DefGen

This directory contains all the files necessary to run the Abaqus UMAT developed at the University of Bristol for the simulation of the compaction behaviour of uncured prepreg under processing conditions.

The related work was conducted at the University of Bristol under the EPSRC funded research grants:

• Centre for Innovative Manufacturing in Composites project “Defect Generation Mechanisms in Thick and Variable Thickness Composite Parts – Understanding, Predicting and Mitigation” (DefGen), grant reference no. EP/I033513/1.
• SIMulation of new manufacturing PROcesses for Composite Structures (SIMPROCS), grant reference no. EP/P027350/1.

Access

To receive access to the DefGen repository, please send a short email to bci-github@bristol.ac.uk to let us know your interest.

Access is granted on the condition that you agree for us to contact you about your use of the software.

You can click here for a template.

Additional details

A full technical description of the model coded in the UMAT is provided in:

• J.P.-H. Belnoue, O.J. Nixon-Pearson, D.S. Ivanov and S.R. Hallett, “A Novel Hyper-Viscoelastic Model for Consolidation of Toughened Prepregs under Processing Conditions”, Mechanics of Materials,97:118-134, 2016.
• J. P.-H. Belnoue, M. Valverde, M. Onoufriou, X. Sun, X., D.S. Ivanov and S.R. Hallett, “On the physical relevance of power law-based equations to describe the compaction behaviour of resin infused fibrous materials”, International Journal of Mechanical Sciences, 2021.

Demonstrations of the model capabilities are illustrated in:

• J.P.-H. Belnoue, T. Mesogitis, O.J. Nixon-Pearson, J. Kratz, D.S. Ivanov, I.K. Partridge, K.D. Potter and S.R. Hallett, “Understanding and predicting defect formation in automated fibre placement pre-preg laminates”, Composites Part A: Applied Science and Manufacturing, 102:196-206, 2017.
• J.P.-H. Belnoue, O.J. Nixon-Pearson, A. Thompson, D.S. Ivanov, K.D. Potter and S.R. Hallett, “Consolidation-driven defect generation in thick composite parts”, Journal of Manufacturing Science and Engineering, 140(7):071006, 2018.
• M. Valverde, J. P.-H. Belnoue, R. Kupfer, L.F. Kawashita, M. Gude and S.R. Hallett, “Compaction behaviour of continuous fibre-reinforced thermoplastic composites under rapid processing conditions”, Composites Part A: Applied Science and Manufacturing, 2021.

For more information please contact: Bristol Composites Institute (University of Bristol) bci-github@bristol.ac.uk.

Graphical Abstract