Drop weight impact response of woven natural silk/Epoxy laminated composite plates

Woven natural silk fabric has been commonly used in textile industries for centuries. Irrespective of their mechanical and environmental merits, their utilizations as reinforcement material for composites structures are very rare. Therefore, this work is focused on the use of woven natural silk as a reinforcement material in composites panels. Since a major concern over laminated composite is their being susceptible to internal damage caused by impact loads; the impact response of woven natural silk fabric reinforced epoxy (WNS/Epoxy) were investigated. Composite panel, prepared in configurations of 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30layers of WNS and tested under a drop weight impact of 32J, 48J and 64J were analyzed. Load bearing capability and damage fragmentations were investigated. An increased load bearing capability was observed with increase in number of WNS ply. Delamination and surface damage area fragmentation also increased with increase in impact load. The SEM showed failure mechanism as a combination of failures.