What are the main differences between MAT8 and MAT9OR material apart from their dimensions

Frederic Auger
Frederic Auger New Altair Community Member
edited July 2023 in Community Q&A

Hi,

I'm a student in mechanical engineering.

I want to learn how to do FEA on carbon fiber reinforced polymer but first I want to understand the limitation of the different material categories.

I know that most of the part that I want to analyze are made from thin stack of carbon fiber (orthotropic material).

Some of the parts have a core material, which is usually foam or nomex.

From what I understand so far, MAT8 and MAT9OR are the best categories for the carbon fiber layer.

However, I have a hard time understanding the difference between the two categories. I know that MAT8 is for 2D material, but does that mean that part has 

to be flat or that the load has to be in the plane of the composite?

Also, I wanted to know where I can find documentation on the software's limitations regarding the types of loads that can be simulated for the composite material. Specifically for tension, compression, bending, torsion, and buckling.

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