Application of a damage mechanics model for predicting the impact response of composite materials

A plane-stress continuum damage mechanics (CDM) based model for composite materials is implemented in the non-linear finite element code, LS-DYNA3D and its predictive capability is evaluated by carrying out a series of numerical simulations involving impact of laminated composite plates. The performance of the model relative to that of an existing model in LS-DYNA3D is assessed by comparing the computed results with instrumented impact test results. It is demonstrated that a CDM based approach offers a versatile tool for predicting damage progression in composite structures, however, the parameters used in such models are often non-physical and difficult to characterize.