Experimental mechanics of composites

Categories: Current Research

Details

Continuous fiber thermoplastic composites are gaining a growing interest in the automotive industry due to their weight-saving potential, recyclability, fast processing time and excellent mechanical response in accommodating damage and plasticity. To this end, we fully characterize the thermal and mechanical properties of the thermoplastic polymer (of different formulations); the morphology (e.g. spherulite), degree of crystallinity and property of the neat thermoplastic polymers; damage mechanisms of thermoplastic composites under in-plane tension and out-of-plane loads (quasi-static indentation and low-velocity impact). We developed in situ technique utilizing fiber Bragg gratings to monitor the processing of thermoplastic composites. Three research themes are:

  • Macroscopic evaluation of damage in glass-fiber reinforced polypropylene laminates under quasi-static indentation and low-velocity impact
  • In situ strain monitoring of glass-fiber reinforced polypropylene laminates using fiber Bragg gratings
  • Microscopic evaluation of damage in glass-fiber reinforced polypropylene laminates at low and high speeds

expsims (1)

 

Researcher(s):

  • Prof. Gilles Lubineau (PI)
  • Dr. Arief Yudhanto (KAUST Project Manager)
  • Dr. Matthieu Mulle (Research Scientist specialized in FBG)

Former member(s):

  • Dr. Husam Wafai (PhD; specialized in experiment)
  • Dr. Mohamed Nasr Saleh (former MS student)
  • Shiva Kumar (Former visiting student; currently studying at the University of Washington)
  • Mohammed Almulhim (Former KGSP and KAUST students)
  • Faisal Kamal (Former KGSP student andt KAUST students)

Funding agency: SABIC

  • ir. Recep Yaldiz (Project Manager, SABIC Europe, Geleen, The Netherlands)
  • Dr. Nikhil Verghese (SABIC USA, Sugarland, Texas)
  • ir. Warden Schijve (SABIC Europe, Geleen, The Netherlands)
  1. Hu P, Pulungan D, Tao R, Lubineau G. An experimental study on the influence of intralaminar damage on interlaminar delamination properties of laminated composites, Composites Part A: Applied Science and Manufacturing, Vol. 131, 105783, 2020
  2. ​Mulle M, Yudhanto A, Lubineau G, Yaldiz R, Schijve W, Verghese N. Internal strain assessment using FBGs in a thermoplastic composite subjected to quasi-static indentation and low-velocity impact. Composite Structures, Vol. 215, pp. 183-189, 2019
  3. Wafai H, Yudhanto A, Lubineau G, Mulle M, Alghamdi T, Thoroddsen ST, Yaldiz R, Verghese N. In situ micro-scale high-speed imaging for evaluation of fracture propagation and fracture toughness of thermoplastic laminates subjected to impact. Composite Structures, Vol. 210, pp. 747-754, 2019
  4. Yudhanto A, Wafai H, Lubineau G, Goutham S, Mulle M, Yaldiz R, Verghese N. Revealing the effects of matrix behavior on low-velocity impact response of continuous fiber-reinforced thermoplastic laminates. Composite Structures, Vol. 210, pp. 239-249, 2019
  5. Wafai H, Yudhanto A, Lubineau G, Yaldiz R, Verghese N. An experimental approach that assesses in-situ micro-scale damage mechanisms and fracture toughness in thermoplastic laminates under out-of-plane loading. Composite Structures, Vol. 207, pp. 546-559, 2019
  6. Yudhanto A, Wafai H, Lubineau G, Yaldiz R, Verghese N. Characterizing the influence of matrix ductility on damage phenomenology in continuous fiber-reinforced thermoplastic laminates undergoing quasi-static indentation. Composite Structures, Vol. 186, pp. 324-334, 2018
  7. Mohamed Nasr Saleh, Ying Wang, Arief Yudhanto, Adam Joesbury, Prasad Potluri, Gilles Lubineau, Constantinos Soutis. Investigating the potential of using off-Axis 3D woven composites in composite joints’ applications. Applied Composite Materials 24 (2), 377-396, 2017
  8. Wafai H, Lubineau G, Yudhanto A, Mulle M, Schijve W, Verghese N. Effects of the cooling rate on the shear behavior of continuous glass fiber/impact polypropylene composites (GF-IPP). Composites Part A: Applied Science and Manufacturing, Vol. 91, pp. 41-52, 2016
  9. MN Saleh, A Yudhanto, P Potluri, G Lubineau, C Soutis. Characterising the loading direction sensitivity of 3D woven composites: Effect of z-binder architecture. Composites Part A: Applied Science and Manufacturing 90, 577-588, 2016
  10. Yudhanto A, Lubineau G, Wafai H, Mulle M, Pulungan DA, Yaldiz R, Verghese N. Monotonic and cyclic responses of impact polypropylene and continuous glass fiber-reinforced impact polypropylene composites at different strain rates. Polymer Testing, Vol. 51, pp. 93-100, 2016
  11. Yudhanto A, Lubineau G, Aguilera-Ventura I, Watanabe N, Iwahori Y, Hoshi H. Damage characteristics in 3D stitched composites with various stitch parameters under in-plane tension. Composites Part A, Vol. 71, pp. 17-31, 2015