Chapter 4: Composite Pre-Processing

Copyright © 2009 Altair Engineering, Inc. Proprietary and Confidential. All rights reserved.
Chapter 4: Composite Pre-Processing

Agenda – Chapter 4: Composite Pre-Processing
4. Modeling of Composites in Finite Element Environments
4.1 Ply-Based Laminate Modeling Concept
4.2 How to Setup Composites in HyperMesh
4.3 Designing Composite using HyperLaminate
Exercise 4.1 PCOMP
Exercise 4.2 PCOMPG
Exercise 4.3 PCOMPP

Chapter 4: Modeling of Composites

in Finite Element Environments
Exercise 4.1 PCOMP
Exercise 4.2 PCOMPG
Exercise 4.3 PCOMPP

Chapter 4: Modeling of Composite
Modeling of Composites in Finite Element Environments
Composites can be modeled using single layer shells, multi-layer shells

(continuum shells) and/or solids.
In case of solids, each ply needs to be modeled with at least one solid
element. This requires a huge number of solid elements to model a simple
plate.
Majority of the real life parts are modeled with single layer shell elements.
Analysis of composite shells is very similar to the solution of standard shell
elements. An single layer shell element is modeled as composite by
assigning a composite property (e.g. PCOMP, PCOMPG or PCOMPP) to it.
Composite material properties in general are modeled with an orthotropic

material model (e.g. MAT8 - NASTRAN Solver ).
Sandwich Modeling Idealization
Core: Isotropic
• E = 20 MPa 2 mm
• G = 0.45
Plies: Isotropic Core 10 mm
• E = 73,000 MPa
2 mm
• G = 0.18
PCOMP PSHELL PSHELL

PSOLID PSOLID
3 Layers
PSHELL PSHELL
Displacement plot
PSHELL PSHELL
PCOMP PSOLID PSOLID
3 layers PSHELL PSHELL
RADIOSS shell elements use FSDT.

Even for thick shell, the hypothesis that a straight line normal to the middle
plane remains straight still holds.
In reality, with a soft solid in the middle, the actual deformation is more
‘zigzag’.
Subdividing the solid into 3 layers is not very beneficial here - one solid with
two shells suffices to approximate the above ‘zigzag’.

Chapter 4.1: Ply-Based Laminate Modeling

Exercise 2.1 PCOMP
Exercise 2.2 PCOMPG
Exercise 2.3 PCOMPP

Ply-Based Laminate Modeling Concept
Different choice for PROPERTY definitions – PCOMP

(1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) (9) (10)
PCOMP PID Z0 NSM SB FT TREF GE LAM
MID1 T1 THETA1 SOUT1 MID2 T2 THETA2 SOUT2
MID3 T3 THETA3 SOUT3 etc. …
… …
DS
• Homogenization performed in preprocessor
• No associativity between PCOMPs

Different choice for Property definitions - PCOMPG

(1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) (9) (10)
PCOMPG PID Z0 NSM SB FT TREF GE LAM
GPLYID1 MID1 T1 THETA1 SOUT1
GPLYID2 MID2 T2 THETA2 SOUT2
… … …
DS
• Homogenization performed in preprocessor
• Some associativity between PCOMPs

Different choice for PROPERTY definitions - PCOMP - PCOMPG

Chapter 2: Composite Pre-processing - Analysis
Different choice for PROPERTY definitions – PCOMP

PCOMP defines all the laminate properties like ply material, thickness and
orientation and also the stacking sequence in ONE Property Card.
PCOMP definition contains no information on plies that are also part of

other regions (PCOMPs). During post-processing, this requires lot of book
keeping to track ply and stacking information for each PCOMP.
Different choice for Property definitions - PCOMPG

PCOMPG is similar to PCOMP and additionally it stores global ply
identification number.
Through the global ply identification number, plies that are part of many
regions can be tracked across the regions, reducing the effort for keeping
track of the ply properties and stacking information.
Current “Zone-Based” or “Section-Based” approach

Current “Zone-Based” or “Section-Based” approach
• Treating laminated composites like metals

• Ignoring ply-based nature of laminated composites
Current “Zone-Based” composite modeling approach

