• Rietman, B.
• Rasheed, M. I. Abdul
• Visser, H. A.
• Akkerman, Remko
• Hattum, F. W. J. Van

Abstract

<p>The in-plane mechanical properties of laminates with two dimensional planar reinforcing elements (flakes in this case) are investigated. A woven structure for the flakes is considered in this study, comprising of fiber bundles in both warp and weft direction. Failure of the flake or the interface was considered as primary failure mechanisms of such a discontinuous material system. Tortuosity is used as a measure for the combined effect of distribution of overlaps between adjacent layers of flakes and the local meso-structure. Model composite specimens with defined overlaps were manufactured with the use of slit prepreg layers. The results are translated to randomly oriented flakes with respect to tortuosity estimates. Comparison between experimental values for flake systems, tortuosity based estimates and analytical solutions from existing theories are presented and give valuable insight on the predictability of the observed scatter.</p>

Topics

• impedance spectroscopy
• composite
• thermoplastic
• woven