The influence of the different fiber lay-ups on the damping characteristics of polymer matrix composite

The dynamic characteristics of glass fiber reinforced polymer composites have been studied for the large number of different lay-ups of fiber, intending to get a better damping without compromising much on the stiffness/frequency values. The better layup has been selected based on the damping and frequency values in mode shapes 1, 2 and 3 and the different layups have then been categorized into three groups (A, B and C). The experimental test was carried out to calculate the natural frequencies and damping factors using Impulse technique (Lab view software-National instruments). The same values have also been evaluated theoretically by the modal analysis performed in FEM software (ANSYS version 11). A good agreement exists between the experimental and theoretical values. © 2012 Asian Network for Scientific Information.