Damage investigation of hybrid flax-glass/epoxy composites subjected to impact fatigue under water ageing

The aim of this study is to investigate the fatigue behaviour of hybrid flax-glass/epoxy composites under repeated impact loading subsequent to water ageing. Different plates of these composite materials were fabricated using the vacuum infusion technique. Five stacking sequences were considered: [F8], [G/F3]S, [G2/F2]S, [G3/F]S, and [G8], where F and G stand for flax/epoxy and glass/epoxy plies, respectively. Water ageing was conducted by immersing the composite specimens in tap water at room temperature for various durations, and until saturation was reached. Fatigue impact tests were carried out using three impact energies: 3, 4, and 5 J. An advanced high-resolution camera was used to monitor the evolution of damage mechanisms occurring on the non-impacted surfaces, while a laser thermometer was considered to track the temperature variations within each composite specimen. The obtained results show that flax-glass hybridization reduces the mass of absorbed water in flax/epoxy composite by up to 70%. Furthermore, there is a more pronounced decrease in longitudinal modulus and maximum stress in aged composites, with reductions of up to 70% compared to unaged ones. Additionally, visible damage occurs even at low energy levels, manifesting from the initial impacts in both aged and unaged composite laminates. Moreover, a correlation between the number of impacts to failure and the cumulative energy is revealed. Ultimately, water aging reduces the strength of the studied composite laminates and their resistance to impact fatigue. Furthermore, the hybrid laminates with high proportion of flax layers are particularly susceptible to water ageing effects.