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Out-of-Plane Stiffness Analysis of Kevlar/Carbon Fiber Hybrid Composite Skins for a Shear Variable-Sweep Wing

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Abstract

In order to maintain the aerodynamic shape of morphing wing, this paper focuses on studying the out-of-plane stiffness of Kevlar/carbon fiber hybrid composite skins for a shear variable-sweep wing. Based on the shear deformation theories, the nonlinear mathematical model is developed for the out-of-plane stiffness of composite skins with the in-plane shear loading, the aerodynamic loading and the thermal loading. The material properties of Kevlar/carbon fiber hybrid composite skins are estimated through a micromechanical model and are assumed to be contact coefficient-dependent between reinforcing fiber and rubber matrix. Based on the principle of virtual work and the fundamental lemma of calculus of variations, the motion equations are derived and the closed-form solutions are obtained for sutured composite skins on the framework. Displacement fields of three different shear deformation theories, namely, classical plate theory (CPT), parabolic shear deformation theory (PSDT), sinusoidal shear deformation theory (SSDT), have been presented and compared. A systematic comparison between the theoretical solutions and experimental results is carried out to validate the excellent accuracy and reliability of the numerical evaluations. The effects of geometric and material parameters on the out-of-plane stiffness of composite skins are systematically studied.

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Data Availability

The datasets and models used or analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

Code Availability

Some or all data, models, or code generated or used during the study are available from the corresponding author by request.

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Contributions

Guang Yang and Hongwei Guo contributed to the conception of the study. Guang Yang contributed significantly to analysis and wrote the manuscript. Hong Xiao and Huayi Jiang performed the data analyses and the experiment. Rongqiang Liu helped perform the analysis with constructive discussions.

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Correspondence to Hongwei Guo.

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Yang, G., Guo, H., Xiao, H. et al. Out-of-Plane Stiffness Analysis of Kevlar/Carbon Fiber Hybrid Composite Skins for a Shear Variable-Sweep Wing. Appl Compos Mater 28, 1653–1673 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10443-021-09926-7

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