Composite

Materials Module
User’s Guide
Composite Materials Module User’s Guide
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Part number: CM024701

C o n t e n t s

Chapter 1: The Composite Materials Module

About the Composite Materials Module 7

What Can the Composite Materials Module Do?. . . . . . . . . . . 7
Where Do I Access the Documentation and Application Libraries? . . . . 8

Chapter 2: Composite Materials Modeling

About Composite Materials 12

Classification of Composites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Fiber-Reinforced Plastic (FRP) Composites . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Benefits of Composites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Challenges of Composites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

About Laminated Composite Shells 15

Fiber Arrangement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Stacking Sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Types of Laminates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Multiscale Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Micromechanics: Fiber-Matrix Modeling 18

Constituents of a Lamina . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Homogenization and Cell Periodicity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Macromechanics: Laminate Modeling 20

Laminated Shell Theories 22

Equivalent Single Layer (ESL) Theory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Layerwise (LW) Theory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Selection of an Appropriate Laminate Theory . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

CONTENTS |3
 Layered Membrane 26

Layered Materials 27
Defining a Layered Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Connecting a Layered Material to the Physical Geometry . . . . . . . 30
Defining Laminate Coordinate System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Defining a Layered Material Stack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Defining Variable Thickness Layers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Ply-Based Modeling Approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Saving and Loading Layered Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Sweep over Layered Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Visualizing 3D Geometry and Fiber Draping. . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Layer and Interface Selections 40

Failure Modeling 46
Failure Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Buckling Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Delamination Modeling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

Structural Couplings 48
Layered Shell - Structure Cladding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Layered Shell - Structure Transition. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

Multiphysics Modeling 49
Coupling to Electrical and Thermal Modeling . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Coupling to Fluid and Acoustics Modeling . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Coupling to Darcy’s Law for Poroelasticity Modeling . . . . . . . . . 50

Results Evaluation 51
Layered Material Dataset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Layered Material Slice Plot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Through Thickness Plot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

4 | CONTENTS
 2

The Composite Materials Module

The Composite Materials Module is an optional add-on package for COMSOL

Multiphysics® designed to assist you in modeling structural behavior that includes
layered shells. The module is an add-on to the Structural Mechanics Module. The
module is designed for researchers, engineers, teachers, and students who want to
simulate the behavior of layered structures.

The Composite Materials Module provides the following extensions:

• The Layered Shell physics interface

• The Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Shell interface
• The Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Membrane interface
• The Thermal Stress, Layered Shell multiphysics interface
• The Piezoelectricity, Layered Shell multiphysics interface (requires also the
AC/DC or MEMS modules)
• The Poroelasticity, Layered Shell multiphysics interface (requires also the Porous
Media Flow module)

5
 • The Layered Shell-Structure Transition and Layered Shell-Structure Cladding
multiphysics couplings
• The Layered Material node under global materials, in which you specify the layup of
a stacked material

Note that the Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Shell and Membrane
interfaces is also available with the Structural Mechanics Module.
However, its usage is restricted to a single layer material. In that context,
is mainly intended for modeling using nonlinear material models in the
Shell interface and multiphysics couplings in the Shell and Membrane
interfaces.

6 | CHAPTER 2: THE COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODULE

About the Composite Materials
Module
In this section:

• What Can the Composite Materials Module Do?

• Where Do I Access the Documentation and Application Libraries?

What Can the Composite Materials Module Do?

Using the Composite Materials Module, a laminated composite shell, also known as
composite laminate, can be modeled. A composite laminate is an assembly of layers
made of fibrous composite materials. It is designed to provide required in-plane
stiffness, bending stiffness, shear stiffness, and coefficient of thermal expansion, etc.
Different materials can be used in different layers, producing a hybrid laminate. In
general, the individual layers are orthotropic or transversely isotropic, making the
laminate anisotropic.

Multiscale analysis of a composite laminate can be done using micromechanical and

macromechanical modeling approaches. A micromechanical analysis considers an
individual layer, where representative volume elements of the fiber containing matrix
are used. The aim is to compute the homogenized material properties of a single layer.
In contrast, a macromechanical analysis considers an entire laminate that consists of
many layers. The aim is to compute the macroscopic response of a laminate under
various loading conditions.

In COMSOL Multiphysics, composite laminates are analyzed either using Layerwise

3D Elasticity theory through the Layered Shell interface or using First Order Shear
Deformation theory (ESL-FSDT) theory through the Layered Linear Elastic Material
model in Shell interface. Very thin laminates, of essentially zero bending stiffness, are
analyzed using an equivalent single layer theory using the Layered Linear Elastic Material
in the Membrane interface.

In composite laminates, different types of failures may appear. Thus, it is important to

perform failure analyses of composite laminates. Both laminate theories allow the
computation of failure indices and safety factors based on various general, as well as
fiber composite specific, failure criteria. The buckling of a composite laminate is a
common phenomenon and an important design consideration. It is important to

ABOUT THE COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODULE | 7

 design a composite laminate that can withstand compression and torsional buckling
loads. In addition, a composite laminate consists of many layers glued/laminated
together. Under different loading conditions, especially impact loading, the bond
between two layers may break in a specific region. The modeling of delamination
initiation and damage propagation is important to accurately predict the response of a
damaged composite laminate.

Conventionally, a composite laminate is designed based on structural requirements.

However, for an application where electrical or thermal effects are significant, it is
important to design the laminate based on the combined structural, thermal, and
electrical requirements. A tool is required that can solve for other physical phenomena,
especially electrical and thermal, in addition to structural mechanics. This multiphysics
modeling is possible using the Composite Materials Module together with the Heat
Transfer Module and the AC/DC Module.

Composite laminates are defined on boundaries, with layered materials attached to

them. They are in general in-plane anisotropic, and heterogeneous in the
through-thickness direction. It is important to be able to evaluate results in each layer,
as well as in the through-thickness direction, and not only on the reference surface.
There are various predefined tools which aid in the visualization of results for a
composite laminate.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Studies and Solvers

• The Physics Interfaces
• For a list of physics interfaces included with a COMSOL Multiphysics
license, see Physics Interface Guide.

Where Do I Access the Documentation and Application Libraries?

A number of internet resources have more information about COMSOL, including
licensing and technical information. The electronic documentation, topic-based (or

8 | CHAPTER 2: THE COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODULE

context-based) help, and the application libraries are all accessed through the
COMSOL Desktop.

If you are reading the documentation as a PDF file on your computer,

the blue links do not work to open an application or content
referenced in a different guide. However, if you are using the Help
system in COMSOL Multiphysics, these links work to open other
modules, application examples, and documentation sets.

THE DOCUMENTATION AND ONLINE HELP

The COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual describes the core physics interfaces
and functionality included with the COMSOL Multiphysics license. This book also has
instructions about how to use COMSOL Multiphysics and how to access the
electronic Documentation and Help content.

