Composites Science and Technology 56 (1996) 1303-1315
0 1996 Elsevier Science Limited
ELSEVIER PII: SO266-3538(96)00092-9
A THREE-DIMENSIONAL MICROMECHANICAL
OF WOVEN-FABRIC COMPOSITES: I. GEOMETRIC
ANALYSIS
Ph. Vandeurzen,
Department of Metallurgy and Materials Engineering,
(Received 29 February
Abstract
A three-dimensional geometric description for a large
range of two-dimensional woven architectures is
proposed which can serve as a basis for stiffness and
strength modelling of fabric composites. We introduce
a strict logical scheme for calculating the full geometry
of a general yarn architecture. First, a library of 108
rectangular macro-cells has been put together to build
complex material unit cells, This complexity is caused
by the yarn interlacing style and the existence of
different yarn sizes in the fabric composite. Next, each
macro-cell is divided in a number of micro-cells. The
geometric model, based on a lenticular yarn cross-
section, predicts the weave cover factor, the global and
local fibre volume fractions and the yarn orientations.
Moreover, a logical and simple meshing for each
woven structure is created. A Microsoft Excel@
application (TEXCOMP) has been developed to
transform the model into a useful design tool, 0 1996
Elsevier Science Limited
Keywords: woven fabric, geometric model, macro-cell,
micro-cell, design
1 INTRODUCTION
A renaissance of interest in textiles and textile
composites has been observed in recent years. Their
ease of handling and low fabrication cost have made
woven fabrics attractive for structural applications.
Moreover, woven-fabric composites can offer the
potential of balanced in-plane thermo-elastic pro-
perties and improved impact resistance.
Currently, most of the woven fabrics used are
simple constructions, such as plain, basket and satin
weaves. However, the fabric architecture can be
altered to meet the specific mechanical properties
required by the composite application. This is
achieved by changing the weave pattern, fibre type,
yarn type, yarn count, etc. The number of possible
Printed in Northern Ireland. All rights reserved
0266-3538/96/$15.00
ANALYSIS
J. Ivens & I. Verpoest
Katholieke Uniuersiteit Leuuen, de Croylaan 2, B-3001 Leuven,
Belgium
1996; accepted 27 June 1996)
architectures is unlimited. Hence, in order fully to
realise the potential of woven-fabric composites, it is
important to understand their mechanical perfor-
mance. In this, the geometry of the yarns in the woven
fabric plays a key role.
A decade ago, Ishikawa and Chou32 developed
three basic analytical models to predict the in-plane
thermo-elastic behaviour of various woven-fabric
composites. First, the mosaic model treats the
composite as an assembly of asymmetric cross-ply
laminae. The yarn waviness is neglected. Second, the
crimp model takes into account the continuity and
undulation, i.e. the yarn waviness or crimp, of the
yarns in the loading direction. The undulation of the
yarns running perpendicular to the loading direction
is, however, neglected. Finally, for satin composites
the bridging model was developed to simulate the load
transfer amongst interlaced domains. These models
of Ishikawa and Chou are one-dimensional (1D)
models because they only consider the undulation of
the yarns in the loading direction. Notice the total
absence of any geometric analysis. That is, the actual
yarn cross-sectional shape, the presence of a gap
between adjacent yarns and the influence of crimp on
fabric thickness are not considered. Therefore, no
predictions are made for the orientation of each yarn,
for the fibre volume fraction or for the fabric cover
factor.
The two-dimensional (2D) model of Naik and
Shembekar3.4 considers the undulation of both warp
and weft yarns. On the basis of an adequate geometric
description, on the classical lamination theory and on
a mixed parallel-series arrangement of infinitesimal
composite pieces, the model predicts the in-plane
elastic properties. This rather complicated method
involves substantial computation. Therefore, Naik and
Ganesh developed closed-form expressions for the
in-plane thermo-elastic properties of plain-weave
fabric laminae. Shape functions were used to define
the yarn cross-section and undulation.
1303
1304 Ph. Vandeurzen et al.

The three-dimensional (3D) model of Hahn and

Pandy6 for plain-fabric composites is simple in concept
and mathematical implementation. The yarn undula-
tions are sinusoidal and described with shape
functions. However, in the subsequent elastic analysis
the most questionable assumption is the uniform
strain throughout the plain-weave composite unit cell.
The present work is concerned with the analytical
three-dimensional geometric and elastic modelling of
GO
a large range of two-dimensional woven fabric
laminae. The objective of Part I of this two-part paper
is to present a full geometric analysis. It is new
because of its clear geometric concept (a library of
building blocks for textile composites) and its ability
to describe also non-traditional fabrics with various
yarn sizes or particular yarn crimps. Also, the
presence of special yarns in the fabric such as optical
fibres or shape-memory alloy fibres can be taken into
account. In Part II, we will predict the full set of (W
engineering constants based on the previous mathe-
matical description with macro- and micro-cells. The
model is superior to other analytical analyses because
it predicts correct shear moduli for the fabric
composite. Still, the analysis is sufficiently general to
describe any 2D woven fabric, is easy to perform and
is concise in concept.

