Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
1466262 | Composites Part A: Applied Science and Manufacturing | 2013 | 9 Pages |
Current industrial designs for joining composite wind blade elements allow unstable crack propagation in the thick adhesive layer within the joint. In this work, a novel integral 3D woven Pi-joint element is developed and implemented in an I-beam joint construction that corresponds to a wind blade’s shear web and spar cap. In a series of iterative design–analysis–fabrication–testing cycles, 2.9 m long I-beams that used the current practice joint and the novel proposed joint were designed, studied theoretically with the use of a 3D Mosaic analysis tool, then manufactured and loaded to failure in a cantilever flexure loading set up. Experimental data showed significant advantage in the load-bearing capacity of the joint structure with the use of novel Pi-joint element. Excellent agreement was observed between the theoretical predictions and experimental data.