Acta mater. Vol. 46, No. 9, pp.

3003±3013, 1998
# 1998 Acta Metallurgica Inc.
Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved
Printed in Great Britain
PII: S1359-6454(98)00021-4 1359-6454/98 $19.00 + 0.00

A POLY-INCLUSION APPROACH FOR THE ELASTIC

MODELLING OF KNITTED FABRIC COMPOSITES
G. HUYSMANS, I. VERPOEST and P. VAN HOUTTE
Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Department of Metallurgy and Materials Engineering, de Croylaan 2,
B-3001 Leuven, Belgium

(Received 14 July 1997; accepted 28 December 1997)

AbstractÐMean ®eld Eshelby based models are proposed for the prediction of the overall properties and
the internal stress/strain distribution of knitted fabric composites. The use of a mean ®eld is justi®ed by
the partial random character of the textile geometry in multi-layered applications. The position dependent
deformation state in the curved yarns is piecewise approximated using the concept of e€ective ellipsoids
replacing each yarn segment, taking into account the local yarn curvature. Conventional averaging
methods are applied to the reduced, poly-inclusion composite with non-trivial orientation distribution to
predict the internal ®eld variables inside the original yarns. The Mori±Tanaka model and a ®rst order self
consistent method are compared and their potential and limitations are brie¯y discussed. Predicted tensile
and shear moduli agree well with experimental data for both mean ®eld methods, although the internal
stress distribution for both methods is signi®cantly di€erent. # 1998 Acta Metallurgica Inc.

1. INTRODUCTION rics in composite materials on the one hand, and by

Textile composites are a growing class of new ma-
terials for structural applications. More speci®cally,
knitted fabric composites open new possibilities in
composite manufacturing due to their excellent
drapability and conformability. Currently, knitted
fabric composites can be produced using a wide
variety of production techniques and yarn ma-
terials. The mechanical properties of both the textile
and the composite can be tailored by a proper
choice of the knitting parameters [1±3].
Consequently, an almost unlimited variety of prop-
erties can be achieved, ranging from very anisotro-
pic to almost isotropic. However, a rational choice
of production parameters requires a thorough
understanding of the e€ect of the textile architec-
ture on composite properties. Empirical trial and
error methods obviously become prohibitive
because of this versatility.
The need thus arises for predictive mechanical
models linking the composite properties to the
micro-structure de®ned by the textile, and to the
constituent properties. The yarn architecture of a
textile, constituting the micro-structure of the textile
composite, is characterized by four important par-
ameters: total yarn volume fraction, yarn aspect
ratio, yarn orientations, and the rate of change of
yarn orientations. The latter parameter is measured
by the local yarn undulations or curvatures.
Currently, there are no models for knitted fabric
composites available in literature, taking into
account all these micro-structural aspects. This can
be explained by the rather recent use of knitted fab-
3003
the extremely complex ®bre arrangements that are
possible in knitted fabrics. Most models are limited
to simple knit structures, and are based on bound-
ing methods revealing no insight into the internal
stress and strain distributions.
The Krenchel model [4] uses only the ®bre
volume fraction and orientation distribution to pre-
dict the tensile modulus. Upper and lower Voigt
and Reuss bounds for all elastic moduli can be
obtained by using iso-strain or iso-stress trial ®elds
for the di€erent yarn segments, respectively [5].
However, it is not clear a priori which of the two
bounds is mostly justi®ed for each speci®c case, and
the bounds are sometimes to far apart to be useful.
An improvement of the bounding models should
include more micro-structural features like yarn cur-
vature and yarn aspect ratio.
Such models are currently based upon numerical
approximation techniques. Hamada [6] presented a
®nite element model of a plain weft knitted fabric
composite. In his model, the composite was treated
as an assembly of yarn and resin beam elements.
The prediction of the Young's modulus was good,
but shear properties were not treated. Also strength
calculations were less successful. Furthermore, it is
not trivial to extend the model to more complex
knit structures. Recently, a generalized FEM-model
has been developed for complex knitted fabric com-
posites using the binary approach originally devel-
oped by Cox [7, 8], in which the composite is
decomposed into linear truss elements surrounded
by three-dimensional volume elements. In-plane
3004 HUYSMANS et al.: KNITTED FABRIC COMPOSITES

