A tensile testing technique for fibre-reinforced composites at impact rates of strain

A brief review is given of techniques which have been employed in attempts to determine the mechanical properties of composite materials under tensile impact loading. The difficulties encountered in the design of a satisfactory tensile impact testing machine for composite materials are discussed and a new method, using a modified version of the standard tensile split Hopkinson's pressure bar (SHPB), is described. Dynamic stress-strain curves for...