An explicit cohesive element combining cohesive failure of the adhesive and delamination failure in composite bonded joints

Delaminations can change the mechanical behaviour of bonded joints significantly in crash simulations. A cohesive element is presented that enables the simulation of delamination failure in bonded joints on a full scale structural level. The principle of the approach is to compute the through thickness stresses of the adherends analytically within the cohesive element representing the cohesive behaviour of the complete adhesive. Via a stress...