Impact resistance of FRP panels

Abstract

Fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) panels may be used in deployable structures such as those required for the protection and mobility of armed forces. In this study, FRP panels were fabricated by hand in the laboratory and subjected to impact loading to investigate the resistance against impact actions. A striker with a hemispherical head having a diameter of 100 mm and weight of 43 kg, was allowed to drop freely along a frictionless guide from a height of 4 m onto the panels. Both carbon and glass FRP panels with up to ten plies of fiber sheets were investigated. The panels were subjected to a maximum of ten successive impacts. The impact characteristics, including the impact force and impulse, strains and displacements, and energy absorption capacity, are reported and compared. Test results showed that carbon FRP panels were likely to fail by punching shear with a small amount of fiber reinforcement. Otherwise, the energy absorption capacity of FRP panels increased with the amount of fiber reinforcement. Also, carbon FRP panels exhibited higher energy absorption capacity compared to glass FRP panels.