Strategies for modelling delamination growth using isogeometric continuum shell elements

The computational efficiency of CAE models and methods for analysing failure progression in composites is important to enable their use in full scale models. In particular, efficient approximation and solution methods for delamination modelling is crucial to meet today’s requirements on virtual development lead times. For that purpose, several papers have been published that present alternative methods for modelling concepts which support laminate failure analyses requiring only one shell element through the thickness and where arbitrary delamination propagation is accounted for only in areas where it is needed. The proposed new concepts however need to be further developed before they can be readily applied to solve engineering problems. As for the alternative concept based on an isogeometric approach by Hosseini et al., there is a need to handle successive introduction of new discontinuities by means of knot-insertion in an automated fashion. To this end, better predictions of the throughthe- thickness distribution of out-of-plane stresses are needed. In this paper we focus on the further development of the isogeometric continuum shell element to allow for an automated insertion of discontinuities.