A generalised approach to the calibration of orthotropic materials for thermoelastic stress analysis

A review of thermoelastic theory associated with orthotropic solids is provided, the purpose of which is to develop a calibration procedure for thermoelastic stress analysis (TSA) that can be applied to laminated orthotropic composite materials. The procedure is based on the laminate strains rather than the surface ply stresses and enables a calibration approach that accounts simultaneously for the laminate mechanical response and the surface thermoelastic response. This calibration routine enables quantitative values of strain to be derived from thermoelastic data obtained from laminated composite structures. The calibration procedure is based on the use of simple tensile specimens. A variety of laminate stacking sequences are studied using E-glass epoxy pre-impregnated materials. Detailed material properties are obtained and the calibration procedure validated experimentally and theoretically.