2 WOVEN-FABRIC STRUCTURE Cc)

In general, an orthogonal 2D woven fabric is made by
weaving together yarns. Each yarn is a bundle of
fibres and its size is determined by the number of
fibres in the yarn, the diameter of one fibre and the
packing density of fibres. The fabric is produced on a
loom that interlaces yarns at right angles to one
another. The lengthwise yarns are called warps, while
the yarns that are shuttled across the loom are called
fills or wefts. The interlacing of the yarns causes yarn
undulation or yarn crimp. The weave type is
determined by the method of interlacing both sets of
yarns. Figure 1 shows three basic constructions. The
plain weave is the most commonly used basic
reinforcement for woven composites. Shifting of the
yarns, or (in other words) displacement of the yarns, is
difficult. The twill weave has a looser interlacing and
the weave is characterised by a diagonal line. Each
warp yarn floats over two or more consecutive weft
yarns. The satin weave has a good drapability, a
smooth surface and minimum thickness. Here, one
warp yarn is floating over at least three weft yarns and
under a single one. Even in rather simple woven
fabrics, there are important geometric differences
between the warp and the weft direction. These
differences are the result of numerous constructional
and process parameters like weaving density, warp
tension, weft tension, beating motion, etc.
Fig. 1. Basic weave constructions: (a) plain, (b) twill and (c)
5HS satin weave. The grey shaded zone represents the fabric
unit cell.
3 DEFINITION OF THE FABRIC UNIT CELL
Since the mechanical properties of woven-fabric
composites have a very strong dependence upon the
reinforcing yarn geometry, it is essential to create a
geometric concept or scheme for describing the fibre
architecture. The idea is to include just enough
details in the idealised geometry to predict the
most important aspects of the composite behaviour.
This type of geometric concept has not yet been
introduced in the existing analytical models described
in Section 1.
In this research work, the woven fabric is treated as
an assembly of unit cells, i.e. grey areas in Fig. 1. By
definition, the unit cell is the smallest repeating
pattern in the structure. Moreover, the model deals
with a perfect, regular, one-layer fabric composite.
Hence, the presence of voids, the misorientation of
yarns and the nesting of fabric layers are neglected in
our unit cell concept, just as they are neglected in
most other fabric composite models.
The checkerboard pattern, a well-known represen-
tation in the textile industry, is extended now to
 30 analysis of fabric composites: I
Carbon yarn
-. Flax yarn
Ei
f* P f f treats the yarns as flexible, inextensible cylinders. As
1
W
w /
W
W*
n warp over weft
c-7 weft over warp
Fig. 2. Extended checkerboard pattern of a hybrid
twill-weave unit cell. The w- and f-type yarns are natural flax
fibres, and the w*- and f*-type yarns are carbon fibres.
describe the most complex material unit cells. Figure 2
shows an example of a checkerboard pattern for such
a complex fabric, namely a hybrid carbon/flax twill
weave. The hybrid fabrics of carbon fibre and natural
flax fibre are actually under study in our research
group. The rows of the board represent the warp
yarns, while the columns are the filling or weft yarns.
At an interlacing point, the square is coloured black if
the warp yarn runs over the weft yarn. The main
complexity arises from the fact that the fabrics
considered here can contain two different warp yarn
types, labelled w and w*. The fibre mechanical
properties, the size, the shape and the inter-yarn
distances can vary. Moreover, two filling yarn types, f
and f*, can be present in the fabric unit cell. Although
they are equally sized and shaped, the fibre
mechanical properties and the inter-yarn distances can
differ. Because of the possible existence of different
types of yarns in one fabric structure, an extra column
and row are added to the classic checkerboard. If a
square in this extra row or column is marked, the
corresponding yarn is an asterisk-type yarn. First, the
extension is necessary to describe hybrid weave styles.
Next, the need for this refinement is based on
microstructural observations of woven-fabric compos-
ites. Even when yarns are woven separately for the
construction of a fabric, they can unite to compose a
big yarn or super yarn in the composite. The
existence of those super yarns in the skin of 3D woven
core sandwich composites was predicted theoretically
and confirmed experimentally.? Of course, the
extension is also needed when using special fibres in
1305
woven constructions such as optical glass fibres or
shape-memory alloy fibres with particular sizes.
4 GEOMETRIC PARAMETERS
Half a century ago, Peirce8,9 developed the essential
geometric relationships between parameters such as
yarn crimp, yarn length and yarn count, to solve
practical problems for designing cloths. The analysis
such, this hypothesis is not completely valid for fabrics
for composites because the yarns never have a circular
cross-section, but rather a flattened elliptical or
lenticular one. The model does not take into account
the setting of the yarn crimp in the fabric, i.e. the
residual crimp of the yarn after it has been released
