Effect of stitch density and stitch thread thickness on low-velocity impact damage of stitched composites

Effect of stitch density and stitch thread thickness on low-velocity impact damage of stitched composites is investigated experimentally. Physical examination on damage surfaces shows that stitches perform as crack initiators, as well as crack arrestors. Longer matrix cracks are observed in densely-stitched composites, in contrast to isolated matrix cracks found in moderately-stitched composites. Ultrasonic C-scan evidently compares the delamination areas and concludes that specimens with higher stitch density and thread thickness are more capable of impeding delamination growth by effectively bridging delamination cracks. Load–time curves reveal that the onset of delamination is not influenced by stitch density and thread thickness. Energy consumption for the impact event is evaluated and discussed with the conclusion that, although absorbed energy is independent of stitch density and thread thickness, the proportion of energy consumption for damage mechanisms like delamination, matrix cracks and stitch debonding are different for laminated composites stitched with different stitch parameters.     

Finite element model for compression after impact behaviour of stitched composites

A finite element (FE) model using coupling continuum shell elements and cohesive elements is proposed to simulate the compression after impact (CAI) behaviour and predict the CAI strength of stitched composites. Continuum shell elements with Hashin failure criterion exhibit the composite laminate damage behaviour; whilst cohesive elements using traction-separation law characterise the laminate interfaces. Impact-induced delamination is explicitly modelled by reducing material properties of damaged cohesive elements. Computational results have demonstrated the trend of increasing CAI strength with decreasing impact-induced delamination area. Spring elements are introduced into the model to represent through-thickness stitch thread in the composite laminates. Results in this study validate experimental finding that CAI strength is improved when stitching is incorporated into the composite structure. The proposed FE model reveals good CAI strength predictions and indicates good agreement with experimental results, making it a valuable tool for CAI strength prediction of stitched composites.     

Experimental investigation of bridging law for single stitch fibre using Interlaminar tension test

In this study, a novel Interlaminar tension test (ITT) method was performed to experimentally investigate the bridging and fracture process of a single stitch fibre used to improve the delamination strength of composite laminates. Kevlar-29, of various thread thicknesses (44, 66, 88 and 132 tex), was used as the through-thickness stitch fibre in the ITT experiments. Key empirical force and displacement parameters, which governed the stitch fibre bridging law, were characterised and identified. Relationships of such parameters with thread thicknesses were determined. Fibre fracture load and fibre fracture energy are found to increase with increasing thread thickness. Frictional pull-out force greatly depends on the type of stitch fracture modes, which can be grouped into three categories. This paper aims to provide better physical understanding of the mechanics and mechanisms of stitch fibre fracture. By correlating critical stitch fracture parameters with stitch fibre thicknesses, the results expect to provide useful reference, which is essential and important for accurate stitch computational modeling and strength prediction of composites using stitching as the interlaminar reinforcement technique.     

Local buckling of stitched composite laminate

Due to relatively low interlaminar strength, delamination is a common failure mode of composite laminates. Through-thickness stitching is shown to improve the delamination resistance of laminated composites. Under in-plane compressive loading, significant strength reduction occurs due to coupling between delamination and delamination buckling. In this paper, an energy-based model was developed to predict the effect of critical stitching parameters on the delamination buckling strength of stitched laminates. Excellent agreement was found between the model results and a corresponding finite element analysis.     

Kevlar缝线表面处理对炭纤维/双马来酰亚胺 树脂缝合复合材料界面性能的影响

为了改善Kevlar缝线缝合复合材料的耐湿热性能, 采用化学接枝烯丙基的方法对Kevlar缝合线进行表面改性处理。通过力学测试、 扫描电子显微镜(SEM)、 光电子能谱分析(XPS)对表面改性的纤维进行表征。实验结果表明, 化学处理的Kevlar缝线表面变得粗糙, 缝线表面氧元素的含量提高23%, 在合适的处理条件下, 缝线的拉伸强度降低很小。同时通过测试干、 湿态下炭纤维/双马来酰亚胺树脂缝合复合材料层压板的层间剪切强度, 研究了化学表面处理的Kevlar缝线对缝合炭纤维/双马来酰亚胺树脂复合材料界面性能的影响。测试结果显示, 表面处理后Kevlar缝线缝合的复合材料的吸湿率降低约52%, 湿态层间剪切强度保持率提高15%。      