Opening Topic-Based Help

The Help window is useful as it is connected to the features in the COMSOL Desktop.
To learn more about a node in the Model Builder, or a window on the Desktop, click
to highlight a node or window, then press F1 to open the Help window, which then
displays information about that feature (or click a node in the Model Builder followed
by the Help button ( ). This is called topic-based (or context) help.

Opening the Documentation Window

THE APPLICATION LIBRARIES WINDOW

Each model or application includes documentation with the theoretical background
and step-by-step instructions to create a model or application. The models and
applications are available in COMSOL Multiphysics as MPH files that you can open
for further investigation. You can use the step-by-step instructions and the actual
models as templates for your own modeling. In most models, SI units are used to
describe the relevant properties, parameters, and dimensions, but other unit systems
are available.

Once the Application Libraries window is opened, you can search by name or browse
under a module folder name. Click to view a summary of the model or application and
its properties, including options to open it or its associated PDF document.

Opening the Application Libraries Window

To open the Application Libraries window ( ):

ABOUT THE COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODULE | 9

 CONTACTING COMSOL BY EMAIL
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COMSOL ONLINE RESOURCES

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COMSOL Application Gallery [Link]/models
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Support Knowledge Base [Link]/support/knowledgebase

10 | CHAPTER 2: THE COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODULE

 3

Composite Materials Modeling

This chapter introduces you to the modeling of composite materials.

In this chapter:

• About Composite Materials

• About Laminated Composite Shells
• Micromechanics: Fiber-Matrix Modeling
• Macromechanics: Laminate Modeling
• Laminated Shell Theories
• Layered Membrane
• Layered Materials
• Layer and Interface Selections
• Failure Modeling
• Structural Couplings
• Multiphysics Modeling
• Results Evaluation

11
 About Composite Materials
A composite material is a heterogeneous material formed from two or more
constituents, assembled to achieve enhanced structural performance. Owing to the
improved strength and reduced weight, when compared to conventional materials, the
range of applications of composite materials spans across diverse fields. This
necessitates a thorough understanding of the behavior of these materials.

Research is underway to find ways to embed functionality like sensing, actuation,

computation, and communication into composite materials. This is known as smart
composite materials.

Some examples of engineered composite materials for various applications include:

• Fiber reinforced plastics

• Reinforced concrete beams
• Composite wood or plywood
• Ceramic matrix composites
• Metal matrix composites

Among different types of engineered composite materials, the use of fiber reinforced
plastic (FRP) is growing rapidly. Applications include aircraft components, spacecraft
components, wind turbine blades, automobiles, buildings, boat hulls, bicycles, and
safety equipment.

This section includes:

• Classification of Composites
• Fiber-Reinforced Plastic (FRP) Composites
• Benefits of Composites
• Challenges of Composites

Classification of Composites
There are several ways to classify composite materials, and one way is to categorize
them based on their constituents: the type of matrix material, and the type of
reinforcement.

12 | CHAPTER 3: COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODELING

Based on the type of matrix material, composite materials can be categorized as:

• Polymer matrix composites (PMC)

• Metal matrix composites (MMC)
• Ceramic matrix composites (CMC)
• Carbon and graphite matrix composites (CGMC)

Based on the reinforcement shape, composite materials can also be categorized as:

• Continuous fibers
• Random short fibers
• Flakes
• Whiskers
• Particulate

A commonly used type of fiber-reinforced plastic (FRP) is polymer matrix composites

(PMC), in which continuous fibers are used as reinforcement.

Fiber-Reinforced Plastic (FRP) Composites

A fiber-reinforced plastic (FRP) typically consists of a fibrous part, which acts as the
main load carrying element, and a surrounding matrix/resin to support the fiber, and
transfer the load. The fibers are arranged in a specified orientation in each layer
(equivalently lamina or ply) of the material. A number of layers are stacked to form a
laminated composite material which can be used in structural components.

The use of fiber composites in the manufacturing industry is increasing, as fiber

composites are lighter and more corrosion resistant compared to traditional metallic
engineering materials. Moreover, properties like strength, stiffness, and toughness can
often be tailored to a specific application.

The fibers used for industrial applications are in general made of carbon, glass, aramid,
or basalt. Based on the type of fiber material, the two most popular FRPs in industry
are:

• Carbon fiber reinforced plastics (CFRP)

• Glass fiber reinforced plastics (GFRP), also known as fiberglass

ABOUT COMPOSITE MATERIALS | 13

 Benefits of Composites
Composite materials offer many benefits over conventional metallic materials. Some
possible benefits are:

• High strength to weight ratio

• High resistance to fatigue and corrosion degradation
• Improved friction and wear properties
• Low thermal conductivity and low coefficient of thermal expansion
• Possibility to tailor material properties to meet specific design requirements

Challenges of Composites
Considering that composite materials are manufactured materials, there are challenges
involved when selecting a composite material for an application:

• High cost of raw materials and fabrication

• Difficulty in reuse and disposal
• Difficulty in joining different components
• Different types of failure modes
• Anisotropic materials — difficult to analyze

14 | CHAPTER 3: COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODELING

Abo ut L a m i na ted Comp osi t e Sh el l s
A laminated composite shell, also known as composite laminate, is an assembly of layers
(laminae, plies) of fibrous composite materials. It is assembled to meet specific design
requirements on, for example, in-plane stiffness, bending stiffness, shear stiffness, and
coefficient of thermal expansion. Different materials can be used in different layers,
resulting in a hybrid laminate. In general, the individual layers are orthotropic or
transversely isotropic, making the composite laminate anisotropic.

This section includes:

• Fiber Arrangement
• Stacking Sequence
• Types of Laminates
• Multiscale Analysis

Fiber Arrangement
Depending on the manner in which fibers are arranged in a matrix material, composite
plies can be categorized as:

• Unidirectional ply
• Woven fabric

Woven fabrics are produced by the interlacing of warp (0°) fibers and weft (90°) fibers,
in different weave styles. A woven fabric can be in biaxial, triaxial, or multiaxial
configurations, and can have different types of weaving, namely planar weaving or 3D
weaving.

Stacking Sequence
A composite laminate is defined as the stacking of two or more unidirectional plies with
the same or different fiber orientations. The plies (layers) can be made of the same or
different materials, with individual thicknesses.

The stacking sequence, shown in Figure 3-1, is defined by the fiber orientation of each
ply with respect to the first axis of the laminate coordinate system. The stacking
sequence is interpreted from bottom to top, and the orientation angles are in general
specified in degrees.

ABOUT LAMINATED COMPOSITE SHELLS | 15

 0°

-45°

90°

45°

0°

Figure 3-1: Example of a stacking sequence [0/45/90/-45/0] used in a composite

laminate.