from the fabric. Bending stiffness and torsional
stiffness of the yarn are also neglected. From a purely
textile point of view the model is acceptable; for the
plain-woven fabric, formulae are presented that can
be useful when studying shrinkage effects of the
textile, cloth extension, limits of setting, etc.
Our analysis provides the basic description of the
microgeometry of a large range of 2D woven fabrics.
Not only standard weaves such as plain, twill or satin
weaves, but also more complex weaves with a special
yarn interlacing style and with different yarn types are
considered. The most detailed analysis would consider
the path of each single fibre in the unit cell. The
greatest practical problem, however, is caused by the
fact that the complete set of input data necessary for
such a detailed geometric description is very large and
difficult to quantify. Therefore, the geometric analysis
is carried out on the yarn level. We assume that all
fibres in the yarn run in the same direction as the
yarn. For twisted yarns, the existence of the twist
angle could be taken into account by altering the
elastic properties of the impregnated yarn. The
intra-yarn fibre volume fraction or packing factor,
defined as fibre-to-yarn area ratio, is assumed to be a
constant for the woven-fabric composite. From a
textile point of view, the air-filled space trapped by
the fibres affects the insulating and warmth properties
of the fabric. It is clear that interlacing of the yarns
and processing of the composite leads to thread or
yarn flattening. Therefore, the assumption of a
circular yarn cross-section is unrealistic. On the basis
of microscopic observations, a lenticular shape was
selected to describe the cross-sectional shape of the
yarn (Fig. 3).
Figure 4 depicts the geometric parameters on a
cross-section of a woven composite. Three groups of
geometric parameters are identified to describe a
general two-dimensional weave geometry (Table 1).
The subscripts f, f*, w and w* distinguish quantities
associated with filling yarns, filling* yarns, warp yarns
and warp* yarns, respectively. The first group- the
1306
Fig. 3. Lenticular yarn cross-section.
know group-contains those parameters that are
supplied by the weaving company: the number of
tibres Nf and the fibre diameter d for each different
yarn; the warp and weft yarn counts from which we
derive the yarn spacings or pick lengths p. For
example, pw,* is the distance between two neighbour-
ing yarns, a w-type and a w*-type warp yarn. All the
parameters we have to measure on a real fabric
composite are put together in the second group-the
measure group. This fabric information can be
obtained by microscopic observation of warp and weft
sections of the fabric composite. The aspect ratio f of
the yarn, defined as the width over the thickness of
the cross-section, is the most important one. The
crimp parameter hf describes the undulation of the
filling yarns. Of course, the undulation of the yarns in
the warp direction is related to this parameter,
because the increase of undulation in one direction of
the fabric reduces the undulation in the other
direction. Figure 5 demonstrates the effect of hf on the
fabric geometry of a plain-woven structure: if hf
equals zero, the path of the filling yarns is totally
straight. If, on the other hand, h, equals zero, the
undulation of the filling yarns is at its maximum. The
thickness D for a one-layer fabric composite can be
measured easily. However, when conducting paramet-
ric studies we will usually set D equal to the fabric
thickness, Dfabric. The fabric thickness has a strong
dependence on the fabric geometry and is given by:
Dfabric= max(t, + h,, t,.,*+ h,*, tf + hf, tp + hp)
where t is the thickness of the yarn and h is the crimp
D/
DI
Fig. 4. Cross-section of a fabric composite along the warp
direction.
Ph. Vandeurzen et al.
Table 1. Classification of the geometric parameters
Know-group Nr Number of fibres in the yarn
d Diameter of the fibre
P Yarn spacing
Measure-group f Aspect ratio of the yarns
4 Crimp parameter for the filling yarn
D Thickness of the composite
K Packing factor of fibres in the yarn
Calculate-group h,, h,,,, Crimp parameter for the warp yarns
t Thickness of the yarn cross-section
Width of the yarn cross-section
; Orientation of the yarn
v, Fibre volume fraction
CF Cover factor
parameter. Notice that those two geometric para-
meters are always positive numbers because they are
linear measures. For the packing factor K of fibres in
the yarn, one can make a very good estimation. This
estimation is based on real yarn data such as the
number of fibres in the yarn and the diameter of a
fibre, but also on microscopic determination of the
area of the yarn cross-section. Usually, the value of
the packing factor is about 75%. One can easily
calculate that an absolute maximum of 91% is reached
when the fibres are hexagonally close packed. Finally,
the third group-the calculate group-contains all
values that are calculated from the previous
parameters, using formulas based on simple geometric
considerations. They will be introduced in Sections 5
and 6. This group contains the crimp parameters h for
(1)
Fig. 5. Influence of the crimp parameter h on the
plain-weave fabric geometry: (a) h, = 0 and (b) h, = 0.
 30 analysis of fabric composites: I

