Evaluating the Mechanical Response of Fiber Networks with RVEs, 19PaperCon
Many natural and synthetic materials have fibrous microstructures, such as nonwoven fabrics, paper, and fiberboard. It is difficult to experimentally evaluate their mechanical behavior, which is affected by this underlying microstructure. To properly predict such properties, fiber-scale and network-scale models are required to obtain the homogenized material response. The current study demonstrates the use of three-dimensional representative volume elements (RVEs) for fiber networks using the finite element method. The considered RVEs were generated automatically taking into account the statistical distributions of fiber geometry and material parameters. The hollow fibers, described with elastic-plastic brick elements, were joined by interface-based cohesive zone elements introduced in all fiber-fiber contact areas. Thereafter, the fiber networks were subjected to displacement boundary conditions, and their apparent mechanical response was evaluated by a homogenized stress. To determine the RVE dimension that is required for the results to be statistically representative, a size convergence has been conducted. Finally, the apparent in-plane and out-of-plane response of the obtained RVE were evaluated for several loading cases. The results show a quite different mechanical behavior of fiber networks between different out-of-plane loading cases, particularly between tension and compression.
TAPPI conference proceedings and presentations, technical papers, and publication articles provide technical and management data and solutions on topics covering the Pulp, Paper, Tissue, Corrugated Packaging, Flexible Packaging, Nanotechnology and Converting Industries.
Simply select the quantity, add to your cart and your conference paper, presentation or article will be available for immediate download.
Evaluating the Mechanical Response of Fiber Networks with RVEs, 19PaperCon