The stacking sequence is expressed in a concise form that is particularly suitable for
laminates with a large number of plies (layers), using the fact that most laminates are
either symmetric or contain many plies of the same orientation.

Some examples of stacking sequences are given in the table below:

TABLE 3-1: EXAMPLE STACKING SEQUENCES

STACKING SEQUENCE ORDER OF THE PLIES PLIES

[45/-30/0] 45°, -30°, 0° 3

[45/-30/0]s 45°, -30°, 0°, 0°, -30°, 45° 6
(s = symmetric)
[45/-30/0]3 Three repeated sets of 45°, -30°, 0° 9
[(45)2/-30/(0)3]s 45°, 45°, -30°, 0°, 0°, 0°, 0°, 0°, 0°, -30°, 45°, 45° 12
[45/-30/0]as 45°, -30°, 0, °0°, 30°, -45° 6
(as = antisymmetric)

Types of Laminates
Based on the stacking sequence, composite laminates can be categorized as:

16 | CHAPTER 3: COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODELING

Angle-ply Laminate
A laminate is called an angle-ply laminate if it has layers of the same thickness and
material, and are oriented at θ and −θ.

Cross-ply Laminate
A laminate is called a cross-ply laminate if all the layers have the orientation 0° and 90°.

Balanced Laminate
A laminate is called a balanced laminate when it has pairs of layers of the same
thickness and material, and the angles of the layers have opposite signs. Balanced
laminates can also have layers at 0° and 90°.

Symmetric Laminate
A laminate is called symmetric when the material, angle, and thickness of the layers are
the same above and below the midplane.

Antisymmetric Laminate
A laminate is called antisymmetric when the material and thickness of the layers are
the same above and below the midplane, but the orientation of the layers have opposite
signs above and below the midplane.

Multiscale Analysis
The analysis of a composite laminate is comparatively difficult as it spans different
length scales. At the micro level, individual fibers embedded in a matrix material are
considered, and at the macro level, the homogenized behavior of the composite
laminate is considered.

MICROMECHANICS ANALYSIS
This analysis considers the modeling of individual layers using representative volume
elements of fibers in a matrix. The micromechanics analysis is used to compute the
homogenized material properties of a single layer.

MACROMECHANICS ANALYSIS
This analysis considers the modeling of a laminate having many layers. The
homogenized material properties of a single layer, computed in the micromechanics
analysis, is the input to this analysis. The aim of this analysis is to compute the response
of a laminate under various loading conditions.

ABOUT LAMINATED COMPOSITE SHELLS | 17

 Micromechanics: Fiber-Matrix
Modeling
To analyze components made from laminated composites, it is necessary to quantify
the material properties of an individual lamina (layer, ply). The task of computing
homogenized material properties of a lamina using a representative volume element is
known as micromechanics analysis. If the material properties for the fibers and matrix
are known, and if the distribution of fibers in the matrix is known, the homogenized
material properties can be computed.

Constituents of a Lamina
A lamina, in general, consists of fibers in a matrix. The homogenized properties of a
lamina depend on the material properties of the fibers and the matrix, and on the
distribution of the fibers in the matrix. The fibers are in general orthotropic, whereas
the matrix material is isotropic.

Matrix

Fiber

Figure 3-2: Example of a representative volume element (RVE) or unit cell of a lamina
having fiber and matrix materials.

A representative volume element (RVE), or unit cell, is the smallest volume element of
a lamina which can be repeated to describe the full lamina. An example of a

18 | CHAPTER 3: COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODELING

representative volume element is shown in Figure 3-2, where it is assumed that the
fibers are located on a regular square lattice. With this RVE, the volume fraction of
fibers is sufficient to describe the fiber content in the lamina. The length of the RVE
in the fiber direction is immaterial, while the size in the two transverse directions is
given by the fiber spacing.

Homogenization and Cell Periodicity

In order to perform a micromechanics analysis of a composite lamina and compute its
homogenized orthotropic material properties, the Cell Periodicity node in the Solid
Mechanics interface is used.

In order to extract the homogenized material properties, the Cell Periodicity node
performs the following sequence of operations:

• Applies periodic boundary condition to three pairs of faces of the unit cell.
• Creates a stationary study with six different unit load cases.
• Solves load cases and obtains the components of homogenized elasticity matrix of a
lamina from the computed stress-strain relations.
• Creates a new homogeneous material node under Global Definitions->Materials and
assigns the computed homogenized elasticity matrix to it.

This new homogeneous material can be used as an input to the macromechanics

analysis.

In the Structural Mechanics Module User’s Guide:

• Effective Properties of Periodic Structures

• Cell Periodicity
• Periodic Cell Theory

MICROMECHANICS: FIBER-MATRIX MODELING | 19

 Macromechanics: Laminate Modeling
Modeling a composite laminate and computing its response under loading is known as
macromechanics analysis. The homogenized material properties of a lamina computed
using a micromechanics analysis can be used as input to the macromechanics analysis.

In order to model a composite laminate, the following properties need to be specified:

• Number of layers
• Homogenized material properties of each layer
• Orientation of the principal material directions
• Thickness of each layer
• Stacking sequence

Figure 3-3: A 3D representation of a composite laminate showing the total laminate

thickness and the laminate coordinate system.

20 | CHAPTER 3: COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODELING

Figure 3-4: Through-thickness (2D) representation of a composite laminate with n layers.
The thickness and fiber orientation of each layer are indicated. The position of the reference
surface with respect to the laminate is also shown.

In order to attach the layer definition to geometric surfaces, the following properties
need to be defined:

• Laminate coordinate system: These are the global directions for a composite
laminate about which the stacking sequence is interpreted as shown in Figure 3-3.
• Reference surface position: This is the position of the reference surface or geometric
surface with respect to the midplane of the laminate as shown in Figure 3-4.

Once all above definitions are specified, a regular finite element modeling approach
can be used. It involves setting up the physics (loads, boundary conditions), creating
a finite element mesh, performing various types of analysis, including static, dynamic,
failure, buckling, and multiphysics analysis.

MACROMECHANICS: LAMINATE MODELING | 21

 Laminated Shell Theories
The analysis of laminated composite shells is commonly based on one of three different
theories:

1 Equivalent single layer (ESL) theory

a Classical laminated plate theory (CLPT)
b First order shear deformation laminated plate theory (FSDT)
c Higher order shear deformation laminated plate theory
2 Three dimensional elasticity theory
a Traditional 3D elasticity theory
b Layerwise 3D elasticity theory
3 Multiple model methods

In COMSOL Multiphysics, composite laminates are analyzed either using layerwise

3D elasticity theory through the Layered Shell interface or using first order shear
deformation theory (ESL-FSDT) theory through the Layered Linear Elastic Material in
Shell the interface.