the different warp yarns, and the thickness t and width

w of each yarn cross-section. The most important
parameters are certainly the yarn orientations p, the
fibre volume fraction V,, and the cover factor CF.
Cover factor is herein defined as the projected yarn
area to unit cell area ratio. Yarn orientation and fibre
volume fraction are crucial for understanding and
modelling the mechanical properties of the fabric
composite. The cover factor, on the other hand, is of

l!29
primary interest in studies of the porosity and the tw
permeability of fabrics to air, water and polymers.
tf
i
(cwcm
] FIWW
5 PARTITION OF THE UNIT CELL: MACRO- ffl2
AND MICRO-PARTITION

tw
There are two major motivations in creating a strictly
logical partitioning scheme for the unit cell. First, it
should be easy then to calculate the geometric
parameters which fully describe the yarn architecture, [p&J tf
Pff
only based on the presented know and measure
group. The bookkeeping of geometric data becomes a

;r=-
simple task. Second, to calculate the elastic properties A
of the woven-fabric composite, one needs a logical
and simple geometric meshing of the unit cell. tw
Basically, our meshing has the same purpose as the
meshing of elements over the geometry in the
well-known finite element analysis and, in this way, it
[FG] tf Pff
w* *
could be considered as an intelligent mesh generator
for woven-fabric composites. Fig. 6. Library of macro-cells: four exemplars.
The macro-partition of the unit cell consists of
discretising the unit cell into a number of rectangular construction pattern provided by the weaving
macro-cells. Each square of the checkerboard pattern company is sufficient to determine automatically the
is split up into four macro-cells. The macro-partition number of each type of macro-cell present in the unit
includes a split into two layers in the thickness cell. For this, the extended checkerboard pattern is
direction of the composite. That is, at each cross-over transformed into an algebraic matrix, where each
point of a warp and a weft yarn, one needs two matrix element is completely determined by the
macro-cells in one layer to define the path for the geometric positions and yarn types of the two
warp yarn and two in the other layer for the weft yarn.
Depending on the orientation of the yarn, we can
distinguish A-, B- and C-type cells for the warp yarns

Bd3
and D-, E- anf F-type cells for the weft yarns.
In order to describe a general weave geometry, a
library of 108 macro-cells has been put together. Even
the most complex 2D woven structures can be
composed with this library of rectangular macro-cells
or building blocks. Figure 6 shows examples of UPPER
macro-cells. Again the subscripts w, w*, f and f* are
LAYER
used, now to define a name for each cell; e.g. Bw$
describes the path of a w*-type warp yarn running
from an f-type yarn to an f-type yarn. Moreover,
special macro-cells containing pile yarns of 3D woven
core/sandwich composites7,2 were developed and LOWER
added to the library to extend the model. As can be LAYER
seen in Fig. 7, we need 16 macro-cells to compose the
unit cell of a simple plain-woven fabric composite.
It should be pointed out that only the weave Fig. 7. Macro-partition of the plain-weave fabric unit cell.
1308 Ph. Vandeurzen et al.

interlacing yarns. The number of rows and columns of

the matrix equals the number of warp and weft yarns
in the unit cell, respectively. The matrix element at
any position is 1 if the warp yarn is running over the
weft yarn, i.e. the checkerboard field is black, and -1
in the other case. Then, any row corresponding to an
asterisk-type warp yarn is multiplied by 2, while any
column corresponding to an asterisk-type weft yarn is
multiplied by 3. On the basis of the value of a matrix
element and the values of the four neighbouring
elements, the code defines the unique set of four types
of macro-cell at the corresponding fabric position. No
extra fabric information, nor any geometric assump-
tions, nor operator interventions are needed. There-
fore, the macro-partition is simple in concept and easy
to apply.
Next, each macro-cell itself is automatically
partitioned into micro-cells. This process is called the
micro-partition. Two different methods of micro-
partition will be presented: an elementary 1D
partition and a more advanced 2D partition, The (b)
micro-partition results in a fully three-dimensional
division of the unit cell, so that the variation of
properties within the unit cell can be properly
analysed. This is essential for understanding the q straight yarn path
mechanical performance of woven-fabric composites. curved yarn path
Now, on the basis of the developed geometric
Fig. 8. (a) 1D micro-partition of a Bw&ype macro-cell; (b)
concept, we are able to predict with analytical models
2D micro-partition. Only half the Bw&ype macro-ceil is
the mechanical stress variations within the composite shown.
unit cell. This shall be illustrated in Part II of this
paper.
There is no obvious geometric nor mechanical
5.1 1D micro-partition reason to use, for the description of the yarn
In this case, the assemblage of four micro-cells creates curvature, micro-cells of different sizes. Therefore, the
a macro-cell. The size of each micro-cell depends on curved part of the warp yarn is split up in three
the weave geometry (Fig. 8). Part of the yarn in each equally sized micro-cells. They have all the same
macro-cell is assumed to be straight between adjacent width, %%d celi. In this way, the unit cell is partitioned

