Multi-Scale Modeling and Experimental Study of the Strength of Plain-Woven SiC/SiC Composites

The strength of plain-woven SiC/SiC composites was predicted with the multi-scale method. Firstly, a three-dimensional unit cell was used to characterize the geometric structure of plain-woven SiC/SiC composites. Secondly, the yarns were seen as minicomposites, whose axial mechanical properties were obtained by the shear-lag model, and the fiber defect model was adopted to simulate the failure process of minicomposites. The strength of plain-woven SiC/SiC composites predicted with the multi-scale method is in good agreement with the experimental result. Besides, the effects of heat treatment and load-carrying capacity of broken fiber on the strength of plain-woven SiC/SiC composites were evaluated, and the effect of woven geometry structure was also evaluated.