Optimization of a hybrid carbon/glass composites afterbody of the amphibious plane with finite element analysis

Abstract

© 2019, Chulalongkorn University, Faculty of Fine and Applied Arts. All rights reserved. The main objective of this research is to find the optimized lay up for the afterbody of the amphibious plane which can carried load according to ASTM F2245 (Standard Specification for Design and Performance of a Light Sport Airplane). The finite element analyses of hybrid carbon/glass composites are carried out using ANSYS ACP under assumption that the hybrid carbon/glass fiber composites could combine the strong sides of carbon and glass fiber reinforced polymer to balance between strength, weight and cost to achieve the requirement for each design of the aircraft. While the stress of the carbon and glass fiber in the structure are within the safety limit, the results show that the weight is minimum when the laminate ply pattern consists of 3.18 mm foam core (D) sandwiched by 3 layers of carbon woven fabrics on both side [(±45)C (0/90)C (±45)C D̅]S. While the laminate ply pattern with 3.18 mm foam core sandwiched by 2 layers of carbon and 1 layer of glass woven fabric [(±45)C (0/90)C (±45)G D̅]S on both side have a good balance between weight and cost.