crossing yarns. Although woven fabrics show a into rectangular micro-cells:

smoothly curved yarn between adjacent crossing
yarns, microscopical observations of woven-fabric
composites justifies the assumption of straightened
yarns. The width of the micro-cell containing the Wcurved cell =

straight part of the warp yarn can be calculated as

follows:
Straight cell
Here, pff is the yarn spacing for f-type yarns, Pmax is
the maximum orientation of the w-type yarn, Rf is the
radius of curvature of the lenticular f-type yarn over
which the considered w-type yarn is running (Fig. 3)
and t, is the thickness of the w-type yarn. The radius
of curvature R can, of course, be written as a function
of the aspect ratio f and the thickness t of the yarn
cross-section:
5.2 2D micro-partition
Also, a two-dimensional approach was used to
partition the macro-cells. Here, cuts were made not
only perpendicular to the yarn path but also parallel
to the yarn path. The 2D micro-partitioning procedure
is an extension of the 1D case. First, the 1D
micro-partition should be carried out for each
macro-cell in the composite unit cell to describe the
undulation of the considered yarn (A). Next, to make
a distinction between the yarn and matrix areas, two
extra cuts are made parallel to the yarn at the two
ends of the lenticular shape of the considered yarn
(B). It should be stressed that Fig. 8 only shows half
 30 analysis of fabric composites: I 1309

the macro-cell, namely in the top layer of the unit cell. The assumption of f 2 1 is implied in the
Finally, every cut made in every macro-cell is expressions above. The parameters h, w and t are
extended to the other layer of macro-cells of the linear measures and therefore positive numbers. Next,
woven fabric composite (C, and C,). As explained the orientation of the yarn in each micro-cell has to be
before, every single-ply woven-fabric composite has calculated. The orientation Pmax in eqns (2) and (4)
two layers of macro-cells because of the division in the can be expressed as a function of yarn spacing p,
thickness direction. This automated partitioning radius R, thickness t and crimp parameter h. The
procedure originates in a regular grid of micro-cells to following geometric relationships were calculated for
describe the unit cell. Fifty micro-cells compose one an Awfr-macro-cell (Fig. 4). Only these relationships
macro-cell. Not all of those micro-cells contain fibres, are given as an example:
i.e. some of the micro-cells are pure matrix material
cells. Each micro-cell is characterised by its local fibre
volume fraction, yarn orientation and fractional
arccos
(2%+ tw> cos[ _l+h,)]
arctan( 2Rf

Pmax =
volume relative to the unit cell. 2R,-t,+h,

S
6 MATHEMATICAL ANALYSIS + arctan
2R,-t,+h,
A strategy for calculating the geometric output is or
presented in Fig. 9. First, the number of each type of
macro-cells is automatically determined from the P,..,,=arcsin(y] if 2R,-t,+h,=O
weave construction pattern, provided by the weaving
company, as explained in Section 5. The crimp In the expressions above the constraint eqn (8) is
parameters, and thus the undulation, of the warp implied. This important constraint symbolises that it
yarns are calculated as follows: must be geometrically possible for the warp yarn to
interlace with the filling yarns. That is, if the
h,=t,+t,-hf
(5) constraint is false then the fabric architecture cannot
h,* = t,.,* + tf - hf be created:
The width w and thickness t of each yarn cross-section
are computed as a function of the number of filaments
N,, the filament or fibre diameter d, the aspect ratio f
and the packing factor K: The orientation of the warp yarn in the four different
micro-cells of the Aw, macro-cell, considering the 1D
N,nd2
micro-partition, is then calculated as a function of the
j/*K[arcsin(&J f (fT)z - (f- 1). ([)I maximum orientation Pmax. In case of a 2D
micro-partition, the presented equations are still valid.
w=tXf (6) Pstraight cell = Pmax (9)

II Nf, d, p and weave style KNOW

GROUP
with k = 5, 3 and 1 (10)
MEASURE From the calculated yarn orientation for each
GROUP micro-cell and the composition of the unit cell, one
. - can easily recalculate and draw an orientation
distribution function for the warp and weft yarns.
Such a graph plots the probability to hold a certain
yarn orientation in a randomly chosen infinitesimal
piece along warp or weft direction. Finally, the global
vf CALCULATE fibre volume fraction V, and the cover factor CF for
CF GROUP the unit cell can be expressed as a function of the
E i fabric parameters:
108
K ~ niA;li
V,= i=l
Fig. 9. Geometric calculations: strategic scheme. Knit cell
(11)
1310 Ph. Vandeurzen et al.

