Investigation Into Carbon Fiber Damage Induced by Tension Fluctuation in Radial Braiding Yarn Carriers: Modeling, Optimization, and Experimental Characterization

The yarn carrier is a core component in the carbon fiber 3D braiding process, where the tension fluctuations it introduces directly impact carbon fiber quality at the microscopic level and fiber integrity of the preform. Although existing research has extensively optimized the yarn carrier structure, the specific correlation between tension fluctuations and induced fiber damage remains unclear. The study proposes a systematic approach integrating dynamic modeling, intelligent optimization, and friction process monitoring to investigate the phenomenological relationship between tension fluctuations and carbon fiber damage. First, a four‐stage tension model for the slider‐type yarn carrier was established. Through Adams simulation and the simulated annealing algorithm, the steady state tension fluctuation was effectively reduced. A friction experimental platform integrated with a high‐speed vision system was also built to quantify the dynamic spreading behavior of fiber bundles under different tension fluctuation states. This study demonstrates that large tension fluctuations increase the coefficient of variation of the yarn contact area under the same normal force, leading to nonuniform local contact pressure distribution and consequently resulting in pronounced sizing stripping and fiber breakage. Conversely, the optimized low‐fluctuation state significantly improved contact stability and effectively suppressed wear. The phenomenological correlation established in this work among tension fluctuation, contact stability, and fiber damage provides valuable macroscopic insights for damage mitigation in high‐performance composite braiding processes.