Refined Numerical Simulation of Three-Dimensional Riveting in Laminated Composites

Riveting in laminated composites is not carried out, because the riveting process can easily induce failure and form a nonuniform interference fit An electromagnetic riveting riveter provides a relatively uniform interference fit with no direct failure in the riveted joint Finite element numerical simulation of three-dimensional riveting is conducted by considering the sine wave of force history for the electromagnetic riveting riveter. To reflect the physical phenomenon of the complicated contact of riveting in laminated composites, a refined modeling of the washer inner fillet is considered, and the parallel computations using LS-DYNA are used. Refined simulation is validated by experiments reported in the literature. The electromagnetic riveting is properly applied for riveting in laminated composites. Optimized maximum riveting force is obtained for relative uniform interference based on the criterion of relative interference for fatigue life extension. A parametric study of the washer effects during the riveting process is investigated to obtain a proper riveted joint in laminated composites.