In eqn (11) K is the packing factor, ni is the number
of macro-cells of type i in the unit cell (i = l.lOS), Ai is
the area of the yarn cross-section, Ziis the length of the
yarn in macro-cell i, and Vunit_,, is the volume of the
unit cell.
The cover factor is important for permeability
properties of the fabric. Since this factor is defined as
the projected yarn area to unit cell area ratio, its value
is determined by the width of the yarn sections w and
the yarn spacings p:
CF=
KnitcelllD
(12)
Certainly, the most important output of the
calculation procedure are the fibre volume fraction,
the orientation of the yarn and the fractional volume
of each micro-cell. These data are the basis for a
further modelling of mechanical properties, discussed
in Part II of this paper. Moreover, the geometric
model developed is most useful in determining some
textile properties such as cover factor and fabric
thickness, but also in determining the allowable
microstructural states of fabrics. Three possible facts
that limit the fabric architecture can be distinguished
(Fig. 10). First, the interlacing of the yarns must be
possible. The conditions at which yarns jam each other
are essential in identifying the processing windows of
fabric preforms. Second, interaction of the yarns
should be avoided. This interaction error is due to a
mistake in the input data or it indicates the formation
of a combined yarn or super yarn in the real fabric
composite. Finally, also the undulation of the yarns
has limits: the crimp parameters h, and h,, should be
positive numbers.
A custom Microsoft Excel@ application, called
TEXCOMP, has been developed to perform all
calculations.3 Dialogue boxes, which work and look
like the built-in Excel@ dialogue boxes, were created
to standardise the user interface. Different macro
functions are included in the software to perform
specialised tasks like drawing the orientation distribu-
tion function for the warp and weft yarns or
calculating the macro-cell composition for a given unit
cell. One can choose standard weave styles such as
plain, twill and satin weaves, but also self-designed
fabrics can be treated by the model. Because of the
use of a powerful spreadsheet program, it is easy to
add missing aspects or to exchange data with other
applications. In this way the geometric model is
transformed into a useful design tool.
7 PARAMETRIC STUDY
The TEXCOMP custom application was used to
analyse different 2D woven fabric composites. A
parametric study has been conducted to evaluate the
effect of various fabric parameters, i.e. the yarn aspect
ratio f and the crimp ratio H, on the global fabric
geometry. The crimp ratio H of a fabric is herein
defined as the ratio of the difference between the
fabric crimp parameters hf and h, to the maximum
crimp value h,,,. The maximum crimp value
corresponds to a maximum yarn undulation in either
the warp or the weft direction:
h--h,
(13)
H=---.-.-
h max
The presented example considers a plain woven-
fabric composite. The yarn characteristics for this
parametric study are given in Table 2. Notice that the
warp and weft yarns have the same size. A yarn fibre
packing density K or intra-yarn fibre volume fraction
of 041 was used in all calculations. For a given crimp
ratio H, the filling and the warp crimp parameters can
be calculated from:

L +6 H x hmx
h,=
60 2 2
(14)
t, + tf I H x k,ax
hf =
2 2

in which the thickness t, in turn, is derived from eqn

Fig. 10. Woven construction
ing of yarns, (b) interacting
h,<O
limits: (a) impossible interlac-
of yarns and (c) crimp error
or h,<O.
(6). From the definition of the crimp ratio H, one can
easily see that both yarn systems have the same
undulation if the crimp ratio H = 0. When the crimp
ratio H is set equal to 1, we describe a fabric where
the warp yarns show no undulation while the filling
yarns show a maximum undulation. If H = -1, the
filling yarns are totally straight. Finally, the composite
thickness is set equal to the fabric thickness.
The format of the study (Table 3) is to start with a
 30 analysis of fabric composites: I 1311

Table 2. Yam characteristics used in the TEXCOMP parametric study

Plain-weave composite E fibre

= 73 GPa, vfibre = O-2 and E,,,, = 3-13 GPa, v,,,,, = 0.34

Thickness, D fI = {Dtabric = m=G + k, tf + 41

Yarn properties d (mm) K

Warp 415 o-01 O-81

Filling 415 0.01 ON

Table 3. Limiting yam spacing p in the TEXCOMP parametric study

Limiting yarn spacing, p (mm) H=-1 H = -0.75 H = -0.5 H= -0.25 N=O

f = 1 circular yarn - - - - 0.4

f=5 - - - - 0.6
f = 10 1.15 3 0.95 0.85 0.8
f = 20 flat yarn 1.1

constant crimp ratio (H = 0). Then, for different yarn
aspect ratios, the yarn spacing is lowered until the
geometric limit of the fibre architecture is reached.
This geometric limit is controlled by the condition of
impossible interlacing of both yarn systems (Fig. 10).
Next, the aspect ratio is kept constant (f = 10) and,
for different crimp ratios, the yarn spacing is lowered.
The range of values for the aspect ratio f and the
crimp ratio H used in this study, together with the
corresponding limiting yarn spacing p, are shown in
Table 3.
Figures 11 and 12 show the fibre volume fraction,

