Open Collections

Penetration of composite laminates by conical indenters and projectiles

University of British Columbia

Impact resistance of composite materials is a primary concern where human lives are at risk. To design against impact the mechanisms by which these composites defeat projectiles becomes important to understand. The main focus of this thesis has been understanding the initiation and progression of damage in both carbon fibre reinforced polymer (CFRP) and glass fibre reinforced polymer (GFRP) composites. Static penetration tests were performed on CFRP laminates while both instrumented ballistic and static penetration tests were performed on GFRP laminates. The projectiles used for this study were cylindro-conical and the damage mechanisms were identified through detailed micro-graphs. Detailed ballistic force-displacement curves were obtained for GFRP laminates using a measurement system developed during the course of this thesis. Using these ballistic forcedisplacement curves it was then possible to compare the static and ballistic response of the GFRP laminates. Good agreement was found and as far as the author is aware, it is also the first time that such a detailed comparison has been made. The combination of damage progression and force-displacement curves provides the necessary input data for the analytical and numerical models currently under development at UBC.

Thesis/Dissertation

application/pdf

2009-03-24

For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use.

http://hdl.handle.net/2429/6419

Civil Engineering

University of British Columbia

UBCV

DSpace