ABSTRACT
This chapter deals with the properties of laminated composite materials, that is, with the properties of multiple layers of materials that act together as a single layer. It explores a description of laminate behavior developed using the properties of the lamina and certain assumptions regarding the behavior of the laminate. A laminated composite is constructed of a number of plies of unidirectional or woven fabric composites stacked at various angles relative to the x axis of the laminate. In order to describe the stacking geometry of a laminated composite, it is necessary to have a code which describes a laminate uniquely. Classical laminated plate theory predicts the shapes of all unsymmetric laminates' response to a volumetric change to be a saddle—a double deflected surface. The laminate is balanced when there are equal numbers of plies with positive and negative orientations.
