On the mechanical behaviour of steel wire mesh subjected to low-velocity impact

Abstract

Woven wire mesh is a metallic fabric outperforming traditional metal sheets in air circulation, weight saving, impact resistance, etc. In this study, the dynamic mechanical response of steel wire mesh subjected to low-velocity impact loading was investigated using both experimental and numerical methods. An instrumented drop-weight impact facility was used for experimental impact tests, with the effects of clamping wire direction, impact energy, impactor’s mass and size being considered. The extents of damage to the wire mesh specimens under different loading conditions were evaluated after impact tests. Three types of contact force vs. displacement curves corresponding to the plastic deformation, wire breakage, and perforation of wire mesh were identified. Weft wires were found to be stronger and stiffer than warp wires because they could resist higher peak forces and experienced smaller maximum displacements under the same impact energies. The experimental results revealed that the peak contact force increased with impact energy until wire breakage occurred, after which the peak force remained almost unchanged. With the increase of impactor mass, wire mesh specimens experienced severer damage due to the inertia effect and strain rate effect. Impactor size had a significant influence on the dynamic response of wire mesh; a great increase in peak contact force was found when using a larger impactor tip. Moreover, a mesoscale finite element model was developed to analyse the propagation of stress and the evolution of dynamic failure in wire mesh during impact. The simulation results showed that more than 80% of the impactor’s kinetic energy was absorbed through the deformation and failure of wire mesh, while the frictional energy dissipation accounted for about 10% of impact energy.