This paper presents an experimental characterisation of the mechanical performance and behaviour of through-thickness reinforced composite laminates. To achieve this, composite blocks with individual reinforcing pins were manufactured, quality assessed and tested. Individual specimens were inspected using X-ray ComputedTomography and only the specimens with acceptable quality pin insertions were tested experimentally under a range of mode mixities. Two stacking sequences, unidirectional (UD) and quasi-isotropic (QI) were investigated. It was found that the pins inside the UD samples experienced significantly larger pin/matrix bond strength than those in the QI laminates. The resulting experimental data indicates that a non-UD laminate type may experience pin pull-out and thus increased energy absorption for a wider range of mode mixities than a UD laminate type. Energy plots show a clear transition from a pull-out to a pin rupture region for both laminate types. Specimens that experienced pin rupture during low mode mixity tests exhibited similar failure energies to those loaded in pure mode II.

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A new micro-mechanical model is proposed for describing the bridging actions exerted by through-thickness reinforcement on delaminations in prepreg based composite materials, subjected to a mixed-mode (I-II) loading regime. The model applies to micro-fasteners in the form of brittle fibrous rods (Z-pins) inserted in the through-thickness direction of composite laminates. These are described as Euler-Bernoulli beams inserted in an elastic foundation that represents the embedding composite laminate. Equilibrium equations that relate the delamination opening/sliding displacements to the bridging forces exerted by the Z-pins on the interlaminar crack edges are derived. The Z-pin failure meso-mechanics is explained in terms of the laminate architecture and the delamination mode. The apparent fracture toughness of Z-pinned laminates is obtained from as energy dissipated by the pull out of the through-thickness reinforcement, normalised with respect to a reference area. The model is validated by means of experimental data obtained for single carbon/BMI Z-pins inserted in a quasi-isotropic laminate. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved