The effect of marine environment on the mechanical performance of Dacron sailcloth

Abstract

The usage of sails is increasing parallel to the sustainability initiatives in marine transportation not only for recreational craft but also for large vessels carrying commercial goods and passengers. In this study, the marine environmental degradation of the sailcloth which significantly shortens the lifetime of these materials was investigated experimentally. Dacrons, which are relatively cheap, easy to form, and resistant to breakdown, but problematic to keeping their original shape while subjected to wind loads, were selected as the sailcloth. The combined effect of seawater exposure, temperature, UV, wet-dry cycle, water repellent treatment on the Dacron’s mechanical performance was measured by tensile tests performed for the Dacron specimens with nine different areal weights and in two different fibre directions (warp and weft) and by dynamical mechanical analysis for a representative Dacron sailcloth. The comparative results show that the marine environment has significant degradation effects on the mechanical performance of sailcloths.