A complete database of the mechanical properties of an epoxy polymer reinforced with uni-weave carbon fibre non-crimp fabric (NCF) is established. In-plane and through-the-thickness tests were performed on unidirectional laminates under normal loading and shear loading. The response under cyclic shear loading was also measured. The material has been characterised in terms of stiffness, strength, and failure features for the different loading cases. The critical energy release rates associated with different failure modes in the material were measured from interlaminar and translaminar fracture toughness tests. The stress–strain data of the tensile, compressive, and shear test specimens are included. The load–deflection data for all fracture toughness tests are also included. The database can be used in the development and validation of analytical and numerical models of fibre reinforced plastics (FRPs), in particular FRPs with NCF reinforcements.
More fundamental test methods are needed to assist the development of physically based and truly predictive simulation tools for composite materials under crash conditions. In this paper, a unidirectional flat specimen that can be used to validate the predicted behaviour from a simulation to the physical behaviour in the experiment is developed. A systematic experimental investigation is conducted to evaluate the influence of the trigger geometry on the crushing response by selecting two trigger types and different trigger angles. For longitudinal crushing, the traditional bevel trigger leads to out-of-plane failure by splaying with a limited amount of in-plane fracture, while the proposed trigger achieves a high amount of compressive fragmentation failure. For transverse crushing, the symmetry of the proposed new trigger improves the specimen stability during the crushing process. It is also observed that the weft threads of the unidirectional fabric reinforcement used for the tests have a strong influence on the longitudinal crushing response. The boundary conditions of the test and the information on the specimen failure gleaned from video recordings and microscopic inspections are discussed in order to facilitate a future correlation with modelling results.
Tape-based discontinuous composite is a relatively new type of composite material that offers improved mechanical properties for similar process-ability compared to Sheet Moulding Compound or Bulk Moulding Compound. This makes it potentially attractive for the automotive industry. In this paper, a thin-ply carbon fibre reinforced polypropylene-based discontinuous composite is studied. Mechanical tests are performed to obtain the tensile, compression and shear behaviour of the material. The energy absorption via tearing is also studied to assess the suitability of the material for energy absorption applications, such as crash-boxes. The tearing test results show a large degree of plastic deformation and an advancing damage front leading to higher specific energy absorption via tearing compared to conventional composite materials.
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