100
s 90
; 80
3 70 4-f=l
2 60 -a- f=5
50 +f=lO
1 40
+ f=20
7 30
8 20
2 10
0
0 0.5 I 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 4

0a Yarn spacing p (mm)

0.5
h
J 0.4
-c-f=1
z
8 0.3 + f=5
3 -t- f=lO
8 0.2
* f=20
II
[ 0.1
c;l
0
0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 4
@)
Yarn spacing p (mm>

Fig. 11. Process windows (H = 0): (a) fibre volume fraction and (b) lamina thickness as a function of yarn spacing p.
1312 Ph. Vandeurzen
1
0.9
0.8
8 0.7
u 0.3
0.2
0.1
0
0 a 1 1.5
Yarn spacing p (mm)
0 0.5 1 1.5
(b) Yarn spacing p (mm)
Fig. 12. Process windows (H = 0): (a) cover factor and (b) maximum yarn orientation as a function of yarn spacing p.
the lamina thickness, the cover factor and the
maximum yarn orientation as a function of yarn
spacing p for different yarn aspect ratios f. The limits
of these process windows are caused by the situation
of impossible yarn interlacing together with the
situation of a yarn aspect ratio lower than 1. The
maximum fibre volume fraction reached, even for very
flat yarns, is about O-54. This is a rather low value,
compared with the high intra-yarn fibre volume
fraction. The large differences in fibre volume fraction
for the various aspect ratios can be attributed to the
difference in composite thickness (Fig. 11). When the
yarns have a circular yarn cross-section, the maximum
cover factor is 0.81. However, when flattening the
yarns, it is easy to reach a cover factor of 1. The
maximum yarn orientation Pmax can reach as much as
50 for a dense weave with circular yarn cross-sections.
This value drops to 18 if the yarn aspect ratio is five.
Figure 13(a) shows the influence of yarn spacing p and
crimp ratio H on the fibre volume fraction. The
presented process window is a narrow strip. Notice
that the case of H = 1 shows the same dependence as
H = - 1 for properties not related to warp or weft
direction, i.e. fibre volume fraction, lamina thickness
and cover factor. The fibre volume fraction is
maximum if the undulation of both yarn systems is
et al.
+-f=l
-u- f=5
-A- f=lO
-A- f=20
2 2.5 3 3.5 4
+f=l
-n- f=5
+f=lO
+ f=20
2 2.5 3 3.5 4
equal. This is due to the strong influence of the crimp
ratio on lamina thickness (Fig. 13(b)). The lamina
thickness is minimum if both yarn systems have the
same undulation. The cover factor is not influenced by
the crimp ratio H, because this geometric parameter
was defined as the projected yarn area to unit cell area
ratio. Therefore, its value is only a function of yarn
spacings p and yarn widths w. Figure 14 shows the
maximum yarn orientation of warp and weft yarns for
different crimp ratios H as a function of yarn spacing
p. By definition, the filling yarns show no undulation
and the warp yarns a maximum undulation if H equals
-1. By lowering the yarn spacing p, this maximum
undulation will increase significantly until 12 is
reached. If H = 0, both yarn systems have the same
maximum yarn orientation. For the case of yarn
spacings close to the geometric limit of the woven
construction, small variations in yarn spacing result in
large variations in yarn orientation. Generally, the
predicted geometric and elastic constants are very
sensitive to the yarn spacing in the vicinity of the
geometric limit of the fabric.14 Finally, Fig. 15 shows
the allowable microstructural states of the fabric as a
function of the yarn aspect ratio f and the crimp ratio
H. That is, for different conditions of the yarn aspect
ratio f and the crimp ratio H, the yarn spacings in
 30 analysis of fabric composites: I 1313

100
g 90 1Fibre nackina in yarn
80
B -m- IHI=l
T, 70
-u- IHW.75
8 60
50 + IHW.5
g 40 + IHI=O.25
2 30 + IHI=O
c 20
2 10
0
0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 4
0 a
Yarn spacing (mm)

0.25

1- 0.2 + IHI=l
n -n- IHI=0.75
B 0.15
+ IHl=O.5
4 + IHW.25
3 0.1
+ lHI=O
3
# 0.05
1 IHI=l 1 s
3
0
(b) 0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 4
Yarn spacing p (mm)
Fig. l3. Process windows (f = 10): (a) fibre volume fraction and (b) lamina thickness as a function of yarn spacing p.

