Charpy impact damage behaviour of single and multi-delaminated hybrid composite beam structures

The ply delamination which is known as a principle mode of failure of layered composites due to separation along the interfaces of the layers is one of the main concerns in designing of composite material structures. In this regard, the effect of hybrid laminate lay-up with different delamination positions in composite beam was investigated. The Charpy impact test was chosen to study the energy absorbing capability of delaminated composite beam. Hybrid composite beams were fabricated from combination of glass/epoxy and carbon/epoxy composites. It was shown that composite beams with closer position of delamination to impacted surface are able to absorb more energy in comparison with other delamination positions in hybrid and non-hybrid ones. The Charpy impact test of delaminated composite beams was also simulated by finite element software LS-DYNA and the results were verified with the relevant experimental results. Crown Copyright (C) 2010 Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.