STIFFNESS OPTIMIZATION OF COMPOSITE LAMINATE

In this study, Stiffness of composite laminate is maximized by minimizing the displacement of a laminate. Laminates taken for this study have symmetricity about middle ply. Three different laminates having different thickness have considered for analysis. Laminate with constant ply thickness is used for thickness maximization while ply angles in discrete form are considered as design variables. It is observed that for given ply thickness maximum stiffness can be achieved by varying the ply orientation. In this study, optimization is carried out using genetic algorithm available in Hyperstudy. These FEA results are verified by experimental means and FEA model is validated. The validated FEA model is then utilized for Bi-axial load conditions and maximum stiffness is obtained and validated with published results.