The experiment and numerical simulation of woven composite fastener shear behavior

The analysis of three-dimensional (3D) braided composites is difficult due to its complex microstructure. A novel representative unit cell (RUC) and shear specimen model is introduced to predict elastic properties and failure behavior of 3D 8-harness satin weave composites fastener under shear load. The RUC model is developed to predict engineering constants of composites in several damage status. The connection between macro and meso stress is established by RUC model, which is used to predict the shear strength of fastener based on two scale failure method. Experiments of simulated fastener is performed under shear test. Close correlation is obtained between experimental data and predictions, which demonstrates the validity of this model. The fastener shear strength and failure process under different load angle are also discussed, which indicate the shear strength decreases with the increase of load angle and different damage propagation process occurs.