Effect of Fibre Orientation on the Quasi-Static Axial Crushing Behaviour of Glass Fibre Reinforced Polyvinyl Chloride Composite Tubes
Rahib Ahmed Khan, E. Mahdi, John‐John Cabibihan
Abstract
In this study, glass fibre reinforced (GFRP) polyvinyl chloride (PVC) tubes were subjected to quasi-static axial compression tests to determine their crashworthiness performance. To this end, this study employed GFRP/PVC tubes with four different fibre orientations, 45°, 55°, 65° and 90°. A five-axis filament winding machine was used to fabricate the tubes. The results show that there was a considerable increase in all crashworthiness characteristics due to GFRP reinforcement. For the GFRP/PVC composite tubes of different fibre orientations, the load-bearing capacity, crush force efficiency and energy absorption capability generally improve with increasing fibre orientation. The GFRP/PVC 45° specimen was a notable exception as it exhibited the best specific energy absorption capacity and a crushing force efficiency that was only slightly less than for the GFRP/PVC 90° specimen.