Disadvantages
• 5 Plies in this simple example create 9 Zones (data to be handled)
• Ply thicknesses are not interconnected (so a thickness change can be a
large book-keeping effort)
• Adding a new ply requires re-zoning effort, which can be considerable
Current “Zone-Based” composite modeling approach

Adding an new ply requires much effort in re-zoning elements and re-meshing
is often required.
New ply-based composite modeling approach

PLY - Card
(1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) (9) (10)
PLY ID MID T THETA SOUT TMANUF
ESID1 ESID2 ESID3 ESID4 ESID5 ESID6 ESID7 ESID8
ESID9 …
STACK - Card
(1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) (9) (10)
STACK ID LAM PLYID1 PLYID2 PLYID3 PLYID4 PLYID5 PLYID6
PLYID7 …
PCOMPP - Card
(1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) (9) (10)
PCMOPP PID Z0 NSM SB FT TREF GE
PLY - Card
(1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) (9) (10)
PLY ID MID T THETA SOUT TMANUF
ESID9 …
STACK – Card
(1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) (9) (10)
STACK ID LAM PLYID1 PLYID2 PLYID3 PLYID4 PLYID5 PLYID6
PLYID7 …
Please show and explain : HW10.0 HELP – Stack Card

PCOMPP - Card
(1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) (9) (10)
PCMOPP PID Z0 NSM SB FT TREF GE
• dummy property to facilitate handling
• also used to define some more global parameters (Z0, TREF, FT)

• PLY – Global Ply Data and Elements Defining Global Ply
• STACK - “glues” PLYs into a Laminate with Order
• PCOMPP – implicit through STACK and PLYs (replacing PCOMP/G)
PLY 1 MID THK THETA SOUT ELEMENTs (e.g. 0° )
PLY 2 MID THK THETA SOUT ELEMENTs (e.g. 90°)
PLY 3 MID THK THETA SOUT ELEMENTs (e.g. 0° )
PLY 4 MID THK THETA SOUT ELEMENTs (e.g. 45°)
PLY …
STACK 1 SYM PLY1 PLY2 ….

STACK Card – SUBlaminate & INTerfaces

• Required to model structures such as T- or I-Beams where the stacking
sequence cannot be uniquely defined by a simple STACK card
STACK 100
+ SUB 1 top 11 12 13 14
+ SUB 2 left 21 22 23 24
+ SUB 3 right 31 32 33 34
+ SUB 4 mid 41 42 43
+ INT 14 21
+ INT 14 31
+ INT 21 41
+ INT 43 31
Left flange [11 12 13 14 21 22 23 24]

Right flange [11 12 13 14 31 32 33 34]
Web [24 23 22 21 41 42 43 31 32 33 34]
Conflicting stacking sequences!
• Intuitive definition reflecting the manufacturing process


• Substacks (SUB) define partial stacking sequences
• Interfaces (INT) indicate how the substacks are assembled

STACK 100
+ SUB 1 top 11 12 13 14
+ SUB 2 left 21 22 23 24
+ SUB 3 right 31 32 33 34
+ SUB 4 mid 41 42 43
+ INT 14 21
+ INT 14 31
+ INT 21 41
+ INT 43 31
• During ply stacking optimization, substacks are shuffled independently as to

avoid undesirable ‘penetration’ effects

• Supported as control card
• PLY based composite entities
• To create multiple STACKs use pull-down or solver browser
Setup -> Create -> Stack

Draping accommodation
• Each element may be assigned ∆θ and ∆T for each ply individually
PLY – Card
(1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) (9) (10)
PLY ID MID T THETA SOUT TMANUF DRID
ESID9 …
DRAPE - Card
(1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) (9) (10)
DRAPE DRID
DRAPE – Card
(1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) (9) (10)
DRAPE DRID
ELEM 123 1.000000 90.55610
• Draped half-sphere after importing data from ANAGLYPH Laminate Tools

Exercise 4.1 PCOMP
Exercise 4.2 PCOMPG
Exercise 4.3 PCOMPP

Chapter 4: Composite Pre-processing
How to Setup a Composite in HyperMesh (I)

1. Import or create the 2D geometry that will represent your component.
2. Organize your model in components
3. Generate the Mesh.

