COMPRESSIVE STRENGTH OF COMPOSITE LATTICE STRUCTURES

This research investigates the strength of composite lattice cylindric al and conical shells under axial compressive loads. The lattice struc tures are composed of circumferential and helical members, whose cross -sections are rectangular. The failure modes of both cylindrical and c onical composite lattice shells are examined. New design constraints t o achieve weight efficient structures with high failure loads is prese nted. Two main failure modes, general buckling as a shell and excessiv e shear stress in the members, are considered. The main emphasis is pl aced on the effects of geometrical configuration of the structure and the manufacturing process. Filament winding was used as the method of construction to automate the fabrication process and to minimize manuf acturing costs. Numerical results are obtained by finite element analy sis which are compared with experimental solutions. The motivation of the present work was to find the optimal winding pattern to which fila ment winding can be easily applied and still provide the highest stren gth to weight ratio. The final result of this research includes the nu merical and experimental analysis of composite lattice cylindrical and conical shells via filament-winding. This work provides an understand ing of composite lattice structures that will be useful in preliminary design of such structures.