Thermoelastic analysis of residual stresses in unidirectional, high‐performance composites

Abstract We present a thermoelastic analysis of the composite cylinder model for a undirectional composite including anisotropic fibers and an interphase region. We have found the magnitude of the residual thermal stresses on the micromechanics level induced by differential shrinkage between the anisotropic fibers and the matrix. For typical composites the largest residual stress is tension along the fiber direction, and a simple lower bound expression for this stress is given. Prediction of the magnitude of the thermal stresses requires knowledge of the thermal and physical properties of the matrix. The relevant properties for epoxy and thermoplastic matrices are discussed. The magnitude of the residual stresses can be reduced by tailoring the interphase region, but only if the interphase region serves to reduce the temperature for the onset of stress buildup. The volume fraction dependence of the longitudinal and transverse thermal expansion coefficients of the composite is compared to analogous expressions in the literature which do not include anisotropy of the fibers.