Effect of Fabric Properties on Distortion During Composites Forming

Distortions such as wrinkling, fiber waviness, and tow misalignment are frequently cited as the cause of large data scatter and lower than expected strength and stiffness values. This is especially true for textile composites, where complex fiber geometry and fiber interlacing has led to less predictable strength behavior. Despite the large amount of anecdotal evidence, little has been done at a fundamental level to determine the causes and effects of this fiber geometry distortion. In this paper, the relationship between wrinkling during diaphragm forming and the tensile and bending rigidities of woven fabrics is discussed. Results from experiments relating fabric construction parameters and engineering parameters such as bending rigidity and locking angle are also presented.