| Fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) composite materials have been proven to be promising materials in some engineering applications. Because of their unique characteristics---light weight, high specific-strength/stiffness, corrosion resistance, and electromagnetic transparency---these materials are now being used in many civil engineering structural systems and numerous commercial products. Most recently the marine environment, transportation industry, offshore structures, and airport radar towers are considering FRP composite as a viable structural material. However, the characteristics of FRP composites are different from conventional structural materials such as aluminum, steel, timber, and concrete. The composite material system needs to be custom designed with fiber volume fractions, proper orientation of the fibers, types of polymer matrix, and appropriate manufacturing procedures in order to achieve the optimal utilization of the material and to obtain the utmost strength and stiffness of the structural components.;The main purpose of this research is to characterize the material properties of FRP composites using layer mechanics concepts and to investigate the performance of FRP composite structural members in various engineering applications. The mechanical properties of FRP composite materials are studied using the classical analysis approach. The effect of fiber orientation on mechanical properties of FRP composites is included in this investigation. Structural parameters such as stress and strain, member deflection, and failure mechanism are evaluated with one-dimensional, two-dimensional, and three-dimensional finite element model simulations. The product development utilized the results from classical and finite element computational analysis.;Research tasks in this investigation have also included (i) Analysis, design, and manufacturing of a glass fiber-reinforced polymer (GFRP) composite pallet. (ii) Computational and experimental testing on the structural performance of a fiber-reinforced polymer composite curved beam. (iii) Skin modeling for hybrid fiber-reinforced polymer (HFRP) composite curved beam. |