This section includes:

• Equivalent Single Layer (ESL) Theory

• Layerwise (LW) Theory
• Selection of an Appropriate Laminate Theory

Equivalent Single Layer (ESL) Theory

Composite laminates are formed by stacking layers of different materials and/or
different fiber orientations. In general, their planar dimensions are two orders of
magnitude larger than their thickness. Often laminated structures are used in
applications requiring high membrane and bending strengths. Therefore, in many
cases, composite laminates can be modeled using a shell element based on an
equivalent single layer theory.

This is a classical way of modeling composite laminates. This theory treats a

heterogeneous laminated composite as a statically equivalent single layer. It reduces a
3D continuum problem to an equivalent 2D problem, thus reducing the size and
computational time of the problem.

22 | CHAPTER 3: COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODELING

In addition to simplicity and low computational cost, this theory provides sufficiently
accurate description of the global response for a thin to moderately thick laminates
such as gross deflections, critical buckling loads, and eigenfrequencies with
corresponding mode shapes.

CLASSIFICATION
The ESL theories can be classified into various groups based on the description of the
transverse shear stresses.

Classical Laminate Plate Theory (CLPT)

The classical laminate plate theory is an extension of Kirchhoff or classical plate theory
used for single layer thin shells. In this theory, transverse shear stresses are neglected
and the deformation is entirely due to the bending and in-plane stretching.

First Order Shear Deformation Theory (FSDT)

The first order shear deformation theory is similar to the Mindlin-Reissner shell theory
used for single layer thick shells. This theory extends the kinematics of CLPT by
including the gross transverse shear deformation. The transverse shear strain is
assumed to be constant with respect to the thickness coordinate. As the transverse
shear strain has a constant value, this theory requires a shear correction factor.

Higher Order Shear Deformation Theory

This theory is the extension of FSDT, and here the displacement field is approximated
in such a way that the transverse shear strain varies quadratically with respect to the
thickness coordinate. It makes the transverse shear stresses zero at the top and bottom
surfaces of the laminate and thus eliminates the need of a shear correction factor.

FIRST ORDER SHEAR DEFORMATION THEORY (FSDT)

In COMSOL Multiphysics, the first order shear deformation (ESL-FSDT) theory is
one of the options for analyzing composite laminates. This theory is implemented in
the Layered Linear Elastic Material model in the Shell interface. It has an MITC (mixed
interpolation of tensorial components) formulation. As this theory accounts for the
transverse shear deformation, it can be used for thick shells.

KEY FEATURES
• Degrees of freedom (3 displacements, 3 rotations) are defined only at the midplane
or reference plane of the composite laminate.
• Suitable for modeling thin to moderately thick laminates.
• Suitable for finding the global response of the laminate such as gross deflections,
eigenfrequencies, and critical buckling load.

LAMINATED SHELL THEORIES | 23

 • Computationally inexpensive, and thus suitable for analysis of laminates having large
numbers of layers.
• Requires a shear correction factor for thicker laminates, where transverse shear
stresses are not negligible

In the Structural Mechanics Module User’s Guide: Theory for FSDT

Laminated Shell

Layerwise (LW) Theory

A layerwise (LW) theory for modeling composite laminates is very similar to a
traditional 3D elasticity theory, where the degrees of freedom are the displacements
defined in the product geometry created by the reference surface, and an extra
dimension in the thickness direction.

There are two approaches depending on the way degrees of freedom are defined:

• Partial displacement field approach

• Full displacement field approach

In the partial displacement field approach, the laminate thickness remains constant,
whereas the full displacement field approach allows a change in thickness of the
laminate. In COMSOL Multiphysics, a full displacement field based layerwise theory
is implemented in the Layered Shell interface.

The layerwise theory is more accurate than the equivalent single layer theory, but it
comes at the cost of more degrees of freedom. It is significantly more expensive in
terms of computer resources.

From accuracy point of view, the layerwise theory is as accurate as traditional 3D

elasticity theory, but it has several benefits:

• No need to build a 3D geometry with many thin layers.

• Easy to handle layerwise and interfacial data.
• In-plane finite element meshing is independent of the out-of-plane (thickness
direction) meshing.
• A separate, either lower or higher, shape function order can be chosen in the
thickness direction in order to avoid shear locking or to gain accuracy advantages.

24 | CHAPTER 3: COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODELING

KEY FEATURES
• Degrees of freedom (3 displacements) are defined in the product geometry created
by the reference surface, with an extra dimension in the thickness direction.
• Predicts correct through-thickness or transverse shear stress variation, thus making
it suitable for modeling thick shells.
• Predicts correct interlaminar stresses, and has degrees of freedom in the thickness
direction making it suitable for delamination and detailed damage analysis.
• Supports nonlinear material models for advanced composite modeling.
• Supports different material models in different layers of a laminate. It is for example
possible to combine linear elastic and hyperelastic materials in a single laminate.

Selection of an Appropriate Laminate Theory

In the above two sections, the key features of both equivalent single layer and layerwise
theories have been outlined. Based on that, an appropriate laminate theory can be
chosen for a particular problem. Without going into more details, the laminate aspect
ratio (the ratio between in-plane size and thickness) gives an important hint about the
theory that would be more suitable for a particular laminate.

In Figure 3-5, it can be seen that ESL theory is more suitable for moderately thick to
very thin laminates, whereas layerwise theory is more suitable for moderately thin to
very thick laminates. The selection of ESL theory for very thick laminates may give rise
to incorrect transverse shear stresses whereas the selection of layerwise theory for very
thin laminates may give rise to shear locking.

ESL Theory

Layerwise Theory

Very Thick Very Thin

Laminate Aspect Ratio

Figure 3-5: Selection of an appropriate laminate theory based on the laminate aspect
ratio.

LAMINATED SHELL THEORIES | 25

 Layered Membrane
In order to model very thin laminates with low bending stiffness, the Equivalent Single
Layer theory can be extended to the membrane elements. One of the applications of
the layered membrane is in the modeling of acoustic devices.

In COMSOL Multiphysics, very thin laminates are analyzed using the equivalent
single layer theory through the Layered Linear Elastic Material in the Membrane
interface. This material model is a membrane version, with zero bending and shear
energies, of the layered linear elastic material model in the Shell interface, which is
based on the First Order Shear Deformation theory.

26 | CHAPTER 3: COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODELING

Layered Materials
The technique for defining material data and other properties for a layered shell is
somewhat different from what is common in most other physics interfaces. In general,
several different materials are used on the same boundary, so it would not be possible
to use the assignment in a normal Material node in the component.

Rather, you defined the whole laminate, including materials, layer thickness,
orientations etc. as one unit. The workflow is described in this section.

