Actions

Download Analytics Citations

Export to: EndNote  |  Zotero  |  Mendeley

Collections

This file is not currently in any collections.

Efficient 3D Analysis of Composite Laminates Using High-Aspect-Ratio Discontinuous Galerkin Finite Elements [dataset] Open Access

Designing reliable composite structures often hinges on resolving ply-level and interlaminar stresses, which demands truly three-dimensional analysis of the laminate. However, conventional 3D finite element models based on low-aspect-ratio elements quickly become impractically large when thin plies must be resolved over wide in-plane spans. This work investigates a high-aspect-ratio discontinuous Galerkin finite element method (DG-FEM) as a framework for accurate, scalable laminate analysis. A 3D symmetric interior penalty formulation is used for orthotropic laminates on stretched hexahedral meshes, allowing refinement to be aligned with stress concentrations while keeping the mesh coarse at the structural scale, thereby enabling laminate models with far fewer elements and degrees of freedom compared to conventional approaches. The method is first verified on an isotropic cantilever beam and on manufactured solutions with isotropic and orthotropic interfaces, demonstrating the optimal convergence rate on elements with high aspect ratios. Classical cross-ply and angle-ply free-edge benchmarks are then used as stringent tests: the DG-FEM reproduces established interlaminar stress distributions with excellent agreement to hierarchical conforming FEM, with up to an order of magnitude fewer degrees of freedom in the cross-ply case. Together, these results indicate that high-aspect-ratio DG-FEM can deliver three-dimensional stress fields for laminated composites at substantially reduced computational cost, providing a strong basis for efficient 3D stress analysis in laminate studies.

Descriptions

Resource type

Dataset

Contributors

Creator: Navvabi, Soheil ¹
Creator: Giani, Stefano ¹
Creator: Coombs, William ¹

¹ Durham University, UK

Funder

Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council

Research methods

Other description

Keyword

Composite laminates
Free edge
Interlaminar stresses
Discontinuous Galerkin
Finite element method
High-aspect-ratio elements
Orthotropic laminates

Subject

Laminated plastics
Finite element method

Location

Language

Cited in

Identifier

ark:/32150/r29306sz42p
doi:10.15128/r29306sz42p

Rights

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY)

Publisher

Durham University

Date Created

File Details

Depositor

S. Navvabi

Date Uploaded

21 April 2026, 12:04:08

Date Modified

22 April 2026, 09:04:40

Audit Status

Audits have not yet been run on this file.

Characterization

File format: zip (ZIP Format)

Mime type: application/zip

File size: 31490

Last modified: 2026:04:21 13:18:38+01:00

Filename: Navvabi_etal_Efficient_3D_analysis_composite_laminates_figure_data.zip

Original checksum: 3f5619a9048ccf373a4bf00218a9cb13