Damage Investigation of Woven Carbon-Epoxy Multi-Layer Composites Under Tensile Loading

In this study, the mechanical behaviour, damage progression of twill woven carbon composites with various fibre volume fractions under uni-axial tension were investigated. Observations of damage were made using acoustic emission, xray and microscopy techniques. The mechanical properties and strain values of the composite damage thresholds were determined. The strain levels at which AE events were recorded for the first time were affected by variations in fibre volume fraction; however, characteristic strain values indicating damage initiation were not affected by variations in fibre volume fraction.