Application of the finite element analysis in the design of rubber membranes

The competitiveness of rubber membranes is largely determined by their durability, quality, reliability, including the time required for design. During operation, the membranes undergo complex strains, as a result of which a large number of zones of potential destruction of a different nature arise, which can lead to the failure of the product. At the same time, the standard test methods used in the development of compounds for membranes, in most cases, involve testing the material under simple uniaxial tension conditions and do not take into account the actual loading conditions of the product during operation, which significantly increases the development time of new compounds for membranes. An integrated approach to the development of compounds is presented and applied in practice to solve this problem, including simple laboratory tests in a heterogeneous complexly stressed state, which is implemented during the operation of rubber membranes, and analysis of the stress-strain state by the finite element method. It has been proven that finite element modeling in combination with simple tests can significantly reduce the time and material costs for design, as well as improve the performance of rubber membranes.