Fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) composites are characterized by superior mechanical/physical properties including high specific modulus

high specific strength

good corrosion resistance

low thermal expansion coefficient

etc.

which enable them to be widely used in the aerospace and automotive fields. However

the inherent anisotropy in properties and heterogeneity in architectures lead the FRP composites to fall into the category of typical difficult-to-cut materials. To reveal the mechanisms dominating the chip separation and defect formation of FRPs

simulation techniques such as discrete element method and finite element method have been gradually applied to the research field of machining these composite materials in recent years. The present paper summarizes the state-of-the-art advances achieved by both domestic and foreign scholars in the field of cutting modeling of FRP composites. A particular focus is put on the illustrations of the use of finite element methods including the macro-mechanical model

micro-mechanical model and micro-macro mechanical model in the cutting simulation of FRP composites. Several new perspectives concerning the future research significance and focus of cutting modeling of FRP composites and their related multilayer stacks are put forward.