Mechanical Response and the Design of Notched Composite Laminates Filled with a Reinforcement

The stress-strain distributions of notched anisotropic composite laminates of symmetric layup filled with an elliptical reinforcement has been analyzed using a com plex variable method. The laminates are subjected to inplane combined loading. The result of this study shows that the stress concentrations in the base laminate can be reduced significantly using appropriate materials for the reinforcement. The ultimate strength of the laminates was predicted using the result of the stress analysis in conjunction with the Minimum Strength Model. Then a ranking method was utilized for the design and repair- ability analyses. The ranking was based on the predicted residual ultimate strength or the first-ply-failure strength of the laminates with or without a reinforcement. From this analy sis, the reusability of composite structures after suffering from damages can be judged from the strength recovery with plug repairs.