3D printed continuous fibre-reinforced composites: bio-inspired microstructures for improving the translaminar fracture toughness

Abstract

Translaminar fracture toughness is a vital property governing the notch sensitivity and damage tolerance of composites. Nature has shown that incorporating material transitions can increase toughness significantly. This work presents finite element models demonstrating that such transitions can indeed increase the translaminar fracture toughness. The designed microstructures were then 3D printed using continuous glass and carbon fibres. The specimens consisted primarily of glass fibres, but with local carbon fibre strips. A new compact tension specimen with a side groove was designed to ensure proper failure. When the strips were sufficiently large, toughness improvements of 20–60% were found after the crack had grown through the strips. These results reveal a powerful strategy for locally increasing the toughness in areas where it is needed the most.