Stress Analysis of a Thick Composite Laminate with a Bolted Joint

Abstract

The present study concerns with the stress and strain distributions around a bolted joint and inside of a thick laminated composite plate. The high specific strength and stiffness of composite materials make them an appropriate choice in different industrial applications. Today use of thick laminates is developing at a faster rate and bolted joint is the most convenient method to connect them to other parts of an assembly. In the present research work the bolted joint effects on stress and strain distributions in a unidirectional glass epoxy laminate with a thickness of 0.72 inches have been studied using both finite element (FE) and digital image correlation (DIC) methods. A full 3-D finite element model consisting of the plate, washer and bolt is developed using ANSYS. To verify the simulation, DIC test is performed to find the strain distribution around the washer and also through the thickness of the laminate. In addition, effects of different parameters such as the bolt and washer size and stiffness, clamping torque, layer orientations and external loadings on the structural behavior of the plate are investigated.