Abstract Low density, high strength, and flexibility of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) fibers have made them a topic of intensive research in many fields. More specifically, UHMWPE has been extensively used in shock damping applications. However, little is known about the effects of fiber tortuosity and fiber wetting on the shock transfer characteristics of these fibers. Herein, focus is placed on studying the effects of tortuosity and fiber wetting on the shock transfer characteristics of UHMWPE fiber braid embedded in a polyurethane matrix. Shock transfer characteristics of these fibers are identified by generating a longitudinal shock on one end of the fiber, while simultaneously measuring the transferred force overtime on the other side of the fiber. From the experiments it is found that the force versus time response of these structures show an underdamped response. Analyzing the maximum force transfer and the rate of decay, it is seen that tortuosity has a significant effect on the shock transfer characteristics of these structures. Given the nature of these results, it is strongly believed that the presented work provides a creative strategy for designing, developing, and characterizing, new composite structures with improved impact attenuation characteristics.

中文翻译：

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嵌入聚氨酯复合结构中的超高分子量聚乙烯 (UHMWPE) 纤维的纤维弯曲度及其对冲击传递特性的影响

摘要 超高分子量聚乙烯（UHMWPE）纤维的低密度、高强度和柔韧性使其成为许多领域的深入研究课题。更具体地说，UHMWPE 已广泛用于减震应用。然而，关于纤维弯曲度和纤维润湿对这些纤维的震动传递特性的影响知之甚少。在此，重点研究曲折度和纤维润湿对嵌入聚氨酯基质中的 UHMWPE 纤维编织物的冲击传递特性的影响。这些纤维的冲击传递特性是通过在纤维的一端产生纵向冲击，同时测量纤维另一侧随时间的传递力来确定的。从实验中发现，这些结构的力与时间响应表现出欠阻尼响应。分析最大力传递和衰减率，可以看出弯曲度对这些结构的冲击传递特性有显着影响。鉴于这些结果的性质，我们坚信所提出的工作为设计、开发和表征具有改进的冲击衰减特性的新复合结构提供了一种创造性的策略。