The impact of structural composite materials. Part 2: hypervelocity impact and shock

Abstract

The combination of high strength and low density has resulted in increasing use of composite materials in structures such as aerospace systems that may be subjected to high-velocity impact during their in-service lives. In this review we focus on recent work surrounding the response of composites, primarily carbon fibre reinforced plastic and glass fibre reinforced plastic-based laminates to very high (hyper)-velocity impacts. To this end, the review is divided into two halves. In the first, hypervelocity impacts (e.g. impacts with velocities greater than ca. 2 km/s) that are likely to be encountered by aerospace systems are considered; while in the second, resultant material behaviour – in the form of shock response – is discussed. This review is designed to (1) build on previous studies which have typically largely focused on high-velocity impacts from the perspective of spacecraft protection against on-orbit impact, and; (2) complement an earlier part which focused on the lower impact velocity regime associated with ballistic-loading (Part 1).