Experimental investigation of the tensile and impact properties of twill and twill derivative woven fabric reinforced composites

In recent years the use of woven composites in structural applications has increased rapidly due to the advantages it offers such as easy handling, dimensional stability, deep drawing shape-ability, enhanced toughness and increased impact resistance. Mechanical properties in textile composites are closely connected with the textile reinforcement's internal structure. This paper reports and discusses a study of the tensile and impact properties of the twill and twill derivative woven fabric reinforced composites. Tensile strength, modulus of elasticity and elongation at break values of the composites were found by tensile tests. In addition impact tests are performed on specimens of woven fabric reinforced composite laminates in order to measure impact strength and characterize damage mechanisms at diverse impact energies. The experimental results reveal that the average float length and weave interlacing coefficient, which are determined by weave pattern, significantly affect the tensile and impact properties of the composites. It is observed that 3/1 twill woven fabric reinforced composite showed the best performance in tensile tests along warp and weft directions. It is also observed that 3/1 twill woven fabric reinforced composite has the lowest impact strengths at the highest deflections; whereas, 3/3 twill woven fabric reinforced composite has the highest impact strengths at the lowest deflections.