warp and weft direction are decreased until the
geometric limit is reached. This plot shows a very
different behaviour for low and high yarn aspect
ratios, with a transition zone between fequals 1 and 5.
This kind of parametric study shows the need for a
refined modelling of the yarn architecture and the
yarn crimp to study the effects of fabric parameters on
overall mechanical properties, through the fibre
volume fraction and the yarn orientation, and also on
textile properties, through the cover factor and the
fabric thickness. The geometric limit of the woven
fabric is strongly dependent on the microstructural
parameters.
8 CONCLUSIONS
In this paper, a model describing the geometry of a
woven composite with arbitrary weaving architecture
was presented. After carrying out an extensive
geometric analysis, a library of macro-cells has been
put together to describe complex material unit cells.
This partitioning of the unit cell in macro-cells is
called the macro-partition. The main complexity arises
from the fact that the weave considered can contain
different types of warp and weft yarns. Next, each
macro-cell itself is automatically partitioned in four or
50 micro-cells: the 1D or 2D micro-partition,
respectively. The most important output of the model
is the fibre volume fraction, the orientation of the yarn
and the fractional volume of each micro-cell.
Moreover, the geometric model as such is most useful
in determining some textile properties as cover factor
and fabric thickness, but also in determining the
allowable microstructural states of fabrics. The above
geometric concept and mathematical analysis was
implemented in a user-friendly custom application for
Microsoft Excel*, called TEXCOMP. The software
can treat self-designed fabric weave styles. It is easy to
change existing formulations, to include additional
aspects, or to exchange data.
Certainly, geometric descriptions are never true
representations of reality. They are based on
simplifying assumptions. A closer look at a fabric or
fabric composite will show that our assumptions
concerning the fabric geometry are not completely
true. For example, the yarns do not follow totally
straight yarn paths in the warp and weft directions, the
yarns do not have a perfect lenticular shape, and voids
are always present in the composite. Also, pure
1314 Ph. Vandeurzen et al.

a-Hz-1

-o- H=-0.75
+ H=-0.5
- H=-0.25
-O-H=0
+H=l

0
0 3.5 4
(a > 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3

Yarn spacing p (mm)

14

+-Hz-l
-o- H=-0.75
-t H=-0.5
+ H=-0.25
- H=O
-o-H=1

0
0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 4
09
Yarn spacing p (mm)
Fig. 14. Process windows (f = 10): ( a ) maximum warp yarn orientation and (b) maximum weft yarn orientation as a function of
yarn spacing p.

geometry is not sufficient for the design of of the composite on the other hand. We shall
woven-fabric composites. A link should be established demonstrate that the geometric assumptions made are
between the weave geometry and material properties very useful for the translation of geometry into elastic
on one hand, and the resulting mechanical properties properties of the fabric composite in the second part

1.6

B 0.8
ii 0.6

0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 1.2 1.4 1.6

pm (mm)
Fig. 15. Process window: allowable microstructural fabric states as a function of yarn aspect ratio f and crimp ratio H.
 30 analysis of fabric composites: I 1315

of this paper, where an analytical model with the 5. Naik, N. K. & Ganesh, V. K., An analytical method for
plain weave fabric composites. Composites, 264 (1995)
potential to predict correct shear moduli for
281-289.
woven-fabric composites will be established. 6. Hahn, H. T. & Pandy, R., A micromechanics model for
Moreover, we shall indicate how the presented thermoeiastic properties of plain weave fabric compos-
geometric concept can serve as a solid basis for the ites. J. Engng Mater. Technol., 116 (1994) 517-523.
stress analysis problem. 7. Vandeurzen, Ph., Geometrische en elastische modellering
van drie-dimensionale weefsel-sandwichcomposieten.
Master thesis, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belguim,
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 1993.
8. Peirce, F. T., Geometry of cloth structure. J. Text. Inst.,
This paper presents research results of the Belgian
28 (1937) T45-96.
programme on Interuniversity Poles of Attraction, 9. Peirce, F. T., Geometrical principles applicable to the
funded by the Belgian state, Prime Ministers Office, design of functional fabrics. Text. Res. J., 173 (1947)
Science Policy Programming. The scientific respon- 123-147.
sibility is assumed by its authors. Ph. V. and J. I. are 10. Olofsson, B., A general model of a fabric as a geometric
mechanical structure. J. Text. Inst., 5511 (1964) T541.
financed through grants of the Flemish Institute for
11. Hoffmann, R. M., Some theoretical aspects of yarn and
the Promotion of the Scientific-Technological Re- fabric density. Text. Res. J., (1952) 170-178.
search in Industry (IWT). 12. Ivens, J., Vandeurzen, Ph., Van Vuure, A. W.,
Verpoest, I., Ko, F. K. & Meerding, K., Modeling of the
skin properties of 3D fabric sandwich composites In
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