The influence of hybridization on impact damage behavior and residual compression strength of intraply basalt/nylon hybrid composites

Low-velocity impact and compression after impact (CAI) tests were performed to investigate the impact behavior of hybrid composite laminates reinforced by basalt-nylon intraply fabrics. The purpose of using this hybrid composite is to combine the good mechanical property of basalt fiber as a brittle fiber with the excellent impact resistance of nylon fiber as a ductile fiber. Five different types of woven fabric with different contents of nylon (0%, 25%, 33.3%, 50% and 100%) were used as reinforcement. The effect of nylon/basalt fiber content on impact parameters, impact damage behavior and CAI strength was studied at different nominal impact energy levels (16, 30 and 40 J). The results indicate that at low impact energy, hybridization and variation in basalt/nylon fiber content cannot improve the impact performance of composite plates. With increasing impact energy, the impact performance becomes more and more dependent on the content of nylon and basalt. (c) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.