Learning Forum

[MichaelDelle]

Greetings, From what I have seen surface coating exists as an option for the version 19.1 ANSYS Workbench that my University has but the student license that I am using in my computer does not have such an option. I am using ANSYS  Workbench 17.1. If I were to design an extremely thin solid body of with resin epoxy as material and have it bonded on both sides could it work similarly? I was thinking of a thickness of 0.005mm. Please let me know if this would work. Kindly, Michael

[Karthik Remella]

Which tool are you referring to when you say you Version 19.1? Are you referring to Ansys Mechanical?

Thanks.

Karthik

[MichaelDelle]

I am referring to Ansys Workbench which is what my uni has. But the version they have given me is the 17.1 which does not have the surface coating option.
Now I read that it creates a shell plate in between components so would it be the same to design my own shell plate from resin epoxy since I do not have that option from 19.1 ?
Please let me know.
Michael

[peteroznewman]

Tell your uni that you need 19.1 for the surface coating feature. Be persistent and you might get it.

[MichaelDelle]

Hello peter,

to be honest I am not in a big hurry to use that specific tool for my application. My question though still remains the same. Wouldnt it be the same for my solid body to just have a very thing solid plate from epoxy resin ? Since I am doing a solid block of honeycomb but I am treating it as an orthotropic material. 

What is your opinion on this ?

[peteroznewman]

Yes, the surface coating feature just automates the process of putting shell elements on the existing nodes on the faces of the solid elements on one surface of the body. You could do the same manually.

[MichaelDelle]

So would you recommend instead of extruding a solid plate of epoxy resin to draw and through Concept create a shell plate of epoxy resin in between my solid blocks ? 

Additionally, the tool wont mention the specific thickness of the surface coating, so I dont know which thickness to use.

[peteroznewman]

What do you mean the tool won't mention the specific thickness of the surface coating?

[MichaelDelle]

Well for surface coating there are 3 different options: Stress evaporation only, Membrane only, Membrane and Bending.

In the last two there is an option on how much I want the thickness to be but for the first one (Stress evaporation only) there is not. 

 

 

Since I want my solid honeycomb block to be bonded to the exterior faces which option should I choose?

[peteroznewman]

Don't use Stress Evaluation only. That adds no material.

The choice between Membrane only vs. Membrane and Bending will have very little effect on the results because almost all the effect of the coating is a membrane effect. Adding Bending will cause extra equations to be added so it will take a little longer to compute a value that will have a small effect if the thickness is very small compared with the solid material.

In either case, you get to define the thickness and material.

[MichaelDelle]

Thank you so much Peter for your answers, I will be making a new model soon and will be testing the addition of the surface coating. So to end this discussion, should I avoid making a solid laminate out of epoxy carbon and of small thickness?