Impact on carbon fiber composite: Ballistic tests, material tests, and computer simulations

Carbon fiber composites are now common in the aerospace industry because of their high specific stiffness and strength. They are ideal for decreasing the weight of structures, but it is well-known that they can suffer delamination and failure under relatively mild impact loads. In particular, under ballistic impact, carbon fiber composites underperform compared to other materials like S-2 glass, Kevlar®, or polyethylene composites. Hence, it is...