A MONTE-CARLO SIMULATION OF THE STRESS-RUPTURE OF 7-FIBER MICROCOMPOSITES

A direct-simulation Monte Carlo method (DSMC) has been applied to a ch ain-of-bundles model in order to simulate lifetime experiments with se ven-fiber microcomposites. Strength and lifetime of the fibers in the composite are assumed to follow two-parameter Wiebull distributions. M atrix creep effects are included in the model. Loads carried by broken fibers before breaking are distributed among the adjacent surviving o nes, according to a local load-sharing rule. The lifetime values given by the simulation program are in good agreement with experimental dat a obtained by various investigators for graphite microcomposites. A pa rametric study is performed for graphite SFT microcomposites, where si ngle fiber and matrix properties are varied. The relationships obtaine d from this study agree very well with the predictions of earlier, the oretical probability models.