Fast and accurate bending modulus prediction of 3D woven composites via experimental modal analysis

An original mixed numerical-experimental identification method was proposed and used to predict the bending modulus of 3D woven composites. Four kinds of textile composites were utilized as specimens to verify the correctness of this method. Firstly, the vibration test was conducted to obtain key vibration parameters (natural frequency, damping factors, damping shapes) of the composite; Secondly, the cantilever beam model about the relationship between the natural frequency and modulus was adopted to predict the bending modulus; Finally, to verify the correctness of predicted values, three-point bending test was carried out to acquire the experimental values of bending modulus. The comparison results show that the relative error between experimental results and predicted values based on the first natural frequency for the four kinds of composites were all lower than 8%. Therefore, the experimental modal analysis technique as a nondestructive manner is reasonable and safe to understand the bending modulus of complex textile composites using the first natural frequency of their cantilever beam.