This section includes:

• Defining a Layered Material

• Connecting a Layered Material to the Physical Geometry
• Defining Laminate Coordinate System
• Defining a Layered Material Stack
• Defining Variable Thickness Layers
• Ply-Based Modeling Approach
• Saving and Loading Layered Material
• Sweep over Layered Materials
• Visualizing 3D Geometry and Fiber Draping

Defining a Layered Material

Start by adding a Layered Material at the Materials node under Global Definitions. Then,
take the following steps to define the laminate:

• Add the required number of layers in the Layer Definition section of a Layered
Material node.
• Define the referenced materials under the Materials node. You can either add a Blank
Material and fill in the required material properties or choose a material from the
Material Library.
• Select the appropriate material in each layer.
• Define the rotation angle (in degrees) for each layer. This is the orientation of the
fiber direction with respect to the principal laminate coordinate system.

LAYERED MATERIALS | 27
 • Define the thickness of each layer.
• By default, two mesh elements in each layer are used which means there are two
sublayers in each material layer. Optionally, you may want to either increase or
decrease the number of mesh elements in an individual layer in order to improve the
accuracy or reduce the computation time.

Note that required material properties for the material in a certain layer
depends on the Solid Model chosen in the Linear Elastic Material node in
Layered Shell or Layered Linear Elastic Material node in Shell interface.

• For the Isotropic model (with Young’s modulus and Poisson’s ratio
option), scalar values of Young’s modulus and Poisson’s ratio are
required.
• For the Orthotropic model, Young’s modulus, shear modulus, and
Poisson’s ratio along the principal material directions is required.
• For the Anisotropic model, the full homogenized elasticity matrix of
along the principal material directions is required.

INTERFACE MATERIALS
By default, no material is selected on the interface between two layers in the
through-thickness direction. The material properties at the interface are taken as an
average of the two adjacent layer properties.

All the layers are assumed in a continuity state. Optionally, in order to model a very
thin layer of material, for example a glue layer between the two material layers, a
material can be added in Interface Properties section. If an interface material is defined,
you can create a discontinuity between two layers and use the interface material
properties. To do this, add a Delamination or Thin Elastic Layer, Interface node in the
Layered Shell interface. All interfaces selected in that node should have a material
assignment, but there is no need to assign a material to interfaces which are not
affected by such special features.

PREVIEW PLOTS
As the physical geometry is only the boundaries, it becomes important to visualize the
layup, including stacking sequence and thickness values for each layer.

You can do that by creating Layer Cross Section Preview ( ) and Layer Stack Preview
( ) plots. An example of a layer cross section plot showing a 2D cross section of a
laminate having is shown in Figure 3-6. The thickness of each layer is visible. An

28 | CHAPTER 3: COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODELING

example of a layer stack preview plot showing the stacking sequence is shown in
Figure 3-7.

Figure 3-6: Example of a layer cross section preview plot showing a composite laminate
having 5 layers with different thickness values.

Figure 3-7: Example of a layer stack preview plot showing a composite laminate having 5
layers with stacking sequence [0/45/90/-45/0].

LAYERED MATERIALS | 29
 Note that in the layer stack preview plot, the distance between any two layers is always
the same and it does not reflect the actual thickness of the layers.

Since the preview plots are used for a variety of composite laminates having different
combination of number of layers, thickness values, and stacking sequence, it is possible
to customize the plot settings in terms of changing the thickness to width ratio or the
distance between the orientation lines. It is also possible to switch off the orientation
lines and labels.

You can also create the two preview plots under Results section using Create Layer Cross
Section Plot and Create Layer Stack Plot buttons respectively. This helps in storing the
preview plots in the model and also allows them to be available in an application, built
on top of the model.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Layered Material

Connecting a Layered Material to the Physical Geometry

After creating the layered material definition, the next step is to attach the layer
definition to the physical geometrical surfaces. The most fundamental way of doing
that is through a Layered Material Link node, which you add under the Materials node
within a component.

In that node, you select the boundaries where you want to attach the layer definition.
The position of the geometric boundaries with respect to laminate definition is also
defined. You can attach the boundary to the laminate midplane, downside, upside, or
at a user defined location as shown in Figure 3-8.

30 | CHAPTER 3: COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODELING

 Midplane (relative offset 0) Up side (relative offset -1)

Down side (relative offset 1) User defined (relative offset -0.5)

Figure 3-8: Position of geometric boundaries with respect to the composite laminate.

It is also possible to use some of the transform options while attaching the layer
definition to the boundaries. By default, the layer definition is used as it is however it
is possible to use the following transform options:

• Symmetric
• Antisymmetric
• Repeated

Defining Laminate Coordinate System

The next step is to define a coordinate system for the composite laminate in which the
stacking sequence is interpreted. You can either customize the default Boundary System
or add a new instances of boundary systems under the Definitions node within a
component. Select the coordinate system in the Layered Material Link node.

LAYERED MATERIALS | 31
 In order to create a suitable laminate coordinate system using the Boundary System
node,

• Define an appropriate direction from which first tangent direction of the coordinate
system is obtained
• Reverse the normal direction if needed

Some examples of laminate coordinate systems in a cylindrical composite laminate,

using different Boundary System settings, are given below.

Example 1
The first axis of the laminate coordinate system is aligned with the global x direction.
This can be created by setting the Create first tangent direction from option to Global
Cartesian (spatial) and Axis to x.

Figure 3-9: Example of a laminate coordinate system when the first axis is aligned with
the global x direction.

Example 2
The first axis of the laminate coordinate system is at 45° to the global x direction. This
can be created by first defining a Cylindrical System having Longitudinal axis as x-axis

32 | CHAPTER 3: COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODELING

and then setting the Create first tangent direction from to Cylindrical System and Axis to
Manual with {0,-1,1} as orientation.

Figure 3-10: Example of a laminate coordinate system when the first axis is at 45° to the
global x direction.

Example 3
The first axis of laminate coordinate system is aligned with the global x direction but
with the normal direction is pointing inward. This coordinate system can be created in
a same way as in the first example. In addition to that, the Reverse Normal direction
option is selected in the Boundary System node in order to point the normal vector
inward.

Figure 3-11: Example of a laminate coordinate system where the first axis is aligned with
the global x direction and the normal vector is pointing outward and inward respectively.

Note that it is also possible to reverse the normal direction only on some
selected boundaries by using the Reverse Normal subnode on the Boundary
System node.

LAYERED MATERIALS | 33
 In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual:

• Layered Material Link

• Boundary System

Defining a Layered Material Stack

It is common that different layered materials are stacked on top of each other to build
a composite laminate. An example is a laminate having the stacking sequence [A/B/
C/B/A] where A, B, C are three different layered materials or sub-laminates.

