Experimental and numerical characterisation of a novel filler material and investigation of its elastoplastic behaviour in a butt joint

Abstract

Experimental and numerical characterisation of a novel filler material was carried out, followed by an investigation of the elastoplastic behaviour in a butt joint. The study aims at understanding the behaviour of the novel material when subjected to loads as expected in the butt joint.

Skin-stiffened structures are commonly used in aerospace applications, because of the excellent strength-to-weight ratios. For this, it is important to understand the behaviour of all the materials which go into the structure. The filler material under consideration is a novel material developed for the application of a butt-joint section.

The current study is made in two phases. First, the filler material in characterised for plasticity experimentally, followed by a numerical characterisation stage, wherein the tensile tests are replicated using Abaqus. After this, short butt-joint sections were taken and subject to 3-point bending tests. FEM simulations were carried out for the 3-point bending test in order to study the state of stresses and strains occurring on the filler section.

In a nutshell, a novel filler material was first characterised experimentally as well as numerically, with special emphasis on a real-world application.