The energy-absorbing capacity of grid-domed textile composites

This paper is concerned with the energy-absorption behaviour of cellular composites. Three grid-domed textile composites fabricated from knitted fabrics were studied under quasi-static compression and impact condition. In both cases, the energy-absorbing capacity of the samples was measured. Comparison was made between the grid-domed composites, a composite comprising a non-woven fabric preform, polyester and polyethylene foams. The grid-domed composites exhibiting plastic collapses showed high levels of optimum specific energy-absorbing capacity at higher pressure levels than those of polyester and polyethylene foams. In addition, increases in strain rate or relative density had a positive effect on the energy-absorption capacity. The major energy-absorption mechanism of the grid-domed composite samples was identified as the plastic collapse of both the spherical cap and the truncated conical shell. Accordingly, a three-stage theoretical model is proposed; and the prediction of the energy-absorbing capacity of these cellular textile composites is in good agreement with experimental results.