A modeling study on the lateral compressive behavior of spacer fabrics

Van Wyk's equation was considered to study the lateral compressive behavior of spacer fabrics. To prepare the spacer fabrics, different monofilaments were fabricated between two solid spastic sheets, one centimeter apart. Two types of monofilaments and three different forms of arrangement were used. Compressive tests were carried out using a Zwick tensile tester set in compressive mode. The results show that there is a good linear correlation between the compressive force and inverse thickness cubed of spacer fabrics as long as the fibers behave elastically. It can be concluded that the Van Wyk's equation can be adapted to predict the lateral compressive behavior of spacer fabrics with an acceptable accuracy. The results also revealed that the position and arrangement of the middle monofilament has significant effect on the lateral compressive behavior of the spacer fabrics.