Composites and Polymers

MECH60102 Composites and Polymers 15 Semester 2 Postgraduate Taught Level 4 Zhenmin Zou Unit coordinator 1 FHEQ level (Framework for Higher Education Qualifications) ' Masters/Integrated Masters P4 ' European Credit Transfer & Accumulation System Rating : 7.5 Composite materials are finding increasing application in various engineering fields due to their advantages over conventional structure materials.  This unit covers a wide range of topics on composite materials and polymers, including materials, manufacturing techniques and mechanics of composite materials and structures. The intended learning outcomes are focussed on the basic knowledge of composites and understanding of the design and analysis of composite structures and manufacturing.The unit will enable students to consider the options of using composites and make a reasonable choice of composites for new design purposes taking account of appropriate manufacturing process. Students will develop skills for the design and analysis of advanced engineering composite structures (aerospace, naval, automotive, etc) in the future. Composite materials are finding increasing application in various engineering fields due to their advantages over conventional structure materials.  This unit covers a wide range of topics on composite materials and polymers, including materials, manufacturing techniques and mechanics of composite materials and structures. The intended learning outcomes are focussed on the basic knowledge of composites and understanding of the design and analysis of composite structures and manufacturing. The unit will enable students to consider the options of using composites and make a reasonable choice of composites for new design purposes taking account of appropriate manufacturing process. Students will develop skills for the design and analysis of advanced engineering composite structures (aerospace, naval, automotive, etc) in the future. For students to: <ol> <li> Describe the concept of composites and their applications in engineering;</li> <li> Use basic principles and means for design and analysis of simple structures made of composites;</li> </ol> Familiarise with a range of typical manufacture processing techniques. <ol> <li style="margin-bottom:4px">Introduction to composite materials</li></ol>Describes what are composite materials, their characteristics, advantages/disadvantages and applications.<ol start="2"> <li style="margin-bottom:4px">Mechanical behaviour of composite material</li></ol>Review isotropic elasticity.  Explains the material behaviour of composites:  stress-strain relationship, elastic engineering constants, stiffness in any direction, mechanics of lamina.<ol start="3"> <li style="margin-bottom:4px">Mechanical behaviour of composite laminate</li></ol>Derive the constitutive law for composite laminate, discuss the stiffness of composite laminate, explain how to perform stress analysis of laminate. Reveal how the fibre orientation angle and ply stacking sequence affect the laminate stiffness and strength.<ol start="4"> <li style="margin-bottom:4px">Failure of composite materials and structures</li></ol>Introduce two widely used failure criteria for composites: Maximum stress and Tsai-wu criteria, explain how to apply them to failure analysis of composites.  Introduce the method how to model the progressive damage initiation and propagation in composites.<ol start="5"> <li style="margin-bottom:4px">Micromechanics of composite materials</li></ol>Explain how to predict the effective material properties of composites based on its constituents, discuss the failure mechanisms of composites. <ol start="6"> <li style="margin-bottom:4px">Composite laminate design</li></ol>Introduce the general design rules, how to use Carpet Plot method and perform laminate design via an example.<ol start="7"> <li style="margin-bottom:4px">Materials</li></ol>Introduce the concept of polymer, classification, bonding and structure, major thermo-physical properties. Discuss processing technologies; classify the types of fibres/mats/reinforcements (glass, carbon, graphene, kevlar, natural fibres, etc.)<ol start="8"> <li style="margin-bottom:4px">Manufacturing processes of polymer matrix composites.</li></ol>Introduce m 1 Written exam 80% 3 Report 20% Collective feedback in classComments on reportFeedback form MSc Mechanical Eng Design MSc Mechanical Eng Design PGDT Taught Component Optional MSc Aerospace Engineering MSc Aerospace Engineering PGDT Taught Component Optional N Lectures 31 Project supervision 6 Tutorials 5 0 108