Bending of Composite Cylindrical Shells with Circular Cutouts: Experimental Validation

What is it about?

An experimental study of two unstiffened graphite-epoxy cylindrical shells with cut-outs subjected to bending load is presented. One of the cylinders was a classical laminate with traditional angles. The second cylinder was a variable stiffness cylinder obtained by steering the fiber orientation angle along the circumference of the cylinder. Fiber-steered nonconventional laminates provide performance increase for cylindrical shells in bending compared to conventional straight fiber ones, hence is considered an innovation. The experimental data were compared to progressive damage analysis results obtained with a finite element analysis that included measured geometrical imperfections. The research contributes to the knowledge of variable-stiffness composite structures and their applications in aircraft fuselages.

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