Computational techniques for simulation of damage and failure in composite materials

This chapter presents some of the most recent and relevant computational techniques for modelling and simulation of damage and/or failure on composite materials. In the last few years, the number of computer methods dedicated to virtual composite damage simulation has exploded as a consequence of progress on a number of numerical methods such as the Partition of Unity Methods (Extended Finite Element Method, Phantom Node Method,...), meshfree methods (Particle Methods, Element Free Galerkin Method,..) or semi-numerical approaches linking novel strategies for computation of damage based on phenomenological theories and effective replication of cracks embedded within the Finite Element Method. Although, this chapter deals mainly with computer methods applied to fibre reinforced composites based on a polymeric matrix, many of them are applicable to a broader range of composite materials as well as other anisotropic materials.