Mechanistic Role of Yarn and Fabric Structure in Determining Tear Resistance of Woven Cloth

This paper is concerned with formulating and evaluating a model of tongue tear. The modeling approach taken is fairly general, and results recorded to this point have been encouraging. Although predicting tearing behavior from parameters determined prior to weaving is not yet possible, the implications of this work are important. The model accounts for the effects of yam pull-out, jamming, and stretching, as well as statistical variation in yam strength. Simulations are conducted where these effects are parametrically varied in order to assess their relative importance in contributing to tear strength. The effect of pre-loading on yam pull-out and the inclusion of jamming resistance are seen to have considerable influence on tearing strength. Furthermore, the success of the model's predictions based on these two principal components suggests a need for developing the mechanics of their associated, unconventional tests. With an understanding of such mechanisms, one can anticipate a fully predictive model of tear resistance based solely on yam properties and fabric geometry.