Low velocity impact response and energy absorption behavior on glass fibre reinforced epoxy composites

A study was undertaken to determine the effects of several key geometry influencing factors on the impact response and energy absorption behavior of the glass fibre reinforced epoxy composites at low and intermediate energies. The energy-balance model was employed for characterising the energy absorption behavior and it depends strongly on the plate diameter and thickness. In addition, the damage vs. energy and force maps is effective in monitoring damage growth within the composite panel. The response of the composite laminate configurations characterized by different stacking sequences subjected to low velocity impacts with different impact energies have also been studied to estimate the damage initiation of composites.