Temperature and degree of cure 3D distributions in fiber-reinforced and sandwich composites using 1D finite elements

This paper presents a multifield numerical approach to analyze the thermochemical behavior of composite structures during curing. A 1D high-fidelity model, developed within the Carrera Unified Formulation (CUF) and the Finite Element Method (FEM), is employed to solve the coupled heat-transfer and cure-kinetics equations. This approach allows accurate prediction of both temperature and degree of cure during the curing cycle, providing full 3D distributions for these variables. The modeling approach is layer-wise (LW), with each ply explicitly modeled and having a set of unknown variables. The proposed methodology is applied to graphite/epoxy composite laminates and extended to a hybrid solid laminate/honeycomb structure, demonstrating its applicability to both monolithic and complex structures. The influence of different boundary conditions, such as temperature and free-surface convection, and non-homogeneous convection, is analyzed. The results consider the time evolution of temperature and degree of cure, and the 3D distribution within the composite part. The model’s accuracy is verified through results from the literature.