How to Setup a Composite in HyperMesh (II)

4. Align the elements according to the laminate main direction
Don’t forget
about the
normals !!!
• TETA (Angle that the element needs to be rotate from definition)

• MCID (Local coordinate system)
• Both are defined as the (7th field for CQUAD or 6th field for CTRIA)
5. Define the composite materials.

How to Setup a Composite in HyperMesh (III)

6. Define the PCOMP , PCOMPG or PCOMPP* properties
PCOMP (1 mm) [45, 90, -45]S
PCOMPG (1 mm) [45, 90, -45]S
* inclusive PLY and STACK cards

How to Setup a Composite in HyperMesh (IV)

7. Assign the properties to the components.
8. Apply the boundary conditions. (SPC)

Loads applied to
geometry to simply the
display !!!
9. Apply the loads. (Load)

How to Setup a Composite in HyperMesh (V)

10. Create the load step with the constraints and loads.
11. Run the analysis
12. Post-processing
Composite Pre-Processing – In Detail

Parameters for modeling composites
Define material properties (MAT8)

• Ply, matrix and core (HOMOGENIZATION)
Define the material coordinate system to establish the reference for defining
the ply angle
Define the element normal to establish the reference for defining ply stacking
Define the individual laminate property (PCOMP)

• Ply material, Ply thickness (number of plies), Ply angle, Order of stacking
Modeling Flow
Material Property
(MAT8)
Element Property Material Element

(PCOMP) Orientation Normal
failure theory
Element
(CQUAD4 )
Material
Property
(MAT8)
The typical material model used for composites is MAT8, which is planar
orthotropic material.
Each ply is associated with a material property.
The use of isotropic MAT1 or general anisotropic MAT2 for ply properties is
also supported.
Material
Property
(MAT8)
Definition of material property, MAT8 in Hypermesh
E1 = 18.7e6 psi υ12 = υ13= 0.3 G12 = G13 = 0.5e6psi a1 = 1.0e-7 in/in/oC
E2 = E3 = 1.4e6 psi υ23 = 0.6 G23 = 0.45e6 psi a2 = a3 = 18.0e-6 in/in/oC
Element
Property
(PCOMP)
Example of a typical composite property is,
PCOMP Property Failure Theory
Ply 2
Ply 1
Ply 4
Ply 3
Element Normal
Element’s normal direction defines the stacking sequence.
Plies are listed from the bottom surface upwards, with respect to the
element’s normal direction
Material Orientation
• The material orientation is important to establish the reference for ply

angles. Ply angles can be specified relative to a
a) element coordinate system,
b) vector projected onto elements,
c) coordinate system.
• Since element coordinate system is strongly dependent upon the node

numbering in individual elements, it is advisable to prescribe a coordinate
system for composite elements and specify ply angles relative to this
system.
Material Orientation
• 2D -> composites panel, allows the user to define, review or modify the
material orientation for elements.
• Individual ply orientation can also be reviewed by selecting ply number.
Material Orientation by default Material Orientation by specifying

(based on element node numbering) Material orientation angle
Why is Material orientation is very important?
Sample material property is defined as

E1 = 1.3e5 Mpa E2 = E3 = 9650 Mpa
υ12 = υ13 = 0.3 υ23 = 0.6
G12 = G13 = 3450 Mpa G23 = 3100 MPa
a1 = 1.0e-7mm/mm/oC a2 = a3 = 18.0e-6 mm/mm/oC
E1 is much stronger than E2 . But, in which directions are E1 and E2 measured?
Material orientation is very important because it defines the direction for E1 and
E2. It also establishes the reference for the definition of ply angle.
Why is Material orientation is very important?

Understanding different coordinate systems

There are many coordinate systems like:
• global coordinate system,
• local coordinate systems,
• element coordinate systems,
• material coordinate systems, …
There is always only one global coordinate system which is the reference
for all other coordinate systems.
Direction for E1 is the x-axis of the element’s material coordinate system

and direction for E2 corresponds to its y-axis.
Understanding the element coordinate system

For anisotropic elements by default the material coordinate system is
aligned with the element coordinate system.
The x-axis of the element coordinate is aligned with side 1-2 (or direction
from G1 → G2) of the shell element and z-axis is aligned with the normal
of the shell element.
Material coordinate system

• Material orientation by default (based
on element node numbering) may not
be aligned properly.
• Material coordinate system should be

defined to align the E1 and E2 to the desired
direction.
• Material coordinate system can be defined

by defining an angle or a
coordinate system.
Material coordinate system

Material orientation can be defined as an angle Rotated by THETA from the
x axis of the element coordinate system.
THETA = 90 degree
• X (G1 → G2) Rotated by THETA
• Z = Element Normal
• MCID: X is defined by the local coordinate system.