缝合复合材料层板低速冲击损伤数值模拟

建立了缝合复合材料层板在低速冲击载荷下的渐进损伤分析模型。模型中采用空间杆单元模拟缝线的作用;采用三维实体单元模拟缝合层板,通过基于应变描述的Hashin准则,结合相应的材料性能退化方案模拟层板的损伤和演化;采用界面单元模拟层间界面,结合传统的应力失效判据和断裂力学中的应变能释放率准则判断分层的起始和扩展规律。通过对碳800环氧树脂复合材料（T800/5228）层板的数值仿真结果和试验结果相比较,验证了模型的正确性,同时讨论了不同冲击能量下缝合层板的损伤规律。研究结果表明：缝线能够有效地抑制层板的分层损伤扩展;相同冲击能量下缝合与未缝合层板的基体损伤和纤维损伤在厚度分布上相似,缝合层板的损伤都要小于未缝合层板。     

缝合复合材料层板低速冲击及冲击后压缩实验研究

通过对缝合复合材料层板进行低速冲击和冲击后压缩实验, 研究了不同类型的缝合复合材料层板的冲击损伤特性及冲击后压缩的剩余强度。实验研究表明: 基体损伤和分层是缝合层板与未缝合层板低速冲击的主要损伤模式, 缝合层板具有更好的抗冲击性能, 更高的冲击后压缩强度。缝合密度越大的层板其抗冲击性能越好, 冲击后压缩强度越高。缝合方向为0°的缝合层板较缝合方向为90°的缝合层板具有更好的抗冲击性能和更高的冲击后压缩强度。增加0°方向铺层, 减少45°、-45°方向铺层, 可以提高缝合层板的抗冲击性能和冲击后压缩强度。     

Stitched glass/PP composite. Part I: Tensile and impact properties

Stitching has proven to be an effective way to increase the through-the-thickness mechanical properties of fibre-reinforced polymer composites. However, there are rare investigations which concentrate on the stitching effect on fibre-reinforced thermoplastic polymer composite, particularly under different temperature environments. Here, we investigate the tensile and impact behaviours of stitched glass/polypropylene woven composites. The effect of various sewing threads, stitch row orientations, and spacing are evaluated. Our data indicate that the stitching in through-the-thickness direction considerably increases the impact damage tolerance especially at low temperature. In addition, glass sewing threads does not deteriorate the tensile performance of the stitched composite. The study of ductile ratio (D.R.) shows that suitable sewing thread can reduce the sensitivity of ductile behaviour of composite to the variation of temperature. A strong correlation of energy absorption with respect to sewing thread fracture work in relation to its fibre volume fraction was found.     

缝合复合材料低速冲击损伤研究

通过三维动力学有限元法,采用空间杆单元来描述缝线,结合试验系统地研究了缝合复合材料的低速冲击损伤问题。采用修正的赫兹接触定律计算冲击接触力,NewMark直接积分法求解运动方程,求解冲击过程中的应力应变;在Chang和Hou等的分层扩展准则基础上,提出一修正的分层扩展准则并考虑纤维断裂,建立了分析低速冲击损伤面积的方法;对相同铺层的缝合与未缝合复合材料层板进行了低速冲击试验。分析结果与实验结果具有良好的一致性,证明本文中提出的修正的分层扩展准则是正确的。计算及试验结果均表明,在相同冲击能量作用下,缝合使冲击损伤面积明显减小。      

Structurally stitched NCF CFRP laminates. Part 1: Experimental characterization of in-plane and out-of-plane properties

The insertion of local through-thickness reinforcements into dry fiber preforms by stitching provides a possibility to improve the mechanical performance of polymer-matrix composites perpendicular to the laminate plane (out-of-plane). Three-dimensional stress states can be sustained by stitching yarns, leading to increased out-of-plane properties, such as impact resistance and damage tolerance. On the other hand, 3D reinforcements induce dislocations of the in-plane fibers causing fiber waviness and the formation of resin pockets in the stitch vicinity after resin infusion which may reduce the in-plane stiffness and strength properties of the laminate.In the present paper an experimental study on the influence of varying stitching parameters on in-plane and out-of-plane properties of non-crimp fabric (NCF) carbon fiber/epoxy laminates is presented, namely, shear modulus and strength as well as compression after impact (CAI) strength and mode I energy release rate. The direction of stitching, thread diameter, spacing and pitch length as well as the direction of loading (which is to be interpreted as the direction of the three rail shear loading or the direction of crack propagation in case of mode 1 energy release rate testing) were varied, and their effect on the mechanical properties was evaluated statistically.The stitching parameters were found to have ambivalent effect on the mechanical properties. Larger thread diameters and increased stitch densities result in enhanced CAI strengths and energy release rates but deteriorate the in-plane properties of the laminate. On the other hand, a good compromise between both effects can be found with a proper selection of the stitching configurations.     

