Damping analysis of unidirectional glass fiber composites with interleaved viscoelastic layers: Experimental investigation and discussion

The article investigates the damping of unidirectional glass fiber composites with a single or two interleaved viscoelastic layers. The experimental damping characteristics are derived from flexural vibrations of cantilever beams as a function of the fiber orientation. The experimental results are analyzed considering the modeling developed in a previous article, Berthelot, J.-M. Damping Analysis of Orthotropic Composites with Interleaved Viscoelastic Layers Modelling, Journal of Composite Materials (in press). The analysis considers the variations of Young's modulus and damping of viscoelastic layers with the frequency. Finally, the article presents the effects of Young's modulus and the damping of a viscoelastic layer interleaved in the middle plane of unidirectional laminate. The results are also reported for the case of external viscoelastic layers.