To simplify such modeling, use the Layered Material Stack node under the Materials
node within a component. In a Layered Material Stack, you define the position and
laminate coordinate system similar to what is done in a Layered Material Link. You can
link multiple layered materials in the stacking order. An example of a layered material
stack having three different layered materials is shown in Figure 3-12.

A
B

B
A

Figure 3-12: Example of a layered material stack having three different (A,B,C) layered
materials.

Note that it is also possible to add a Layered Material node directly under
the Layered Material Stack node.

34 | CHAPTER 3: COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODELING

 In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual: Layered Material
Stack

Defining Variable Thickness Layers

In some applications, one or more layers in a laminate can have a thickness variation as
a function of geometry coordinate. These layers are typically core layers in sandwich
laminates. This can be achieved by using the Scale option in the Layered Material Link
or Layered Material Stack nodes.

In order to scale the entire laminate, the Layered Material Link node can be used
however for individual layer scaling as shown in Figure 3-13, the Layered Material Stack
node more suited.

Figure 3-13: Example of a layered material having a variable thickness layer in the
middle shown in black.

LAYERED MATERIALS | 35
 Ply-Based Modeling Approach
There are two ways in which a complex composite laminate, with different layups in
different parts of the structure, can be modeled:

• Using a zone-based modeling approach

• Using a ply-based modeling approach

The zone-based modeling approach is a traditional way of defining a layup in a

composite laminate. First, all zones in the composite laminate that have different
layups are identified. Second, the layup in each zone is defined using the Layered
Material Link or Layered Material Stack node. This approach works fine as long as there
is a limited number of ply drop-offs, so that the number of zones is limited.

In the case of a complex composite laminate with many ply drop-offs, and thus many
zones, identifying and then defining the layup for each zone individually becomes a
cumbersome process. In such a scenario, a ply-based modeling approach can be used.
Here, only one layup is defined for all the zones using a Layered Material Stack node.
Each ply then has its own selection, which is a subset of the selection of the Layered
Material Stack node. This is different compared to the zone- based modeling approach,
where each ply in the Layered Material Stack has the same selection.

Figure 3-14: Zones created in the ply-based modeling approach. The layup in each zone can
also be seen. A ply having sectioning represents the variable thickness ply.

Based on the overall layup information and the selection of each ply, different zones
are automatically created and shown in the Stack Zone Definition section of the Layered

36 | CHAPTER 3: COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODELING

Material Stack node. Each zone is treated as a different layered material and can be used
accordingly in the physics and in postprocessing.

The typical steps involved in defining a complex layup using the ply-based modeling
approach are:

• Use a Layered Material Stack node and make the selection where you want to define
a layup.
• Add all the plies to the Layered Material Stack node in the specified stacking sequence
using its subnodes — Layered Material link, Layered Material, or Single Layer Material.
• Define the boundary selection of each ply where it is physically present. This
selection should be a subset of the Layered Material Stack node’s selection.
• Based on the specified stacking sequence and the selection of each ply, the entire
selection is divided into various zones which can be seen in the Stack Zone Definition
section in the Layered Material Stack node.
• The table in the Stack Zone Definition section lists the Name of the zones, the Stack
members in each zone, and the geometric Selections of each zone.
• Click on each row in the table to visualize the boundary selection of the zones in
the Graphics window.
• Click the Layer Cross Section Preview plot button to visualize all the zones and their
stacking sequence, as shown in Figure 3-14.
• Click the Layer Stack Preview plot button to visualize the overall stacking sequence,
and further, click on each row of the table to visualize the stacking sequence in each
zone.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual: Layered Material

Stack

LAYERED MATERIALS | 37
 Saving and Loading Layered Material
After setting up a layered material definition together with the material properties of
each layer, you may want to save it in order to reuse the data in a different model. This
can be achieved in two different ways:

• Add the Layered Material to a User-Defined Library by right-clicking and choosing this
option. This adds the layer definition as well as the material properties of each layer
to the user-defined library.
• Save the model file with only the layered material set-up.

Next time when you want to use the same layered material setup, then either you can
add it from a User-Defined Library if it is available there, or you can browse to the model
file in which layered material is stored by following these steps:

• Right click on Materials node under Global Definitions and choose Browse Materials.
• Choose Import Material Library and browse to the model file containing the layered
material definition.
• Choose a layered material from the newly added material library and add it to the
Global Materials in the model. Alternatively, you can add it to the User-Defined
Library.

Sweep over Layered Materials

In many cases, a primary goal while designing a composite laminate is to optimize the
layered material definition which includes number of layers, arrangement of layers,
material properties of each layer, thickness of each layer, and stacking sequence.

In order to do this, you can add multiple Layered Materials nodes under a Switch node.
You add the Switch node from Materials under Global Definitions. The Switch node can
be selected in the Layered Material Link node.

With these settings, it is possible to add a Material Sweep node to any study in order to
solve for all layered materials.

Visualizing 3D Geometry and Fiber Draping

In complex structures, sometimes it becomes important to visualize the 3D solid
geometry which corresponds to a composite laminate modeled using the surface
geometry. It gives a clear picture of the number of layers as well as laminate thickness

38 | CHAPTER 3: COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODELING

in different regions of the structure. In order to visualize this, a default plot is added
in the Layered Shell and Shell interfaces as shown in Figure 3-15.

Figure 3-15: 3D solid geometric representation (scaled in thickness direction) of a

composite laminate having six layers.

In addition to visualizing the stacking sequence of a laminate, visualization of the fiber

draping direction on the physical geometry is also useful. A default plot is added in the
Layered Shell and Shell interfaces as shown in Figure 3-16.

Figure 3-16: First principal material direction showing the fiber draping direction in
each layer of a composite cylinder.

LAYERED MATERIALS | 39
 Layer and Interface Selections
Once a layered material is defined, it is possible to use the layer information while
setting up the selections in a physics interface and its different features.

The physics features can be of two, fundamentally different, types: Those who act on
the layers themselves, and those who act on the interfaces between layers. The settings
for these two types of features are slightly different.

LAYER FEATURES
The physics interface and its layer features have a section named Shell Properties. The
layer selections made in this section interact with the standard selections of geometrical
objects (boundary, edges, or points) in order to provide a complete specification of
where a material property or boundary condition is to be applied.

The default selections in the Shell Properties section differ between different physics
features. This reflects the fact that some physics features (such as thermal expansion)
are more likely to be applied to all layers, whereas other features (such as added mass)
are more likely to be used for a single layer or interface.

The section always contains a check box named Use all layers. When selected, you
cannot control individual layers; the contribution is given to all layers. All information
is taken from the definitions made in the layered material features (Layered Material
Link, Layered Material Stack, or Single Layer Material) under Materials in the current
component. This means that a single physics node can accommodate several different
stacking sequences. As geometrical selection, you can use any object selected in any of
the layered material features.

