Damage response of stitched cross-ply laminates under impact loadings

The impact response of stitched graphite/epoxy laminates was examined with the aim of evaluating the efficiency of stitching as a reinforcing mechanism able to improve the delamination resistance of laminates. The investigation, which focussed on two classes of cross-ply stacking sequences ([0₃/90₃]_s and [0/90]_3s), showed that the role of stitches in controlling damage progression of laminates and their capability to reduce the impact sensitivity of specimens are greatly dependent on the impact behaviour of base (unstitched) laminates. In [0₃/90₃]_s laminates, in particular, stitching is able to reduce damage area, on condition that the impact energy is higher than a threshold level and delaminations are sufficiently developed. In [0/90]_3s laminates, on the other hand, stress concentration regions generated by the stitching process appear to promote the initiation and propagation of fibre fractures, thereby inducing a decrease in the penetration resistance of the laminate.     

Analytical technique for the determination of solidification rates during the inward freezing of cylinders

An analytical/experimental approach which permits the determination of solidification rates during the inward solidification of cylinders is proposed. The technique is based on a previous analytical solution that treats the generalized problem of solidification of slabs. This solution is modified by a geometric correlation to compensate for the cylindrical geometry. A number of experiments have been carried out with a special experimental set-up, designed to simulate the inward solidification of cylinders in a water-cooled mould. A series of comparisons of experimental results, numerical predictions and calculations furnished by the proposed technique were made, showing good agreement for any case examined.Nomenclature a _s Thermal diffusivity of solid metal = k _s/c _s d _s (m² sec^–1) - A _i Internal surface area of the mould (m²) - b _s Heat diffusivity of solid metal = (k _s c _s d _s ^1/2(J m^–2 sec^–1/2 K^–1) - c _s Specific heat of solid metal (J kg^–1 K^–1) - d _s Density of solid metal (kg m^–3) - h Newtonian heat transfer coefficien (W m^–2 K^–1) - H Latent heat of fusion (J kg^–1) - k _s Thermal conductivity of solid metal (W m^–1 K^–1) - q Heat flux (W m^–2) - r Radial position (m) - r _o Radius of cylinder (m) - r _f Radius of solid/liquid interface (m) - S Thickness of solidified metal (m) - S _o Thickness of metal side adjunct (m) - t Solidification time (sec) - T Temperature (K) - T _i Surface temperature (K) - T _f Freezing temperature of metal (K) - T _o Temperature of the coolant (K) - T _s Temperature at any point in the solidified metal (K) - V ₁ Volume of remaining liquid metal during the solidification (m³) - V _s Volume of solidified metal (m³) - V _T Total volume of metal in the mould (m³) - x Distance from metal/mould interface (m) - Dimensionless solidification constant.     

Investigation of the influence of impact velocity and liquid bridge volume on the maximum liquid bridge length

Several models exist to predict the capillary forces due to liquid bridges during static particle contacts. However, for dynamic impacts, there is still a lack of knowledge to accurately describe the geometry and rupture of liquid bridges. This is essential in order to calculate correctly the energy dissipation in numerical models. Therefore, the liquid bridge volume during the rebound phase of collision, the restitution coefficient, the rupture time and the maximum liquid bridge length were analyzed for a wide range of contact velocities from 0.0001 to 4.0 m?s^?1. To perform experiments at different velocities three experimental setups were developed. First, free-fall experiments with spherical particles colliding on a glass pane covered with a water layer were performed at different impact velocities from 0.3 to 1.5 m?s^?1 and water layer thicknesses. Secondly, a pneumatic setup was developed for investigating the maximum liquid bridge length at constant liquid bridge volume and contact velocities from 0.3 to 4.0 m?s^?1. A third setup was used to investigate the liquid bridge behavior during low velocities from 0.0001 to 0.04 m?s^?1. Based on the experimental results, a new model is presented to account for the significant influence of impact velocity on the maximum liquid bridge length.     

