Measurement of residual stress in thick section composite laminates using the deep-hole method

The deep-hole method is a method of measuring residual stress in large metallic components. In this paper, an extension to the deep-hole method is described to allow the residual stresses in thick section composite laminated plates to be evaluated. The method involves first drilling a small hole through the laminate perpendicular to the surface. The material around the hole is then machined away, resulting in a change in diameter of the hole due to the release of residual stress. This change in diameter is measured and used to calculate the residual stress. The calculation requires the evaluation of coefficients that depend on the properties of the composite. In this work, the finite element method is used to evaluate these coefficients. Using this method, the residual stresses in a 22 mm thick carbon/epoxy composite plate are measured and reported.