VIPER (VIrtual Ply propERty)

Software details

Software authors

Carlos Daniel González Martínez, Claudio Faria Lopes, Miguel Herraez

Intellectual Property Rights

Copyright © 2012-2021 Fundación IMDEA Materiales and Universidad Politécnica de Madrid. All rights reserved

Transfer opportunity

Software license

Reference

M. Herraez et al. “A microstructures generation tool for virtual ply property screening of hybrid composites with high volume fractions of non-circular fibers – VIPER”, Composites Part A: Applied Science and Manufacturing, 2020

M. Herraez et al., “Computational micromechanics evaluation of the effect of fibre shape on the transverse strength of unidirectional composites: An approach to virtual materials design”, Composites Part A, 2016.

Software description

VIPER (VIrtual Ply propERty) is a simulation tool developed within the framework of computational micromechanics by IMDEA Materials to expedite the prediction of fiber-reinforced ply behavior from the measured properties and spatial distribution of the different phases and interfaces in the composite. The tool is also able to generate composite microstructures with arbitrary fiber geometries as well as hybrid microstructures hence allowing for in-silico ply property screening, design and optimization.

VIPER is a ready-to-use software package developed using Python which includes a Graphical User Interface. It uses a fiber repelling approach to generate hybrid microstructures with high fiber volume fractions. The tool also includes capabilities to calculate the relevant statistical microstructure descriptors.

The microstructures generated by VIPER need to be exported to Finite Element software packages such as ABAQUS to perform RVE computations and predict composite ply behavior.

VIPER capabilities

Simulation of transverse tensile cracking in circular, triangular and lobular microstructures to determine nominal transverse ply strengths.
Microstructure Finite Element Model generation.
Simulation of transverse tensile cracking of an embedded circular-fibre cross-ply to determine in-situ transverse ply strength.

Features

VIPER software can be licensed under two different versions, Full and Lite, each of them with different capabilities. Check out below the main features of both versions.

VIPER Full version Lite version
Export to Abaqus file to generate a FE model (2D or 3D)
Export to text file
Circular fibers
Polygonal fibers
Lobular fibers
Elliptical fibers
Smoothed polygons
Oval fibers
C-shaped fibers
Rectangular fibers

Relevant publications

[1] A microstructures generation tool for virtual ply property screening of hybrid composites with high volume fractions of non-circular fibers – VIPER.

M. Herráez, J. Segurado, C. González, C.S. Lopes

Composites Part A: Applied Science and Manufacturing
Volume 129, February 2020, 105691
. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compositesa.2019.105691

[2] Computational micromechanics evaluation of the effect of fibre shape on the transverse strength of unidirectional composites: An approach to virtual materials design.

M. Herráez, C. González, C.S. Lopes, R. Guzmán de Villoria, J. LLorca, T. Varela, J. Sánchez

Composites Part A: Applied Science and Manufacturing, Volume 91, 2016, 484-492. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compositesa.2016.02.026

Contact

Knowledge & Technology Transfer Department, IMDEA Materials Institute

email: techtransfer.materials@imdea.org

telephone: +34 91 5493422