Low Velocity Impact Analysis on Stitched and Unstitched Laminates

The aim of this study is to examine the effect of stitching on the impact performance of a unidirectional Glass/Epoxy laminates and to investigate the ability of through-thickness reinforcement to improve the delamination resistance of laminates. Unstitched and Stitched specimens were prepared with the orientation [0/+45/-45/90]s and drop weight impact tests were conducted with different drop height [750 mm, 650 mm and 450 mm] From the experiment peak energy damage force, total energy and damage area were found for both stitched and unstitched specimens. From the obtained results it is found that delamination gets reduced due to stitching. Also the damage area gets reduced.