3D Preforming technologies for composite applications

With the high end applications like aerospace, the orientation of the fibrous reinforcement is becoming more and more important from load bearing point of view as well as need of placing the reinforcement oriented in the third dimension. In textile process, there is direct control over fiber placements and ease of handling of fibers. Textile technology is of particular importance in the context of improving certain properties of composites like inter-laminar shear and damage tolerance apart from reducing the cost of manufacturing. Depending upon textile preforming method the range of fiber orientation and fiber volume fraction of preform will vary, subsequently affecting matrix infiltration and consolidation. As a route to mass production of textile composites, the production speed, material handling and material design flexibility are major factors responsible for selection of textile reinforcement production. This article reviews the developments occurred in this field of textile preforming along with their advantages and disadvantages and also presents the studies on 3D multilayer interlocked woven reinforced composite materials performance

Knitted Preforms for Composite Application

Knitted structures occupy a special position in composite preforming due to their inimitable characteristics. An insight into the knitted structures with respect to their composite preforming characteristics is presented in this article. Directionality of knitted structures and requirements of high performance fibers for knitting have been discussed. Contourability, net-shape preforming, high dynamic mechanical properties along with easy and rapid manufacturability are the important features of knitted structures to match the composite preform requirements. In this article, the work done in the above areas of research have been critically reviewed

Low velocity impact behaviour of textile reinforced composites

An attempt has been made to summarize the research progress on low velocity drop weight impact properties of textile reinforced composites. The paper mainly reports the impact test parameters and textile reinforcement along with matrix, interphase effects, impact failure modes and major evaluation techniques for impact damage analyses such as ultrasonic scanning and retention of strength after impact