On the rate of growth and extent of the steady damage accumulation phase in repeated impact tests

In the paper, data of repeated impact tests performed on seven laminates of different lay-up and thickness are used to illustrate how the damage index (DI), a damage variable recently introduced by the authors to monitor the range of the penetration process in thick laminates, can be applied in case of repeated impact tests to get information on the rate of initial steady damage accumulation as well as on the onset of severe damage modes.Curves of the rate of growth of the DI in the steady phase (ΔDI/ΔN) vs. the normalised impact energy (ratio of the impact energy E_i and the laminate penetration threshold P_n) show no significant damage accumulation besides initial specimen indentation for impact energies below 0.2P_n. For intermediate levels of impact energy, repeated impact tests are characterised by an initial region of steady damage accumulation followed by an abrupt change in the rate of damage growth a few impacts before laminate perforation. For higher impact energies (E_i/P_n > 0.4–0.45), no phase of steady damage accumulation is present, suggesting that severe damage mechanisms take place from the very first impacts. Values of the DI at the end of the steady phase (DI_unsteady) are shown to be rather peculiar to each laminate regardless of the impact energy used in the tests and therefore may be used to get a first indication of the laminate performance to repeated impacts. The extent of the steady phase may also be used to compute the total energy absorbed by the laminate in the steady damage accumulation phase (E_aTOT__steady).     

Prediction of low velocity impact damage in carbon–epoxy laminates

It is well known that composite laminates are easily damaged by low velocity impact. This event causes internal delaminations that can drastically reduce the compressive strength of laminates. In this study, numerical and experimental analyses for predicting the damage in carbon–epoxy laminates, subjected to low velocity impact, were performed. Two different laminates (0₄,90₄)_s and (0₂,±45₂,90₂)_s were tested using a drop weight testing machine. Damage characterisation was carried out using X-rays radiography and the deply technique. The developed numerical model is based on a special shell finite element that guarantees interlaminar shear stresses continuity between different oriented layers, which was considered fundamental to predict delaminations. In order to predict the occurrence of matrix failure and the delaminated areas, a new failure criterion based on experimental observations and on other developed criteria, is included. A good agreement between experimental and numerical analysis for shape and orientation of delaminations was obtained. For delaminated areas, reasonable agreement was obtained.     

Ballistic impact response of laminated hybrid materials made of 5086-H32 aluminum alloy,epoxy and Kevlar® fabrics impregnated with shear thickening fluid

The ballistic impact behavior of hybrid composite laminates synthesized for armor protection was investigated. The hybrid materials, which consist of layers of aluminum 5086-H32 alloy, Kevlar® 49 fibers impregnated with shear thickening fluid (STF) and epoxy resin were produced in different configurations using hand lay-up technique. The hybrid materials were impacted by projectiles (ammunitions of 150 g power-point) fired from a rifle Remington 7600 caliber 270 Winchester to strike the target at an average impact velocity and impact energy of 871 m/s and 3687 J, respectively. The roles of the various components of the hybrid materials in resisting projectile penetration were evaluated in order to determine their effects on the overall ballistic performance of the hybrid laminates. The effects of hybrid material configuration on energy dissipation during ballistic impacts were investigated in order to determine a configuration with high performance for application as protective armor. The energy dissipation capability of the hybrid composite targets was compared with the initial impact energy of low caliber weapons (according to NATO standards) in order to determinate the protection level achieved by the developed hybrid laminates. Deformation analysis and penetration behavior of the targets were studied in different stages; the initial (on target front faces), intermediate (cross-section), and final stages (target rear layers). The influence of target thickness on the ballistic impact response of the laminates were analyzed. Differences in ballistic behavior were observed for samples containing Kevlar® impregnated with STF and those containing no STF. Finally, mechanisms of failure were investigated using scanning electron microscopic examination of the perforations.     

Rain erosion behaviour of polymethylmethacrylate

Mass loss, optical transmittance and the microscopic erosion sequence have been monitored for polymethylmethacrylate exposed to a 2.54 cm h^–1 rainfall of 1.8 mm diameter water drops at an impact velocity of 222 m sec^–1. Initial drop impacts produced well-defined fracture patterns consisting of a circular area free of damage surrounded by an annulus containing a dense array of fine, short cracks together with a sparse distribution of deeper fractures initiated along surface scratches. Continued exposure to the rainfield produced crack grown and crack intersections at sites of fracture annuli overlap followed by crevice growth as these fracture systems were enlarged by a hydraulic penetration mechanism. An extensive network of subsurface fractures continued to be produced within the expanding cavities with longer exposures. The transient stress distributions generated during a water drop impact on polymethylmethacrylate are considered in terms of their potential for producing circumferential fractures.     

