Localized failure analysis of internally pressurized laminated ellipsoidal woven GFRP composite domes: Analytical, numerical, and experimental studies

This paper presented a systematic approach toward localized failure inspection of internally pressurized laminated ellipsoidal woven composite domes. The domes were made of thin glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) woven composite layups [0,0,0], [0,30,0], [0,45,0], and [0,75,0]. The analytical results demonstrated that the circumferential regions near meridian w = 458 in prolate ellipsoidal domes and near meridian w = 908 in oblate ellipsoidal domes sustain the highest deformation under internal pressure. This observation was then confirmed by the numerical and experimental results. In addition, the numerical and experimental results showed localized rather than uniform failure in those regions, irrespective of changes in laminate stacking sequence. It was observed that localized failure occurs since the woven fibers configuration in some areas of woven remains in initial geometry (square shape), while the rests are deformed into the rhombic shape. In other words, by moving along the circumferential direction from the area close to u = 08 to u = 458 and u = 458 to u = 908, the shape of woven fibers gradually changes from square (strong area) to rhombic (weak area), and rhombic to square, respectively. Thus, to minimize failure pressure, the meridian region vulnerable to failure must initially be identified. Afterwards, the rhombic regions in the circumference corresponding to that meridian must be strengthened.

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Opracowanie rekordu ze środków MNiSW, umowa Nr 461252 w ramach programu "Społeczna odpowiedzialność nauki" - moduł: Popularyzacja nauki i promocja sportu (2020)