ECCOMAS 2024

Modelling Moisture-assisted Fracture and Liquid-Solid Impact in Composite Materials Using Phase Field Method

  • Au-Yeung, Kit (Queen Mary Univesrity of London)
  • Webb, Luke (Queen Mary Univesrity of London)
  • Martinez-paneda, Emilio (Univesity of Oxford)
  • Tan, Wei (Queen Mary University of London)

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Composite materials are increasingly employed in aerospace and offshore wind energy industries due to their exceptional specific mechanical properties. However, these materials are vulnerable to challenging conditions, including dynamic impact loading and environmental degradation. Notably, the high-velocity impact of liquid droplets can cause significant erosion damage to the leading edges of wind turbine blades. Phase Field (PF) fracture models present promising solutions for predicting such problems. These PF methods are capable of capturing varied crack paths and evolving interfaces, seamlessly integrating with multiphysics phenomena. Furthermore, the PF interface approach is instrumental in replicating the flow behaviour of two distinct, immiscible fluids, with a specific focus on accurately determining their interface position. This research aims to examine the impact of factors such as microstructure, moisture contents and dynamic liquid-solid impact on the material's macroscopic performance. Within this research, we introduce a numerical framework that integrates phase field fracture modelling with moisture diffusion and hygroscopic expansion to predict environment-induced failures in composite materials [1-2]. Our model undergoes rigorous validation against experimental data. The integrated phase field fracture method adeptly replicates moisture dispersion, fibre and matrix swelling, and fibre-matrix debonding. Expanding our computational framework, we proceed to simulate liquid-solid interactions, leveraging the Arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian (ALE) technique in tandem with a pre-defined multiphysics interface for Two-Phase Flow and Phase Field. Comparative analyses of displacement, strain distribution, and historical strain waves affirm the model's accuracy with experimental findings. The computational architecture offers a virtual platform to explore microstructural features, material properties, environmental-induced degradation and dynamic liquid-solid impacts. Such advancements are pivotal in optimising designs, propelling the evolution of next-generation transport and offshore energy innovations.