Strain Rate Behavior of Composites: Issues

The modeling of composite material behavior in the dynamic loading regime and subsequent failure of such materials continues to evolve. Numerical simulations using finite element/difference codes for modeling the dynamic behavior and failure of these materials require an accurate description of such effects as strain rate, loading history, internal damage, deformation, environmental conditioning, and load intensity. The models developed must include an accurate representation of the physical processes, be mathematically tractable, and incorporate the appropriate material constants. It is with the issues involved with the determination of material parameters for composite material constants from appropriately designed experiments that is the focus of this paper.