Abstract
Among the most important elements in aircraft structures are joints for transferring loads. An accurate assessment of the stresses for joints is essential for reliable strength evaluation and failure prediction. The aim of this work is to compare different types of materials, i.e. isotropic, laminated, and functionally graded materials (FGM), and different types of laminates, considering the ratio of stresses generated around a hole in a plate and the applied stress. The finite element method (FEM) is used to evaluate the stresses around a hole for the three types of materials when the plate is subjected to tensile stress, heating, and both heating and tensile stress. Utilizing the ANSYS package, the target of the study was to investigate the validity of the method. The results obtained for the laminated plate are compared to those obtained by E. Pan, and Rybiki & Hopper for both (90/0)s and (- 45/45)s laminates. By similar results, it was shown that the laminates can withstand loads better than isotropic materials or FGM.