Abstract
Simply supported plates of laminated composite material subjected to uniaxial in-plane compression have been investigated. The ultimate strength analysis has been performed using a semi-analytical method based on large deflection theory and first order shear deformation theory. Two degradation models have been developed with material degradation either applied to the entire failed ply or to the affected regions of a failed ply. Both instantaneous and linear degradation of materials are presented. Further, two different types of in-plane displacement fields have been examined for their influence on the strength predictions.
Revised May 2014