A comparison of the properties of hot compacted gel-spun polyethylene fibre composites with conventional gel-spun polyethylene fibre composites

In this paper we present an investigation of the ballistic and low strain rate mechanical properties of gel-spun polyethylene (GSPE) fibre composites. Composites were made using two different processing routes, a conventional prepreg route and the hot compaction process developed at the University of Leeds. Within these two groups different matrices and fibre arrangements were also investigated. Composites manufactured by the hot compaction process were found to have ballistic performance equivalent to that of the composites manufactured by the conventional prepreg route. The mechanisms of energy absorption in the two types of composite were, however, different. The hot compacted materials absorbed energy by fibre failure and back-face delamination while the composites made by the conventional prepreg route absorbed energy by fibre failure only. Interfacial strength played a very important role in the energy absorption of composites that underwent back-face delamination upon ballistic impact. Crown copyright (C) 1999 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.