A Numerical Investigation of Micromechanical Damage Behavior of Fiber Reinforced Composites

This paper examines the micromechanical damage behavior of composite materials using representative volume elements (RVEs). A new algorithm is developed to generate random distribution of fibers in the RVE, and it is possible to create a fiber distribution with high fiber volume fraction. Fiber material is considered linear elastic and the elastic-plastic matrix behavior is modeled with Drucker–Prager s criterion. The fiber-matrix debonding is modeled by cohesive elements which lead to matrix cracking. Moreover, the effects of different damage parameters such as fiber random distribution, various cohesive parameters, and minimum fiber neighboring spacing on the overall damage behavior of the RVE are described in detail.