Post-impact compressive strength of curved GFRP laminates

Low velocity impacts to fibre reinforced plastic composites cause a pattern of damage consisting in general of delamination, fibre breakage and matrix cracking. Such damage is accidental and may go unnoticed; therefore composite structures must be designed assuming impact damage exists. Previous work on flat composite laminates has resulted in a reasonable understanding of the mechanisms of compressive strength reduction. There are, however, many instances where curved laminates are used in structures where impact is likely. Furthermore, due to the mechanisms of strength reduction, it may be expected that curvature would have a significant effect on the behaviour of the laminates.The work described here consists of experimental measurement of the post-impact compressive strength of curved GFRP laminates. The laminates were of 8 plies of 0.3 mm thick pre-impregnated glass fibre/epoxy tape in a (0, ±45, 0°)_s lay-up. Each laminate was 200 mm in length by 50 mm wide with the plane of curvature normal to the length. Laminates were impacted on the convex surface of the laminate by dropping a steel mass from 1 m vertically above it.Impacted laminates were loaded in compression and the out-of-plane displacements of the top and bottom surfaces were recorded. Final failure was typically due to fibre breakage occurring through the centre of the impacted area of the laminate. Possible differences in the impact response, and measurable differences in the sizes of the impact damage area, were found to arise from these curvatures, and differences were observed in their post-impact buckling behaviour. However, perhaps unexpectedly, the post-impact compressive strength for a curved laminate was found to be similar to that for a flat laminate. The failure loads for the impact damage laminates are shown to be comparable with those for laminates containing artificial delaminations.     

The effect of through-thickness cracks on the ballistic performance of ceramic armour systems

Full width through-thickness cracks were introduced into the ceramic tiles of ceramic faced composite armour panels. The ballistic limit velocity for projectiles striking directly on the crack was measured and compared with undamaged panels. The effect of the cracks was to lower the V₅₀ ballistic limit velocity to 744 m s⁻¹ compared to 764 m s⁻¹ for undamaged panels, a drop of only 3%. This means that the presence of cracks in a ceramic armour tile should not be sufficient reason to require replacement of the panel, a fact of some importance given the likehood of damage in the military environment. It is proposed that the small value of the reduction in performance is observed because the cracked ceramic is still effectively confined by the presence of a well bonded composite backing and a frontal spall shield. The presence of a large crack at the impact point has little effect as the ceramic in this area is anyway extensively comminuted ahead of the projectile upon impact. The backing and spall shield conserve the structural integrity of the panel and this acts to contain the radial stresses generated by the impact event. The performance of the armour system has also been assessed by measurement of the V₀ ballistic limit velocity determined from residual momentum of penetrating projectiles and armour fragments. The standard panels showed a V₀ of 743 m s⁻¹ compared to 699 ms⁻¹ for the pre-cracked panels.     

Low velocity impact behaviour of a hybrid carbon‐epoxy/cork laminate

This work addresses low velocity impact behaviour of monolithic cross‐ply carbon‐epoxy and hybrid carbon‐epoxy/cork laminates. The [0₄, 90₄]_s layup was selected due to its high mismatch bending between different oriented layers, which is a critical aspect concerning large delamination development at these critical interfaces. The effect of a cork layer inserted at the most critical interface on low velocity impact behaviour of the carbon‐epoxy laminate is discussed. Impact response and resulting damage profiles of monolithic and hybrid laminates are compared, and advantages of the hybrid solution are underlined. A numerical analysis including cohesive zone modelling was also performed to assess the damage profiles obtained for the two laminates analysed. The model revealed to be effective for a better comprehension of damage mechanism for both studied cases.     

Penetration and failure of lead and borosilicate glass against rod impact

This paper presents the experimental design and results for gold rod impact on DEDF (5.19 g/cm³) and Borofloat (2.2 g/cm³) glass by visualizing simultaneously failure propagation in the glass with a high-speed camera and rod penetration with flash radiography. At a given impact velocity, the velocity of the failure front is significantly higher during early penetration than during steady-state penetration of the rod. For equal pressures but different stress states, the failure front velocities determined from Taylor tests or planar-impact tests are greater than those observed during steady-state rod penetration. The ratio of average failure front velocity to rod penetration velocity decreases with increasing impact velocity (v_p) in the range of v_p=0.4–2.8 km/s. As a consequence, the distance between the rod tip and the failure front is reduced with increasing _vp$v_{\mathrm{p}}$. The Tate term R_T increases with impact velocity.     

