A rapid multi-scale design tool for the prediction of wrinkle defect formation in composite components

The consolidation of uncured material is an important factor in the design and manufacture of thick laminated composite structures since it is a key driver for part quality and the formation of defects. A new modelling approach and its implementation is presented here. The constitutive relation, based on kinematic enrichment, has been derived from the orientation and volume of the micro-constituents of the material, their respective constitutive laws and the orientation of the interfaces between them. It is applicable for any layered structures, in particular those made of soft anisotropic materials. The proposed method has been implemented into a commercial Finite Element (FE) software via a user material. Its ability to predict wrinkles during the manufacture of laminated composites demonstrates its performance as a design tool, as this provides a challenging test case for any numerical platform.