Mechanics of Composite Materials and Structures

By Prof. Mohammed Rabius Sunny | IIT Kharagpur

Learners enrolled: 617 | Exam registration: 23

ABOUT THE COURSE:

This course focuses on the modeling of properties of fiber-reinforced plastic (FRP) composite plies and the analysis of laminates constructed from these plies. It begins with an introduction to FRP composites, including the material properties of their constituents, followed by an overview of fabrication processes.The course then delves into the micromechanics and macromechanics of composite plies. Subsequently, it covers the static, dynamic, and buckling analysis of laminates made from these plies. The analysis of failure mechanisms in plies and laminates, as well as sandwich composites, will also be explored. Additionally, the course includes the development of computational codes for these analyses.

INTENDED AUDIENCE: BE/ME/PhD student in Aerospace Egineering/Mechanical Engineering/Civil Engineering/Ocean Engineering and Naval Architecture and industry professionals from similar fields

PREREQUISITES:
Structural Analysis
Dynamics and Vibration

INDUSTRY SUPPORT: Companies and Research & Development Organizations from various sectors such as aerospace, wind energy, marine, mechanical, construction etc, Examples include:Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), Defence Research & Development Organization (DRDO), Airbus, Boeing, General Electric (GE), General Motors (GM), Suzlon Energy, Siemens Energy, LM Wind Power, Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd.

Summary

Course Status :	Upcoming
Course Type :	Elective
Language for course content :	English
Duration :	12 weeks
Category :	Aerospace Engineering
Credit Points :	3
Level :	Undergraduate/Postgraduate
Start Date :	21 Jul 2025
End Date :	10 Oct 2025
Enrollment Ends :	04 Aug 2025
Exam Registration Ends :	15 Aug 2025
Exam Date :	02 Nov 2025 IST
NCrF Level	4.5 — 8.0

Note: This exam date is subject to change based on seat availability. You can check final exam date on your hall ticket.

Page Visits

Course layout

Week 1:

Introduction to Composites
Classification
Fabrication of Fibre Reinforced Plastic Composites

Week 2: Micromechanics of Composite Plies

Week 3: Macromechanics – Anisotropic Elastic Materials (3D)

Week 4: Macromechanics – Orthotropic Plies (2D)

Week 5:

Macromechanics of Composite Laminates
Laminates of Various Types

Week 6: Static Analysis of Composite Laminates

Week 7: Buckling and Dynamic Analysis of Composite Laminates -1

Week 8: Buckling and Dynamic Analysis of Composite Laminates -2

Week 9: Higher Order Shear Deformation Theories

Week 10: Hygro-thermal Analysis, Analysis of Composite Beams

Week 11: Failure Analysis of Composite Plies and Laminates

Week 12: Sandwich Composites, Composite Joints, Testing of Composites

Books and references

Mechanics of Composite Materials by R. M. Jones
Mechanics of Composite Materials and Structures by M. Mukhopadhyay
Design and analysis of composite structures with applications to aerospace structures by C. Kassapoglou
Analysis and Performance of Fiber Composites by B. D. Agarwal, L. J. Broutman, K. Chandrashekhara
Composite Structures: Design, Mechanics, Analysis, Manufacturing, and Testing by M. K. Buragohain

Instructor bio

Prof. Mohammed Rabius Sunny

IIT Kharagpur

Dr. Mohammed Rabius Sunny is an Associate Professor in the Department of Aerospace Engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur. Until June 2021, he was also affiliated with the Department of Ocean Engineering and Naval Architecture. He completed his doctoral and postdoctoral research in the Department of Aerospace and Ocean Engineering at Virginia Tech. Dr. Sunny's current research interests include structural health monitoring, aeroelasticity, and metamaterials. His research group has developed several guided wave - and vibration-based techniques for structural health monitoring of both metallic and composite structures. Other key focus of his research includes aero-thermo-elasticity, aeroelastic tailoring and design optimization of composite wind turbine blades etc. The courses he has taught so far are Smart Structures, Finite Element Method, Composite Structures, Mechanics, Aerospace Structures, Computer-Aided Ocean Structural Analysis, Engineering Drawing, and Computer Graphics.

Course certificate

The course is free to enroll and learn from. But if you want a certificate, you have to register and write the proctored exam conducted by us in person at any of the designated exam centres.

The exam is optional for a fee of Rs 1000/- (Rupees one thousand only).

Date and Time of Exams: November 02, 2025 Morning session 9am to 12 noon; Afternoon Session 2pm to 5pm.

Registration url: Announcements will be made when the registration form is open for registrations.

The online registration form has to be filled and the certification exam fee needs to be paid. More details will be made available when the exam registration form is published. If there are any changes, it will be mentioned then.

Please check the form for more details on the cities where the exams will be held, the conditions you agree to when you fill the form etc.

CRITERIA TO GET A CERTIFICATE

Average assignment score = 25% of average of best 8 assignments out of the total 12 assignments given in the course.
Exam score = 75% of the proctored certification exam score out of 100

Final score = Average assignment score + Exam score

Please note that assignments encompass all types (including quizzes, programming tasks, and essay submissions) available in the specific week.

YOU WILL BE ELIGIBLE FOR A CERTIFICATE ONLY IF AVERAGE ASSIGNMENT SCORE >=10/25 AND EXAM SCORE >= 30/75. If one of the 2 criteria is not met, you will not get the certificate even if the Final score >= 40/100.

Certificate will have your name, photograph and the score in the final exam with the breakup.It will have the logos of NPTEL and IIT Kharagpur .It will be e-verifiable at nptel.ac.in/noc.

Only the e-certificate will be made available. Hard copies will not be dispatched.

Once again, thanks for your interest in our online courses and certification. Happy learning.

- NPTEL team