High-Fidelity Residual Strength and Life Prediction Tool for Adhesively Bonded Composite Structures Navy SBIR FY2012.1 Sol No.: Navy SBIR FY2012.1 Topic No.: N121-042 Topic Title: High-Fidelity Residual Strength and Life Prediction Tool for Adhesively Bonded Composite Structures Proposal No.: N121-042-1336 Firm: Advatech Pacific, Inc. 560 E. Hospitality Lane Suite 400 San Bernardino, California 92408 Contact: Scott Leemans Phone: (480) 598-4005 Web Site: www.AdvatechPacific.com Abstract: The overarching objective for this project is to develop an analysis tool to predict the behavior of pristine, degraded, defective, and damaged bonded joints in composites structures. The tool will include a multi-physics module with numerical formulations for describing the process-driven and environmentally-impacted behaviors of the adhesive and the composite laminates. The primary objective for the proposed Phase I effort will be to demonstrate the feasibility of a fully parametric bonded joint evaluation tool using various capabilities of StressCheck and a Design Of Experiments approach to calibration, verification, and validation of the analytical models. This analytical tool will be a multi-scale, FEA-based, analysis tool capable of evaluating the various details of typical bonded joints at a scale that is adequate for each detail of interest. A test program will be used to perform two main functions. The first function will be to supply relevant and unique coupon and element level test data that will be used to calibrate the analysis models. The second function will be to generate higher level (element and sub-component) test data to validate the analysis tools over the entire realm of the design space over which the tool is expected to be deployed. Benefits: Phase I will be a proof-of-concept to show the feasibility of the approach to be implemented in Phase II. Following the success of the Phase II prototype development effort, the design environment can be made available for initial deployment for evaluation and improvement. Involvement of initial users can be leveraged to accelerate the development and expansion of the capabilities of the tool in parallel with the Phase III effort. When brought to fruition in Phase II, the end result will be a calibrated and validated analytical design environment prototype that can be widely deployed among the dispersed engineering teams on any given program. It will be capable of addressing, in a parametric fashion, multiple types of degradation, defects, damage, and failure. This initial set of configurations will allow engineering teams to investigate a wide range of bonded joint design scenarios. The design environment developed in Phase II will be structured as a modular, multi-scale, and expandable tool. That will allow customers to integrate this tool within their existing analytical framework in a complementary manner. It will incorporate a fully parametric formulation for every aspect of the inputs and outputs of the 3D solid element, ply-by-ply FEA models. This will allow for encapsulation and automation of the entire set of analytical steps required to fully evaluate any given range of bonded joint configurations. This will also allow the user to capture every relevant detail that may have an effect on the evaluation. The Phase II test effort will provide a good foundation for determining a standardized methodology for calibrating and validating analytical models such that they can be trusted to yield accurate results over the entire segment of the design space that they are configured to evaluate. This approach will open up the entire feasible design space for use by the engineer. Return