Solid Particle Erosion Behavior of FRPs with Prior Impact Damage

Experiments have been carried out to study the solid particle erosion of FRPs with prior impact damage. Two kinds of FRPs i.e., the epoxy resin reinforced by aramid fibers (AR/EP) and poly p-phenylene-benzobisoxazole fibers (PBO/EP) are used. The AR/EP and PBO/EP laminates with the same layout structure of 12-ply and [0°/90°] _6s have the volume fractions of 55.8 and 53.8%, respectively. Prior to erosion tests, the test materials are impact damaged by the projectile shot from an air gun. The interlaminar shearing stress (ILSS) is obtained as a measure for impact damage of the FRPs. Solid particle erosion tests are then performed for the FRPs after they are damaged with a spherical projectile with the velocity of 130 m/s. The test results show that the erosion rates of the FRPs with prior impact damage are less than those of the virgin materials. Less erosion resistance of the FRPs with prior impact damage may be because the FRPs with prior impact damage have a lot of transverse cracks and delaminations, which absorb the kinetic energy of the solid particles used in the erosion tests.