Predicting the Stress-Strain Behavior of Woven Fabrics Using the Finite Element Method

Abstract

This work is a theoretical study of the mechanical behavior of two different weave types: plain and twill. Traditional methods permit the study of plain weaves but prove quite difficult for twill weaves. Indeed, the difficulties related to modeling the mechanical behavior of the twill weave are due to its very complex geometry and its nonsymmetry, which require the application of the finite element method. This method requires first a mathematical formulation of the problem and then a mesh of the basic cells of the plain and twill fabrics. The next step is to simulate shearing and tensile tests. Analyzing the results has proved to be very hard and thus demands a study of the stress field of the basic cell.