Deep penetration of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene composites by a sharp-tipped punch
View / Open Files
Publication Date
2019Journal Title
Journal of the Mechanics and Physics of Solids
ISSN
0022-5096
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Volume
123
Pages
80-102
Type
Article
Metadata
Show full item recordCitation
Liu, B., Kandan, K., Wadley, H., & Deshpande, V. (2019). Deep penetration of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene composites by a sharp-tipped punch. Journal of the Mechanics and Physics of Solids, 123 80-102. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmps.2018.06.001
Abstract
The penetration of unidirectional (UD) and [0#/90#] cross-ply ultra-high molecular weight
polyethylene fibre composites by sharp-tipped cylindrical punches has been investigated.
While the measured penetration pressure for both composite types increased with decreasing
punch diameter, the pressure was significantly higher for the cross-ply composites and
increased with decreasing ply thickness. A combination of optical microscopy and X-ray
tomography revealed that in both composites, the sharp-tipped punch penetrated without fibre
fracture by the formation of mode-I cracks along the fibre directions, followed by the wedging
open of the crack by the advancing punch. In the cross-ply composites, delamination between
adjacent 0# and 90# plies also occurred to accommodate the incompatible deformation
between plies containing orthogonal mode-I cracks. Micromechanical models for the steadystate
penetration pressure were developed for both composites. To account for material
anisotropy as well as the large shear strains and fibre rotations, the deformation of the
composites was modelled via a pressure-dependent crystal plasticity framework. Intra and
inter-ply fracture were accounted for via mode-I and delamination toughnesses respectively.
These models account for the competition between deformation and fracture of the plies and
accurately predict the measured steady-state penetration pressures over the wide range of punch
diameters and ply thicknesses investigated here. Design maps for the penetration resistance of
cross-ply composites were constructed using these models and subsequently used to infer
composite designs that maximise the penetration resistance for a user prescribed value of fibre
strength.
Sponsorship
DARPA
Identifiers
External DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmps.2018.06.001
This record's URL: https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/handle/1810/283411
Rights
Licence:
http://www.rioxx.net/licenses/all-rights-reserved
Statistics
Total file downloads (since January 2020). For more information on metrics see the
IRUS guide.