Low velocity impact behaviour of a hybrid carbon‐epoxy/cork laminate

This work addresses low velocity impact behaviour of monolithic cross‐ply carbon‐epoxy and hybrid carbon‐epoxy/cork laminates. The [04, 904]s layup was selected due to its high mismatch bending between different oriented layers, which is a critical aspect concerning large delamination development at these critical interfaces. The effect of a cork layer inserted at the most critical interface on low velocity impact behaviour of the carbon‐epoxy laminate is discussed. Impact response and resulting damage profiles of monolithic and hybrid laminates are compared, and advantages of the hybrid solution are underlined. A numerical analysis including cohesive zone modelling was also performed to assess the damage profiles obtained for the two laminates analysed. The model revealed to be effective for a better comprehension of damage mechanism for both studied cases.