ABSTRACT:

The main objective of this work is to create a physical platform for

material characterization and parameter identification at macroscale as

a function of applied strain rate, understanding how the strain rate

affects the damage and mechanical response of three different composite

material systems studied.

For this purpose, methods for dynamic characterization of composite

materials have to be extended and applied to the study of strain rate

effects on carbon fiber reinforced composites (CFRP) and neat resin

systems under several loading conditions (longitudinal and transverse

tension, longitudinal and transverse compression, interlaminar and

intralaminar toughness and low velocity and dynamic impact testings), in

the range between 10-3 to 103 s-1.