Cell structure and compressive behavior of an aluminum foam

The plastic collapse strength, energy absorption and elastic modulus of a closed cell aluminum foam are studied in relation to cell structures. The density, node size and the cell wall thickness of the aluminum foams decrease with increasing cell size. The failure of the foam cells under compressive load progresses successively from the top or/and bottom to the mid-layer of the compression specimens, and no initial rupture of the foam cells is observed in the mid-height of the foam samples. When foam density increases from 0.11 to 0.22 g/cm ³, the plastic collapse strength rises from 0.20 to 1.29 MPa, while the elastic modulus of the closed cell aluminum foam increases from 0.70 to 1.17 GPa. In contrast, the energy absorption of the foams decreases rapidly with increasing cell size. When cell size increases from 4.7 to 10.1 mm, the energy absorption drops from over unity to 0.3 J/cm ³. The normalized Yong’s modulus of the closed cell aluminum foam is E^*/E_s = 0.208 (ρ^*/ρ_s), while the normalized strength of the foams, σ */σ_s is expressed by σ */σ_s = c ⋅ ρ */ρ_s where c is a density-dependent parameter. Furthermore, the plastic collapse strength and energy absorption ability of the closed cell aluminum foams are significantly improved by reducing cell size of the aluminum foams having the same density.     

Simulation of fatigue performance of cross-ply composite laminates

The fatigue life of cross-ply composite laminates was evaluated using a statistical model. A modified shear-lag analysis was applied to describe the cycle-number-dependent stiffness reduction and consequent stress redistribution processes in the laminates resulted from both progressive transverse matrix cracking in transverse plies and local delamination at tips of transverse cracks. From the strength degradation behaviour and the static strength distribution of 0° plies as well as the fatigue behaviour of 90° plies, the fatigue life of cross-ply laminates with various types of lay-up can be simulated from the model. Predictions of fatigue performance are compared with experimental data for [0/90₂] _s , [02/90₂] _s and [0₂/90₄] _s graphite/epoxy cross-ply laminates: good agreements are obtained.     

Energy‐Absorbing Properties of Paper Honeycombs under Low and Intermediate Strain Rates

The effect of the strain rate on the mechanical behaviour and energy absorption of paper honeycombs is investigated by experiments on an environmental condition designed to simulate the actual logistic environment in most of South China. The strain rate varies from 3.3 × 10^?4 to 1.1 × 10² s^?1. The experimental results show that the load‐carrying capacity and the energy absorption performance of paper honeycombs are insensitive to the loading speed in low strain rate range (10^?4–10^?2 s^?1). However, the initial peak stress, the plateau stress and the densification strain of paper honeycombs under intermediate strain rate impact (10^?2–10² s^?1) increase with impact velocity and are obviously higher than that under static compression, thus demonstrating a certain degree of strain rate sensitivity. The restoring force due to gas compression in a confined space of hexagonal cavity contributes to the increase in dynamic plateau stress. A model is developed for the prediction of dynamic plateau stress by considering this restoring force. A good agreement between observation and prediction is obtained, indicating that the model constructed here can be used to evaluate the dynamic plateau stress for paper honeycombs. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Penetration scaling in atomistic simulations of hypervelocity impact

We present atomistic molecular dynamics simulations of the impact of copper nano particles at 5 km s⁻¹ on copper films ranging in thickness from from 0.5 to 4 times the projectile diameter. We access both penetration and cratering regimes with final cratering morphologies showing considerable similarity to experimental impacts on both micron and millimetre scales. Both craters and holes are formed from a molten region, with relatively low defect densities remaining after cooling and recrystallisation. Crater diameter and penetration limits are compared to analytical scaling models: in agreement with some models we find the onset of penetration occurs for 1.0 < f/d_p < 1.5, where f is the film thickness and d_p is the projectile diameter. However, our results for the hole size agree well with scaling laws based on macroscopic experiments providing enhanced strength of a nano-film that melts completely at the impact region is taken into account.     

