Frictional and Cohesion Behavior of Natural Tows in Order to Assess the Tow Sliding during Composite Forming

Abstract

The tow sliding defect cause of the apparition of gaps in the reinforcement during woven reinforcement preforming is due to tows failing to accommodate the shape and sliding instead of holding together. The main reason for the defect formation can be attributed to increased pressure or tensions in some tows. Several parameters such as the reinforcement material, weave and tows orientation can significantly impact the sliding of tows and the apparition of the defect. In order to assess the tow sliding, it is important to understand the frictional behavior of the tows as units and the effect of the cohesion of the reinforcement as a whole. In this study, the frictional behavior of the tows was compared to their sliding behavior inside the reinforcement as whole in different conditions using two different methods.