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Damage evolution and energy absorption of E-glass/polypropylene laminates subjected to ballistic impact

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Abstract

High-velocity transverse impact of laminated fiber reinforced composites is of interest in military, marine and structural applications. The overall objective of this work was to investigate the behavior of laminated thermoplastic composites of varying thicknesses under high-velocity impact from an experimental and modeling viewpoint. In order to analyze this problem, a series of ballistic impact tests have been performed on plain weave E-glass/polypropylene (E-glass/PP) composites of different thicknesses using 0.30 and 0.50 caliber right-cylinder shaped projectiles. A gas gun with a sabot stripper mechanism was employed to impact the panels. In order to analyze the perforation mechanisms, ballistic limit and damage evaluation, an explicit three-dimensional finite element code LS-DYNA was used. Material model 162, a progressive failure model based on modified Hashin’s criteria, has been assigned to analyze failure of the laminate. The projectile was modeled using Material model 3 (MAT_PLASTIC_KINEMATIC). The laminates and the projectile were meshed using brick elements with single integration points. The impact velocity ranged from 187 to 332 m s−1. Good agreement between the numerical and experimental results was attained in terms of predicting ballistic limit, delamination and energy absorption of E-glass/PP laminate.

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Acknowledgement

The support provided by Office of Naval Research (ONR) under Dr. Yapa Rajapakse, Project Manager is gratefully acknowledged.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Material Science & Engineering, The University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, 35294-4461, USA

    L. J. Deka & U. K. Vaidya

  2. Army Research Laboratory, Aberdeen, MD, USA

    S. D. Bartus

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  1. L. J. Deka
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  2. S. D. Bartus
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  3. U. K. Vaidya
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Correspondence to U. K. Vaidya.

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Deka, L.J., Bartus, S.D. & Vaidya, U.K. Damage evolution and energy absorption of E-glass/polypropylene laminates subjected to ballistic impact. J Mater Sci 43, 4399–4410 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-008-2595-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-008-2595-0

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