High velocity perforation behaviour of polymer composite laminates

Experimentally measured perforation data are given for woven, z-stitched and through-thickness z-stitched glass polyester laminates for a number of laminate thicknesses (6, 12, 24 ply), a number of geometries of impactor (cone, flat and hemisphere), and two missile masses (6, 12 g). Impact perforation velocities ranged up to 571 m s^-1 on 200 by 200 mm laminates with fully clamped boundary conditions. Results are expressed in terms of static and impact perforation energies. The discussion includes a study of energy absorption mechanisms during perforation, with a view to identifying improved combinations of materials. It is concluded that all types of construction behave in a similar manner and that the flat ended missile has the largest dynamic enhancement factor, i.e. ratio of impact perforation energy to static perforation energy.     

Microstructural characteristics of directionally solidified Ni–43Ti–7Al alloys

Abstract

Ni–43Ti–7Al (at-%) alloy was directionally solidified at different withdrawal rates (2, 20 and 100 μm s^?1) and a constant temperature of 1550°C by liquid metal cooling method. Results show that as the withdrawal rate decreases from 100 to 2 μm s^?1, the cellular arm spacing increases from 39·5 to 126 μm, the size of Ti₂Ni and the stability of the liquid/solid interface also increase, while the volume fraction of Ti₂Ni decreases from 3·1 to 0·9%. Moreover, microstructural analysis reveals that a NiTi+Ti₂Ni anomalous eutectic structure is formed in intercellular regions of directionally solidified samples withdrawn at 20 and 100 μm s^?1. However, in the sample withdrawn at 2 μm s^?1, Ti₂Ni phases represent strip and liquid droplet morphologies in the intercellular region. Finally, the possible explanation to the change of microstructure is discussed.     

Continuous elimination of Al2O3 particles in molten aluminium using electromagnetic force

Abstract

A new method for continuous elimination of inclusions by using electromagnetic force was designed in this study. The principle is that as the electromagnetic force induced in metal scarcely acts on inclusions owing to their low electric conductivity; they are moved in the direction opposite electromagnetic force and can be separated from the melt. To do this, numerical analysis was conducted by employing the principle of electromagnetic braking. Numerical results agreed well with the experimental ones. Using the continuous electromagnetic separation system designed in this study, it was determined that Al₂O₃ particles whose size was larger than ~ 14 μm immersed in flowing aluminium melt could be removed under the electromagnetic conditions (electric current density 7.96 × 10⁵ A m^-2, magnetic flux density 0.35 T) when the flow velocity was ~ 150 mm s^-1.     

Effect of temperature on low velocity impact damage and post-impact flexural strength of CFRP assessed using ultrasonic C-scan and micro-focus computed tomography

The effect of temperature on the low velocity impact resistance properties and on the post-impact flexural performance of CFRP laminates were studied. With this aim, 150 × 75 mm cross-ply carbon fibre/epoxy laminates with a [0/90/90/0]_2s layup, therefore with a total of sixteen layers, were impacted at ambient temperature (30 °C) and at elevated temperatures (55, 75 and 90 °C) at a velocity of 2 m/s using a drop weight impact tower. This was followed by flexural tests carried out at ambient temperature using a three-point bending rig. Damage assessment of impact and post-impact behaviour were carried out using ultrasonic C-scan and microfocus X-ray computed tomography (μCT). Interrupted flexural tests using μCT allowed delamination propagation to be observed. In general, lower projected damage was observed at elevated temperatures, which resulted also in a possible hindrance to delamination and shear cracks propagation during impact and in a greater amount of retained flexural strength after impact.     

Characterization of fracture modes in stitched and unstitched cross-ply laminates subjected to low-velocity impact and compression after impact loading

The insertion of transverse reinforcing threads by stitching is a very promising technique to restrict impact damage growth and to improve post-impact residual strength of laminates. In order to develop general models capable of addressing the issues of impact resistance and damage tolerance of stitched laminates, detailed understanding of the nature and extent of damage, identification of the dominant fracture modes and assessment of the effect of stitches on the damage development are essential. In this study, both instrumented drop-weight tests and compression-after-impact tests were carried out to examine and compare the damage responses of stitched and unstitched graphite/epoxy laminates subjected to low-velocity impact. The progression of damage and its effect on post-impact performance was investigated in detail in two classes of cross ply laminates ([0₃/90₃]_s and [0/90]_3s) by means of an extensive series of damage observations, conducted with various complementary techniques (X-radiography, ultrasonics, optical microscopy, deply). The results of the analyses carried out during the study to characterize the key fracture modes and to clarify their relationship with the structural performance of both stitched and unstitched laminates are reported and discussed in the paper.