Numerical simulation of ply angle deviation and thermal deformation behavior of CFRP reflector

Abstract As we know, the ply angle deviation of Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymer(CFRP) reflector is difficult to obtain accurately in engineering applications, it will make thermal deformation of reflector unpredictable due to the discreteness of ply angle. In this paper, based on constitutive relationships between generalized internal force and strain of laminated composite, a novel ply angle deviation model based on normal distribution is proposed. Furthermore, an orthogonal test was designed and significance analysis were carried out by means of a 2.6m aperture reflector with polygonal back structure. Assumed that the ply angle deviation obeys normal distribution, a number of samples were further randomly generated, and the sample mean and standard deviation of the thermal deformation of reflector were calculated. According to χ2-test of goodness of fit, the thermal deformation of reflector still follows normal distribution. Finally, an example was employed to verify the validity and effectiveness of the proposed method. The results reach a good agreement with the experimental data, thus it is capable of providing a promising prospect for engineering practice.