含任意分层缝纫正交层合板压缩屈曲分析

建立了分析含任意形状分层的缝纫增强复合材料层合板压缩屈曲问题的连续分析模型。该模型允许缝纫层合板含有一个或多个形状不同的分层。分析结果表明,缝纫针脚在分层区域的分布、缝纫密度和缝线的等效刚度系数对分层子板的压缩屈曲应变均有较大影响。      

Effect of stitch density on tensile properties and damage mechanisms of stitched carbon/epoxy composites

Experimental investigation is performed to study tensile properties, damage initiation and development in stitched carbon/epoxy composites subjected to tensile loading. T800SC-24kf dry preforms with tow orientation of [+45/90/−45/0₂/+45/90₂/−45/0]s are stitched using 200 denier Vectran® thread. Modified-lock stitch pattern is adopted, and stitch density is varied, viz. moderate density (stitched 6 × 6: stitch density = 2.8 cm⁻²) and high density (stitched 3 × 3: stitch density = 11.1 cm⁻²). The stitched preforms are then infiltrated by epoxy XNR/H6813 using resin transfer molding process. Tensile test is conducted to obtain in-plane mechanical properties (tensile strength, failure strain, tensile modulus and Poisson’s ratio). Effect of stitch density on the mechanical properties is assessed, and it is found that stitched 3 × 3 modestly improves the tensile strength by 10.4%, while stitched 6 × 6 reduces the strength by only 1.4%. In stitched 3 × 3 cases, the strength increase is mainly due to an effective impediment of edge-delamination. Tensile stiffness and Poisson’s ratio of carbon/epoxy are slightly reduced by stitching. Fiber misalignment in in-plane and out-of-plane directions is responsible for stiffness reduction, whilst reduction of Poisson’s ratio is probably caused by the orthogonal binding effect of modified-lock stitch architecture. Damage mechanisms in stitched and unstitched composites are studied using acoustic emission testing and interrupted test coupled with X-ray radiography and optical microscopy. The detailed damage observation reveals that stitch thread promotes early formation of transverse and oblique cracks. These cracks rapidly develop, and higher density of cracks ensues in stitched composites. Although this behavior triggers early formation of delamination, stitched 3 × 3 effectively impedes the growth the delamination. In contrast, stitched 6 × 6 is ineffective in suppressing the delamination yet the cracks are vast in this specimen. One of the plausible reasons of the rapid development of cracks in stitched composites is fiber compaction effect whereby fibers are compacted and the gap among fibers is reduced. The verification of compaction effect is done experimentally by performing burn-off test to measure the local fiber volume fraction. It is confirmed that fiber compaction indeed occurs as indicated by higher local fiber volume fraction between stitch lines.     

Numerical analysis of influence factors on low-velocity impact damage of stitched composite laminates

Abstract

A 3D dynamic finite-element model is proposed in this paper to simulate the damage development process of stitched laminates subjected to low-velocity impact. The strain-based Hashin criteria and a sudden degradation scheme are employed to determine the intra-laminar damage initiation and evolution; a mix-mode bilinear constitutive model is adopted to evaluate the inter-laminar delamination damage. The predicted numerical results agree well with the available experimental data, thus validating the proposed damage analysis model. Moreover, the influence factors, including the thickness of laminates, stitching density, diameter of stitching thread and strength of stitching thread, are analyzed and discussed in detail.     

缝合复合材料层板三维纤维弯曲模型及压缩强度预报

提出了三维纤维弯曲模型, 基于有限元法和周期性边界条件建立了缝合层板压缩强度分析方法, 采用桥联模型和最大应力判据分析损伤扩展并获得压缩强度, 预报结果与试验吻合较好。详细探讨了缝合参数对层合板压缩强度的影响规律, 结果表明: 缝合方向与表面纤维方向一致时, 较小的缝合针距和行距、较大的缝合线半径对压缩强度较为有利; 缝合方向与表面纤维方向垂直时, 较小的缝合针距和缝合线半径、较大的缝合行距对压缩强度较为有利。      

DCB test simulation of stitched CFRP laminates using interlaminar tension test results

A simulation model for the delamination extension of stitched CFRP laminates and 3-D orthogonal interlocked fabric composites (3-D OIFC) has been developed using a 2-D finite element method incorporating interlaminar tension test results to simulate the experimental results of their DCB tests. The mechanical properties of through-the-thickness fiber were determined from the results of interlaminar tension tests in which the specimen included only one through-the-thickness yarn. The fracture phenomena around the through-the-thickness thread, such as debonding from the in-plane layer, slack absorption, fiber bridging, and the pull-out of broken threads from the in-plane layers, are also introduced into the FEM model. The present FEM simulation results were compared to DCB test results for certain stitched laminates and a 3-D OIFC, and the simulation results showed good agreement with the experimental results of DCB tests, including the load–displacement curve and Mode I strain energy release rate (GI). While it was difficult to estimate GI accurately when the DCB test specimen included different types of z-fiber fracture modes, the present model of FEM analysis can simulate the experimental results of DCB tests of stitched laminates and 3-D OIFC. It is suggested that the GI of CFRP with arbitrary z-fiber densities can be predicted by using this FEM analysis model together with interlaminar tension test results.     

