Simulation of plate compression behavior of warp-knitted spacer fabrics based on geometry and property parameters

The plate compression property of warp-knitted spacer fabrics greatly determines their industrial application in cushions and mattresses, which can be regulated by the structure and property of spacer filaments of spacer fabrics. To better meet application requirements, this paper detailed a study on the relationships between the geometry and property parameters of spacer filaments and the plate compression property of spacer fabrics. A three-dimensional structure model was firstly developed using the finite element method based on a typical spacer fabric. The model shows a satisfactory prediction of the compression force–strain curve of the spacer fabric compared with the corresponding experimental curve. Consequently, the effects of geometry parameters, including height, diameter, arrangement density and bending angle of spacer filaments, and Young’s modulus of the filaments on the compression behavior of spacer fabrics were investigated using the validated model by adjusting the corresponding geometry and property parameters. The stress nephogram and stress distribution along the filaments at compression strain 0.6 were analyzed to discover the deformation mechanism of spacer filaments under compression. It was found that the spacer fabric with smaller filament height, courser filament diameter, larger bending angle, higher arrangement density and Young’s modulus of filaments had higher compression resistance. This study is useful to optimize the performance of spacer fabrics in design and manufacturing by purposefully tuning the geometry and property parameters.