Influence of fiber areal density on mechanical behavior of basalt fiber/epoxy composites under varying loading rates: An experimental and statistical approach

Abstract

AbstractThe stress–strain characteristics and failure behavior of composites are strain rate dependent and affected by the fiber areal density. To elucidate the combined influence of areal density and strain rate on the strength of basalt fiber‐reinforced polymer composites (BFRP), an experimental study was conducted on BFRP laminates of two different fiber areal densities, that is, 380 GSM and 200 GSM, having distinct stacking sequence under three different loading rates. Failure modes, failure strength, and Weibull parameters were used to characterize the experimental outcomes. The experiment was carried out to investigate the mechanical responses and associated failure modes at strain rates ranging from quasi‐static 0.1 mm/min to a high strain rate of 10 mm/min. It has been demonstrated that there is a substantial correlation between the fiber areal density, loading rate, and stacking order of BFRP laminates and the increase in maximum flexural strength and interlaminar shear strength. For an increase in the fiber areal density from 200 GSM to 380 GSM flexural strength is increased by 18%–30%, while ILSS strength is increased by 30%–52%. Based on the finding, the asymmetric type‐2 laminate exhibits better properties than the symmetric and asymmetric type‐1 laminates due to the presence of more (0°/90°) laminae at the tensile side of the laminate. Inferring the mechanical characteristics of composite materials and their relationship to strain rate from experimental data required a statistical technique. The statistical analysis and experimental findings demonstrate that the shape parameter and linear coefficient are not reliant on the strain rate.