Damage resistance and damage tolerance of hybrid carbon-glass laminates

The influence of impact energy and stacking sequence on the damage resistance and Compression After Impact (CAI) strength of Carbon and Glass Fibre Reinforced Plastic (CFRP and GFRP respectively) hybrid laminates is investigated. CAI tests demonstrate that, in comparison to fully CFRP laminates, hybrid laminates show increases in structural efficiency of up to 51% for laminates subject to a 12J impact and 41% for those subject to an 18J impact. Laminates displaying the highest stresses at failure are those that exploit stacking sequences and GFRP content to prevent delaminations from forming close to the outer surface of the laminate during impact. This favourable damage morphology inhibits both sublaminate-buckling-driven delamination propagation and anti-symmetric laminate buckling failures.     

Influence of in-plane fibre orientation on mode I interlaminar fracture toughness of stitched glass/polyester composites

The influence of in-plane fibre orientation on the mode I interlaminar fracture toughness, G_Ic of unstitched and stitched glass/polyester composites is investigated in this paper. The G_Ic of planar specimens depends on the fibre orientation, θ in the layers adjacent to the fracture plane, in addition to the property of matrix material. The mode I fracture toughness and fracture behavior of unstitched and stitched 0/0, 30/−30, 45/−45, 60/−60, 90/90 and 0/90 interfaces of unidirectional fibre mats (UD) and 30/−30, 45/−45 and 90/90 interfaces of woven roving mats (WRM) are studied. WRM layer orientation is represented by the direction of warp fibres. Stitching is done by untwisted Kevlar fibre roving of Tex 175 g/km at the stitch densities (number of stitches per unit area) of 10.24 and 20.48 stitches/inch². The specimens having same stitch density, but different stitch distributions are prepared, and the influence of stitch distribution on G_Ic is studied. Double cantilever beam (DCB) tests are carried out and the G_Ic is determined using modified beam theory. The G_Ic of both unstitched and stitched specimens increases with increase in orientation angle, θ upto 45° above which it decreases. The G_Ic values of unstitched 45/−45 delamination interface is around 2.4 times that of the unstitched 0/0 interfaces. The influence of fibre orientation on G_Ic is clearly observed in unstitched specimens, whereas in the stitched specimens, stitching plays an important role in improving the G_Ic and suppresses the influence of fibre orientation; degree of suppression increases with increasing stitch density. When the value of θ is above 45°, transverse cracks are observed in the delamination interface surrounded by UD layers; while in the delamination interface surrounded by WRM layers, transverse cracks are not initiated irrespective of the fibre orientation angle.     

含分层损伤缝合复合材料层板的剩余压缩强度

基于渐进损伤方法,研究了含单脱层缝合复合材料层板在压缩载荷下的剩余强度。通过商用软件ABAQUS建立了含单脱层缝合复合材料层板剩余压缩强度计算模型,考虑了子层屈曲和分层扩展对剩余强度的影响。通过UMAT子程序实现了层板失效、层间失效和缝线失效的模拟。通过嵌入式杆单元结构模拟了缝线桥联作用及失效。采用Hashin准则及刚度折减法对纤维拉压、基体拉压失效进行了模拟。通过渐进损伤分析,揭示了缝合情况下含单脱层复合材料层板的失效机理,讨论了缝合参数对剩余压缩强度的影响。所预测的破坏模式和剩余强度结果与实验能较好地吻合。分析表明缝合可以明显提高含分层损伤复合材料层板的子层屈曲载荷,抑制分层扩展,并提高层板的剩余压缩强度。     

The damage to stitched GRP laminates by underwater explosion shock loading

This paper examines the effect of impulse loading from an underwater explosive shock wave on the damage to glass-reinforced polymer (GRP) laminates stitched through-the-thickness with Kevlar thread. Glass-fibre preforms were stitched in the parallel or transverse directions with a density of 3 or 6 stitches/cm², and then fabricated by resin-transfer moulding. The response of the stitched GRP laminates to explosion loading at two shock levels was compared to a non-stitched laminate. The damage to the non-stitched and stitched laminates appeared to be similar, with both the polymer matrix and glass fibres experiencing cracking while some of the polymer/glass interfaces were delaminated. The damage occurred by the bending of the laminates under the pressure exerted by the shock wave. At a relatively low shock level, no significant damage to the Kevlar threads occurred, but at a higher shock level many of the threads were broken. The stitching was effective in reducing the spread of delamination damage, particularly when the stitch orientation was in the parallel direction and/or the stitch density was high. However, the stitches acted as stress concentrators under shock loading, resulting in a large amount of damage localised around the stitches. Measurements of the residual tensile strengths of the damaged laminates are presented.