A mesoscale ultrasonic attenuation finite element model of composites with random-distributed voids

Interaction between ultrasonic wave and fiber reinforced composites with voids was investigated on the mesoscale by numerical method in this work. DIGIMAT-FE software was used to establish a mesoscale model of void-containing composites, which revealed the real microstructure with randomly distributed voids. Ultrasonic excitation was loaded into the mesoscale model via ABAQUS/Explicit before the finite element analysis (FEA) was carried out. Take T800 carbon fiber/epoxy composite material as an example, the accuracy of the simulated method was verified by comparing the numerical prediction with the analytical and experimental results. Therefore, this simulation method not only can be an effective guidance for manufacturing process but also provide a theoretical basis for reducing void level in order to increase performance of composites. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.