Exercise 2.1 PCOMP
Exercise 2.2 PCOMPG
Exercise 2.3 PCOMPP

Designing using HM HyperLaminate
Special features for composite laminates

Designing using HM HyperLaminate

Exercise 2.1 PCOMP
Exercise 2.2 PCOMPG
Exercise 2.3 PCOMPP

Exercise 2.1 PCOMP
Exercise 2.2 PCOMPG
Exercise 2.3 PCOMPP

Exercise 2.1 PCOMP
Exercise 2.2 PCOMPG
Exercise 2.3 PCOMPP

Altair HyperWorks 10.0: A Platform for Innovation

Chapter 4: Composite Pre-Processing

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Copyright © 2009 Altair Engineering, Inc. Proprietary and Confidential. All rights reserved.

Chapter 4: Composite Pre-Processing

Agenda – Chapter 4: Composite Pre-Processing

4. Modeling of Composites in Finite Element Environments

4.1 Ply-Based Laminate Modeling Concept

4.2 How to Setup Composites in HyperMesh

4.3 Designing Composite using HyperLaminate

Exercise 4.1 PCOMP

Exercise 4.2 PCOMPG

Exercise 4.3 PCOMPP

Chapter 4: Modeling of Composites

Agenda – Chapter 4: Composite Pre-Processing

4. Modeling of Composites in Finite Element Environments

4.1 Ply-Based Laminate Modeling Concept

4.2 How to Setup Composites in HyperMesh

4.3 Designing Composite using HyperLaminate

Exercise 4.1 PCOMP

Exercise 4.2 PCOMPG

Exercise 4.3 PCOMPP

Chapter 4: Modeling of Composite

Modeling of Composites in Finite Element Environments

Composites can be modeled using single layer shells, multi-layer shells

Composite material properties in general are modeled with an orthotropic

Sandwich Modeling Idealization

Plies: Isotropic Core 10 mm

Sandwich Modeling Idealization

PCOMP PSHELL PSHELL

Sandwich Modeling Idealization

Sandwich Modeling Idealization

RADIOSS shell elements use FSDT.

Sandwich Modeling Idealization

Chapter 4.1: Ply-Based Laminate Modeling

Agenda – Chapter 4: Composite Pre-Processing

4. Modeling of Composites in Finite Element Environments

4.1 Ply-Based Laminate Modeling Concept

4.2 How to Setup Composites in HyperMesh

4.3 Designing Composite using HyperLaminate

Exercise 2.1 PCOMP

Exercise 2.2 PCOMPG

Exercise 2.3 PCOMPP

Ply-Based Laminate Modeling Concept

Different choice for PROPERTY definitions – PCOMP

PCOMP PID Z0 NSM SB FT TREF GE LAM

MID1 T1 THETA1 SOUT1 MID2 T2 THETA2 SOUT2

MID3 T3 THETA3 SOUT3 etc. …

• Homogenization performed in preprocessor

• No associativity between PCOMPs

Ply-Based Laminate Modeling Concept

Different choice for Property definitions - PCOMPG

PCOMPG PID Z0 NSM SB FT TREF GE LAM

GPLYID1 MID1 T1 THETA1 SOUT1

GPLYID2 MID2 T2 THETA2 SOUT2

• Homogenization performed in preprocessor

• Some associativity between PCOMPs

Ply-Based Laminate Modeling Concept

Different choice for PROPERTY definitions - PCOMP - PCOMPG

Chapter 2: Composite Pre-processing - Analysis

Different choice for PROPERTY definitions – PCOMP

PCOMP definition contains no information on plies that are also part of

Chapter 2: Composite Pre-processing - Analysis

Different choice for Property definitions - PCOMPG

Chapter 2: Composite Pre-processing - Analysis

Current “Zone-Based” or “Section-Based” approach