Progressive damage analysis of three-dimensional hybrid braided composite under short beam shear loading

For decades, single fiber reinforced composites exhibited defects of low damage tolerance resulting from brittle failure mode, which limits their further application. Therefore, hybrid composites are emerging as a new research hotspot. In this work, three-dimensional five-direction hybrid braided composites composed of different configurations of carbon and aramid yarn was manufactured. The short beam shear experiments and full-size mesoscale numerical simulation based on real braided structure computed by computed tomography (CT) image were established to investigate the hybrid effect and progressive damage process of composite. Studies have shown that neat carbon composites display the characteristics of brittle fracture, and hybrid composites demonstrate a remarkably toughening effect. The KaCb (CaKb) sample displays a 102.0% (58.7%) greater failure displacement than neat carbon composite under transverse (longitudinal) loading. Through the increasing bending deformation, the damage mode transforms to a ductile failure. The stress localization in the loaded area is retarded, and the synergistic load-bearing capacity of axial and braiding yarn is improved. This work reveals the synergistic bearing mechanism and progressive damage process of multicomponent composites with complex textile structures, which provides a theoretical basis for designing more types of hybrid composite.