When Use all layers is not selected, the Layer list is displayed. You can select

• Any Layered Material Link defined under Materials in the current component.
• Any Layered Material Stack defined under Materials in the current component.
• Any Single Layer Material defined under Materials in the current component.

If you select an individual Layered Material Link, Layered Material Stack, or Single Layer
Material, you can only select geometrical objects which are part of the selections of that
feature. In most cases, you will then get access to a list of check boxes where you can
further limit the contributions to individually selected layers to which this contribution
is to be added.

40 | CHAPTER 3: COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODELING

INTERFACE FEATURES
The interface features have a section named Interface Selection. The interface selection
can be done by choosing from the following options:

• Top interface
• Bottom interface
• Exterior interfaces
• Interior interfaces
• All interfaces
• Selected interfaces

When Selected interfaces is chosen, the Interface list is displayed. You can select

• Any Layered Material Link defined under Materials in the current component.
• Any Layered Material Stack defined under Materials in the current component.
• Any Single Layer Material defined under Materials in the current component.

If you select an individual Layered Material Link, Layered Material Stack, or Single Layer
Material, then you can only select geometrical objects which are part of the selections
of that feature. In most cases, you will then get access to a list of check boxes where
you can further limit the contributions to individually selected interfaces to which this
contribution is to be added.

LAYER SELECTIONS
When a physics feature acts on layers, the interpretations of layer selections are:

• A boundary selection in the geometry corresponds to a domain contribution in the

selected layers.
• An edge selection in the geometry corresponds to boundary contributions on the
faces of the layers exposed to that edge.
• A point selection in the geometry corresponds to edge contributions on corners of
the selected layers meeting at the selected point.

This is illustrated in Figure 3-17 to Figure 3-19 where the patch at the lower left is the
actual shell, and the 3D sketch shows an expanded view of what it would represent in
the physical world.

LAYER AND INTERFACE SELECTIONS | 41

 Figure 3-17: Boundary selection with layers 2 and 5 selected.

Figure 3-18: Edge selection with layers 2 and 5 selected.

42 | CHAPTER 3: COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODELING

Figure 3-19: Point selection with layers 2 and 5 selected.

INTERFACE SELECTIONS
When a physics feature acts on interfaces, the interpretations of interface selections are:

• A boundary selection in the geometry corresponds to boundary contributions on

the selected interfaces.
• An edge selection in the geometry corresponds to edge contributions on the
interface edges parallel to the selected edge.
• A point selection in the geometry corresponds to point contributions on the
interface corners located at the selected point.

This is illustrated in Figure 3-20 to Figure 3-22 where the patch at the lower left is the
actual shell, and the 3D sketch shows an expanded view of what it would represent in
the physical world.

LAYER AND INTERFACE SELECTIONS | 43

 Figure 3-20: Boundary selection with interfaces ‘layer 2 - layer 3’ and ‘layer 5 up’ selected.

Figure 3-21: Edge selection with interfaces ‘layer 2 - layer 3’ and ‘layer 5 up’ selected.

44 | CHAPTER 3: COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODELING

Figure 3-22: Point selection with interfaces ‘layer 2 - layer 3’ and ‘layer 5 up’ selected.

LAYER AND INTERFACE SELECTIONS | 45

 Failure Modeling
In composite laminates, it is quite common to have different kinds of failure modes.
Thus it becomes essential to perform various kinds of failure analyses for composite
laminates.

In this section:

• Failure Analysis
• Buckling Analysis
• Delamination Modeling

Failure Analysis
In COMSOL Multiphysics, both laminate theories allow computation of failure
indices or safety factors based on the following criteria:

• von Mises Isotropic

• Tresca Isotropic
• Rankine Isotropic
• St. Venant Isotropic
• Jenkins Orthotropic
• Waddoups Orthotropic
• Tsai-Hill Orthotropic
• Hoffman Orthotropic
• Tsai-Wu Orthotropic
• Zinoviev Orthotropic
• Hashin-Rotem Orthotropic
• Hashin Orthotropic
• Puck Orthotropic
• LaRC03 Orthotropic
• Tsai-Wu Anisotropic Orthotropic

In addition to that, the ESL theory also allows the following failure criteria:

• Azzi-Tasi-Hill Orthotropic

46 | CHAPTER 3: COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODELING

• Norris Orthotropic
• Modified Tsai-Hill Orthotropic

To compute safety factors, you add a Safety node under the material model.

In the Structural Mechanics Module User’s Guide:

• The Safety node

• Safety Factor Evaluation

Buckling Analysis
Buckling of a composite laminate is a common phenomenon and also an important
design consideration. It is crucial to design a composite laminate which can withstand
compression or torsional buckling loads.

In COMSOL Multiphysics, both laminate theories can be used to compute the critical
buckling load factor of a composite laminate.

In the Structural Mechanics Module User’s Guide: Linearized Buckling

Analysis

Delamination Modeling
A composite laminate consists of many layers, glued or laminated together. Under
different loading conditions, particularly impact loading, the bond between the two
layers can break in a specific region.

Delamination initiation and propagation, and being able to predict how delaminated
regions affect the response of a composite laminate, are important design
considerations. In COMSOL Multiphysics, this can be modeled using the Delamination
node in the Layered Shell interface. There are several different displacement and
energy based cohesive zone models available, as well as different traction-separation
laws. It is also possible to model contact between delaminated layers.

In the Structural Mechanics Module User’s Guide: Delamination

FAILURE MODELING | 47
 Structural Couplings
Composite laminates, modeled using layered shell elements, are often connected with
solid or standard shell elements in different configurations to model real-world
structures. The following structural couplings can be used to connect layered shell
elements to solid or shell elements:

• Layered Shell - Structure Cladding

• Layered Shell - Structure Transition

Layered Shell - Structure Cladding

This coupling is used to connect the top or bottom surface of layered shells to other
shells, solids, or membranes. The coupling allows shared as well as parallel sets of
boundaries.

Layered Shell - Structure Transition

This coupling is used to connect edges of layered shells to other shells or to boundaries
of solids. The coupling allows you to choose only some of the layers of the layered
shells.

48 | CHAPTER 3: COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODELING

M ulti phy s i c s M od el i n g
A composite laminate is most commonly designed based on structural requirements,
but there are situations where other physical phenomena must be considered. There
are two fundamentally different types of interactions between the mechanics of a
laminate and other processes:

• Some physical processes occur inside the laminate. Examples are heat flux, electric
currents, and diffusion processes.
• A laminate may act as a boundary of a 3D domain in which, for example, fluid flow
is present.

