Failure analysis of C/SiC composites plate with a hole by the PFA and DIC method

The progressive failure analysis (PFA) and digital image correlation (DIC) method were used to study the strain distribution and failure evolution of C/SiC composites with a circular hole under tension. The nonlinear constitutive relation based continuous degradation strategy (NCRCDS) was combined with the PFA and compared with the sudden material property degradation strategy (SMPDS). The maximum strain criterion was adopted in the PFA to model local failure. The initiation and evolution of local failure around the hole were studied by PFA and DIC method. The results indicate that the local failure distribution simulated by PFA was close to that of the DIC measurement. The strain field was relevant to the surface topography and the microstructure of the material, and the strain distribution around the hole was affected by the arrangement and the damage of the fiber bundle. The simulated results of the strain distribution were in good agreement with the DIC measurements.