The design of postbuckling composite aerospace structures accounting for damage initiation and growth

Advanced fibre-reinforced polymer composites have seen a rapid increase in use in aircraft structures in recent years. However, significant conservatism is applied in the design of composite aerospace structures, largely due to the inability of current analysis tools to accurately capture the effect of damage. In this work, the design of fuselage-representative composite structures for postbuckling applications is demonstrated, accounting for damage initiation and growth. An analysis methodology is applied that was developed to capture the critical damage mechanisms leading to collapse of these structures. The analysis methodology is used to investigate the effect of size and location of a pre-existing interlaminar damage region in a postbuckling composite structure design. A pre-damage configuration suitable for experimental investigation is selected. Experimental results are presented of the selected panel configuration tested to collapse in compression, and compared with numerical predictions.