Coupling to Electrical and Thermal Modeling

In some applications where electrical or thermal effects are significant, it can be
important to design the laminate based on a combined response. The layered material
technology in COMSOL Multiphysics allows you to use different physics interfaces in
the same layered material, and it is possible to solve for all the physical phenomena
simultaneously, using couplings between them.

From a structural design point of view, either laminate theory can be used together
with electrical and thermal modeling of composite laminates. An example is Joule
heating and thermal expansion of a composite laminate.

• The two multiphysics interfaces Thermal Stress, Layered Shell and Thermal Stress,
Shell can be used to couple layered shell and shell elements to physics interfaces for
heat transfer analysis.
• The Piezoelectricty, Layered Shell multiphysics interface can be used to couple the
Layered Shell interface and the Electric Currents in Layered Shells interface to
model piezoelectric layers in a composite laminate.

Coupling to Fluid and Acoustics Modeling

You can model the interactions of composite laminates with a surrounding fluid, for
fluid-structure interaction or acoustic applications. Models based on the ESL theory
are simplified and computationally fast. In comparison, models based on the layerwise
theory more accurately capture the interaction of the composite laminate with its
surrounding fluid domains, at an increased computational expense.

MULTIPHYSICS MODELING | 49
 Coupling to Darcy’s Law for Poroelasticity Modeling
You can model the flow within porous composite laminates and its interaction with the
structural shells. This interaction is supported by structural shell models based on the
layerwise theory. The coupling occurs on the boundary level, where the pore pressure
from the Layered Darcy’s Law interface acts as a load for the Layered Shell interface,
causing swelling or shrinking. Changes in volumetric strain affect the pore space,
acting as a mass source or sink in Darcy’s Law.

50 | CHAPTER 3: COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODELING

R e s ult s E v a lua t i on
Composite laminates are defined on boundaries together with a layered material
attached to them. As composite laminates are in general anisotropic, and in general
heterogeneous in the through-thickness direction, evaluating results on the reference
surface alone is usually not sufficient. You will need to evaluate results in each layer, as
well as in the through-thickness direction.

In addition to the standard result presentation tools, COMSOL Multiphysics offers

specialized methods for evaluating and plotting results in composite laminates:

• Layered Material Dataset

• Layered Material Slice Plot
• Through Thickness Plot

Layered Material Dataset

Even though the composite laminate is modeled as a surface (2D) geometry, you can
visualize the results on a geometry with finite thickness. For this, you use the Layered
Material dataset.

The aspect ratio of a laminate is often high, so it is difficult to visualize variations in the
thickness direction. For this reason, the Layered Material dataset provides an option to
scale the geometry in the thickness direction.

Using this dataset, you can plot the results in two ways:

• Plots can be done on a full 3D geometry.

• You can create slices in the shell at different levels. The slices can be placed at mesh
nodes in the thickness direction, at layer midplanes, or at interfaces.

Below is an example of a how a thin composite laminate with two layers can be
visualized. The geometry is a cylinder which is viewed along its axis. In Figure 3-23,
the following evaluation and plotting modes are shown:

• Case A: The geometry. This is what you see if you do not use the specialized dataset.
• Case B: Layered material dataset with true thickness (the default). It shows a solid
representation, and you would need to zoom in to resolve details.
• Case C: Layered material dataset with 20x scaling in the thickness direction.

RESULTS EVALUATION | 51
 • Case D: Layered material dataset with 20x scaling in the thickness direction, and
slices at the mesh nodes.
• Case E: Layered material dataset with 20x scaling in the thickness direction, and
slices at the layer midplanes.
• Case F: Layered material dataset with 20x scaling in the thickness direction, and
separate slices at the interfaces.

52 | CHAPTER 3: COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODELING

 Case A Case B

Case C Case D

Case E Case F

Figure 3-23: The modeled geometry and various ways to use a Layered Material dataset
to evaluate results in a layered material.

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual: The Layered Material

dataset

RESULTS EVALUATION | 53
 Layered Material Slice Plot
As described in the previous section, you can generate slice plots using the layered
material dataset. You can also use a Layered Material Slice plot which allows you to plot
many layers or interface. You can optionally arrange them in a linear or rectangular
array, and add layer numbers to the plot automatically. The plot is also useful in the
following cases:

• When you want to create a slice only in one or a few selected layers.
• When you want to create a slice plot through some or all layers, but not necessarily
perpendicularly to the thickness direction.
• When you want to examine a particular layer in detail, and want to plot the results
at a position within the layer, away from the midplane.

Figure 3-24: Example of a Layered Material Slice plot, where the Second Piola-Kirchhoff
stress is plotted in all the layers of a laminate with six layers ([30/-45/75/-75/45/30]).

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual: The Layered Material

Slice plot.

54 | CHAPTER 3: COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODELING

Through Thickness Plot
Composite laminates are in general heterogeneous in the thickness direction. It is often
desirable to plot the variation of a quantity in the through-thickness direction, at
certain locations on the boundary.

To this end, you can use a Through Thickness plot in which any quantity can be plotted
against laminate thickness. You can select one or more geometric points on the
boundary, or optionally create cut point datasets. It is also possible to specify point
coordinates directly.

The result quantity is plotted on the x-axis, and the thickness coordinate is plotted on
the y-axis. An example of a through-thickness plot is shown in Figure 3-25.

Figure 3-25: Example of a Through Thickness plot, where the transverse shear stress is
plotted at a particular point on a composite laminate with three layers ([0/90/0]).

In the COMSOL Multiphysics Reference Manual: The Through

Thickness plot.

RESULTS EVALUATION | 55
56 | CHAPTER 3: COMPOSITE MATERIALS MODELING
I n d e x
A about composite materials 12 P ply based modeling 36
about laminated composite shells 15 preview plots 28
Application Libraries window 9
R results evaluation 51
B benefits of composites 14
S saving and loading layered materials 38
buckling analysis 47
stacking sequence 15
C classification of composites 12 structural couplings 48
composite materials modeling 11 sweeping over layered materials 38
constituents of a lamina 18
T technical support, COMSOL 10
D delamination modeling 47 through thickness plot 55
documentation 9 types of laminate 16

E emailing COMSOL 10 V variable thickness layer 35

esl theory 22 visualizing 3D geometry and fiber drap-
ing 38
F failure modeling 46
fiber arrangement 15 W websites, COMSOL 10
FRP composites 13

H homogenization 19

I internet resources 8

K knowledge base, COMSOL 10

L laminate coordinate system 31

laminated shell theories 22
layer selections 40
layered material dataset 51
layered material slice plot 54
layered material stack 34
layered materials 27
layered membrane 26
layerwise theory 24

M macromechanics 20
micromechanics 18
MPH-files 9
multiphysics modeling 49
multiscale analysis 17

INDEX| 57
58 | I N D E X