Characterization of tensile creep behavior of fabric-reinforced PVC flexible composites

Abstract

This paper presents an experimental study on the tensile creep behaviors of PVC flexible composites reinforced with both polyester warp-knitted biaxial fabrics and woven fabrics, and their viscoelastic properties under different temperatures (20 °C, 40 °C, 60 °C) were explored after 24 h creep with 10% stress. The results showed that all the samples presented the typical viscoelastic behavior, and their creep rates could reach to 90-97% after 7 h creep, and then being steady up to 24 h. Moreover, the strength retention enhancement of PVC flexible composites by warp-knitted fabrics was higher than that of PVC flexible composites enhanced by woven fabric. The Findley model was utilized to describe the creep behavior of PVC flexible composites enhanced by two kinds of fabrics. Through fitting of experimental data with the model, the anti-creep behavior of PVC flexible composites enhanced by biaxial warp-knitted fabric was superior than that of one improved by woven fabrics. The characterization of tensile creep behavior has great application potential in predicting the long-term performance of fabric-reinforced PVC flexible composites.