employed o assess he damage ex ension, he p ojec ed damage a eas a e gene ally well p edic ed by he FE models. The uni o m FE mesh size used, con ibu ed o he co ec p edic ions o he damaged a eas ha can be seen along he leng h425 o he lamina es. Howe e , i should be no ed ha hey end o be sligh ly o e es ima ed a ound he impac loca ion. The sca e ed poin s ha can be app ecia ed in he simula ions o he 6- and 9-laye lamina es ou side he con- cen a ed damaged a eas, co espond o isola ed nodes which ha e expe ienced delamina ion.430 4.5. Ene gy his o ies In he loading s age o a low- eloci y impac es , a sizeable po ion o he kine ic ene gy ha is ans e ed om he impac o o he lamina e is con e ed in o elas ic ene gy. The emaining ene gy is dissipa ed owing o ic ion and o he di↵e en ailu e modes ha occu a he in alamina and in e lamina le -435 els. The elas ic ene gy ha he specimen s o es is eleased du ing he unloading s age, causing he impac o o ebound. As he impac o loses con ac wi h he specimen, he ene gy s abilizes [66, 67]. Since in he expe imen al se up he im- pac o ’s mass and he d op heigh emained consis en ac oss di↵e en hickness a ia ions, he peak alues obse ed on he ene gy- ime cu es emained iden i-440 cal. This beha iou can be app ecia ed in he ene gy his o ies o he 6-, 9- and 12-laye lamina es shown in Fig. 15. O e all, a good nume ical-expe imen al co ela ion can be app ecia ed. No ice ha he nume ical p edic ed impac en- e gy cu es o he 6- and 9-laye lamina es p esen a ugged beha iou du ing 20 Figu e 15: E↵ec o hickness on he nume ical and expe imen al [29] ene gy- ime esul s. he unloading s age, which is due o he ib a ions o he FE model. On he445 o he hand, gi en i s highe s i↵ness, he 12-laye lamina e p esen s a smoo he beha iou . The alida ion o simula ions o he ene gy and load his o ies, along wi h he well p edic ed damage a eas, opens he possibili y o iden i ying he amoun o ene gy ha is dissipa ed h ough in alamina damage, delamina ion and ic-450 ion. The expe imen ally measu ed impac ene gy con e ed om he impac o , and he nume ical p edic ions o he impac ene gy and he subsequen dissi- pa ed ene gy o ms ob ained wi h 6-, 9- and 12-laye s FE models, a e shown in Figs. 16, 17 and 18, espec i ely. Rega dless o he hickness unde conside a ion, he in alamina damage455 ou weighs he o he ene gy dissipa ion o ms by abou 5 imes, con i ming ha i is he p ima y damage mode. The ene gy dissipa ion due o delamina ion and ic ion is negligible, howe e , a sligh inc ease as hickness inc eases can be obse ed. The la ge numbe o in e aces may explain his beha iou . Mo e- o e , he high in e lamina ac u e oughness and low in-plane s eng h o he460 wo en ab ic composi es may jus i y he p opensi y o in alamina damage p opaga ion a he han delamina ion. The o al ans e ed ene gy cu e’s peak, which co esponds o he ins ance o maximum displacemen , is co ec ly p edic ed, and he ene gy balance is accu a ely ep oduced. I is no ewo hy o men ion ha he o al ene gy (ou pu 465 ETOTAL), emains s able, which indica es a co ec de ini ion o he s ep ime 21 Figu e 16: Nume ical and expe imen al [29] ene gy his o y o he 6-laye lamina e. Figu e 17: Nume ical and expe imen al [29] ene gy his o y o he 9-laye lamina e. 22 Figu e 18: Nume ical and expe imen al [29] ene gy his o y o he 12-laye lamina e. inc emen s. Also, he ex e nal ene gy (ALLAE ou pu ), is a small ac ion o he in e nal ene gy (ALLIE ou pu ), meaning he hou glass con ol me hod is adequa e. 5. Conclusions470 The in alamina and in e lamina damage and he impac esponse o hin semicylind ical wo en composi e lamina e shells unde low- eloci y impac loads was simula ed using he ini e elemen me hod, wi h pa icula ocus on e al- ua ing he e↵ec o hickness. The nume ical p edic ions we e compa ed wi h he indings o he p e ious expe imen al wo k conduc ed by he au ho s.475 The esul s ob ained in his s udy, demons a e ha he low- eloci y impac esponse o hin semicylind ical wo en composi e lamina e shells can be eli- ably simula ed using he explici FE me hod oge he wi h a CDM, o accoun o in alamina damage, and a S-BCM, o accoun o in e lamina damage. The nume ical models we e able o sa is ac o y p edic he load his o ies, as480 well as he maximum impac o ce, maximum displacemen , con ac ime, and IBS. Fo example, he simula ions we e able o ep oduce he expe imen al lin- ea esponse o he maximum impac o ce and maximum displacemen o he hickness a ia ion, as well as he 2nd o de polynomial cu e o he IBS ollowed by he expe imen s.485 23 plain-wo en ab ics wi h an epoxy ma ix: Mac o-homogeneous and Meso-715 he e ogeneous app oaches, Composi es Pa B: Enginee ing 88 (2016) 114– 130. doi:10.1016/j.composi esb.2015.10.039. [64] D. Liu, Impac -Induced Delamina ion—A View o Bending S i↵ness Mis- ma ching, Jou nal o Composi e Ma e ials 22 (7) (1988) 674–692. doi: 10.1177/002199838802200706.720 [65] O. Da id-Wes , D. Nash, W. Banks, An expe imen al s udy o damage accumula ion in balanced CFRP lamina es due o epea ed impac , Com- posi e s uc u es 83 (3) (2008) 247–258. [66] T. G´omez-del Rıo, R. Zae a, E. Ba be o, C. Na a o, Damage in CFRPs due o low eloci y impac a low empe a u e, Composi es Pa B: Engi-725 nee ing 36 (1). doi:10.1016/j.composi esb.2004.04.003. [67] A. Ama o, P. Reis, M. de Mou a, M. Ne o, In luence o open holes on composi es delamina ion induced by low eloci y impac loads, Composi e S uc u es 97 (2013) 239–244. doi:10.1016/j.comps uc .2012.09.041. 30