An experimental and numerical study on the interference-fit pin installation process for cross-ply glass fiber reinforced plastics (GFRP)

Interference-fit pin connections provide beneficial effects such as fatigue enhancement to the fiber reinforced composites. An interference-fit pin installation process simulation using three-dimensional (3-D) finite element analysis (FEA) was conducted considering the friction coefficient (0.1) and interference-fit percentages (0.4% and 1.0%). During the simulation, the stress and strain distributions of GFRP when installing interference-fit pin were investigated. The radial and the tangential strains in the vicinity of the hole acquired from the FEA were compared with strain gauge experimental measurements, showing fairly good agreement. With increasing interference fit percent, the strain magnitudes increased after pin installation. For 1% interference-fit, micro-scale fiber damage occurred in local regions around hole during the pin installation experiments, while minimal damage was observed for 0.4% interference-fit. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.