elastic properties were predicted with high accuracy, as an ecient design tool for the optimization of
except for the shear modulus which is largely under- knitted fabric composites. Furthermore, the general
estimated. Moreover, these models require large concept of the model allows it to be used for other
computation time and are less practical for strength textile composites, multi-phase materials and hybrid
analysis. composites, such as complexes of knitted fabrics
There is thus a strong need for faster and more and chopped strand mats. Finally, much of the con-
ecient micro-mechanical models including more cepts used are available from the micromechanics
micro-structural aspects besides yarn volume frac- of metals. Research within this ®eld can be trans-
tion and orientation distributions, in order to ferred to a new area of complex materials.
model the behavior of knitted fabric composites
with higher accuracy. Such models can be helpful in
2. BASIC EIGENSTRAIN SOLUTION
the design of knitted fabric composites and more
speci®cally in sensitivity and optimization studies. 2.1. Description of the knitted fabric model
In the ®eld of solid mechanics, a class of models
A knitted fabric is formed by the repetitive inter-
exists based upon Eshelby's concepts, from which
looping of one or several parallel yarns (or rovings),
several practical averaging schemes are derived for
Fig. 1. The characteristic ®ber orientation distri-
di€erent types of materials. The Mori±Tanaka
bution of the fabric can be obtained by considering
method has been applied successfully in the micro-
a representative volume element (RVE) of the com-
mechanical modelling of sheet molded compounds
posite. However, one of the key properties of
(SMC), particle reinforced composites, and uni-
knitted fabrics is their high deformability resulting
directional (UD) and random ®bre reinforced
from the curved yarn geometry. Therefore, some
composites [9±11]. For these materials, either the
extent of disorder will be induced during the drap-
aspect ratios of the inclusions or their orientation
ing process and during the subsequent composite
can be considered as constant. In the ®eld of poly-
manufacturing by the combination of viscous resin
crystalline materials, where the crystals constitute
¯ow and applied pressure. If a composite is pro-
the di€erent inclusions and where the embedding
duced by stacking two or more fabric layers, the
matrix is absent, one relies on several types of self-
relative phase shift between subsequent layers in the
consistent averaging schemes. Although the crystals
plane of the composite will vary within the position
can have di€erent aspect ratios, one mostly de®nes
in the plane. Additionally, a strong intermingling of
with good approximation an average aspect ratio.
the di€erent layers takes place in the through-the-
Common to the aforementioned applications is the
thickness direction, which explains the high interla-
approximation of the inclusions by generalized ellip-
minar fracture toughness observed for knitted fabric
soids, for which the dilute Eshelby solution is
composites [13].
known either analytically or numerically. In textile
Consider therefore two di€erent yarn segments
composites, the yarns are curved and the derivation
lying on similar, but not necessarily the same loops
of the Eshelby solution becomes mathematically
(Fig. 2(a)). The loops can be part of the same layer
very complex. To overcome this problem, the stress
or belong to di€erent, stacked layers. Denote the
state in the di€erent yarn segments is simulated by
position vectors of the two segments as x and x'.
the stress state in equivalent ellipsoids, with an
Then, if a suciently large number of RYEs are
aspect ratio which is a function of the local yarn
considered, the relative position x ÿ x' can be trea-
curvature. This way, the model takes into account
ted as a random variable. The segment spacing
both the orientation distribution and the curvatures vx ÿ x'v together with the relative orientation of
of the textile. Con®gurational averaging is now car-
both segments will a€ect the interaction between
ried out over orientations and curvatures simul-
taneously.
The model was applied to several types of warp
knitted fabric E-glass/epoxy composites. Predicted
sti€ness properties agreed well with experimental
data, also for shear. The theory has some draw-
backs related to the anisotropic nature of knitted
fabric composites. It has been demonstrated that
the Mori±Tanaka method applied to textured com-
posites with anisotropic and non-spherical in-
clusions can lead to a diagonally asymmetric
sti€ness tensor [12]. It will be shown that this
phenomenon is related to the averaging procedure
itself and is also observed for the self-consistent
method. Fig. 1. Examples of knitted fabrics: (a) plain weft knit, (b)
The power of the present model comes from the (warp) locknit structure. The black boxes indicate the fab-
rather small computational e€ort, so it can be used ric RVE.
 HUYSMANS et al.: KNITTED FABRIC COMPOSITES
Fig. 2. Geometry of knitted fabric composites (a) semi-
random phase shift between similar loops (b) inclusion
model of a knitted fabric composite.
both segments. Small deformations of the fabric
during lay-up and subsequent processing can ad-
ditionally cause the yarn orientations to deviate
from their original, relaxed values. For low fabric
deformations, the change in yarn orientation can
however be treated as a second order e€ect. The
textile geometry is therefore subdivided into a deter-
ministic and a random component. The yarn struc-
ture, comprising orientations and curvatures, is
assumed to be known and ®xed during composite
manufacturing. The relative positions of the yarns
on the other hand vary in a random way as
described above.
In the following, we will consider the model com-
posite of Fig. 2(b) containing M heterogeneities O r
(r = 1, M) with sti€ness C rijkl, embedded in an in®-
nite isotropic matrix with sti€ness C m
ijkl. The volume
fraction of each heterogeneity is denoted by f r.
Each heterogeneity is characterized by its orien-
tation and shape only. The heterogeneities can rep-
resent yarn segments as well as voids, straight ®bers
or other particles. The composite is loaded with a
far ®eld strain e0.
2.2. Fundamental eigenstrain solution
Due to the presence of the heterogeneities, the
homogeneous strain ®eld will be perturbed by an
amount e(x) at any point x. Following the general
inclusion theory [14], each heterogeneity O r is now
replaced by an equivalent inclusion with the same
properties as the matrix, but with a ®ctitious, pos-
ition dependent eigenstrain distribution e*(x). The
eigenstrain is de®ned by the equivalent inclusion
principle, expressing that the ®nal deformation and
stress state in both the heterogeneity and the in-
clusion should be the same:
C rijkl ‰e0kl ‡ ekl …x†Š ˆ C m 0
ijkl ‰ekl ‡ ekl …x† ÿ ekl *…x†Š …1†
The perturbation strain can be related to the eigen-
strain distribution by expressing all ®eld quantities
into a Fourier series and putting them into the equi-
librium equations. As the eigenstrains vanish out-
side the inclusions, this results in the integral
3005
equation:
M …
X
eij …x† ˆ Pijkl …x ÿ x 0 †ekl *…x 0 † dx 0 …Or †, …2†
r
rˆ1 O
where the tensor Pijkl is de®ned by:
…1
Pijkl …x ÿ x 0 † ˆ 12 …2p†ÿ3 Cm ~
pqkl xq fxi Gjp …x†
ÿ1
‡ xj G~ ip …x†gexpfix
…x ÿ x 0 †g dx …3†
and the Fourier components of the displacement
Green function of elasticity are the solution of:
Cijkl xj xl G~ kp …x† ˆ dip …4†
with dip the Kronecker symbol. The tensor Pijkl thus
explicitly takes into account the interaction of all
the inclusions. Equation (2) is exact and applies to
any arbitrary inclusion shapes and eigenstrain dis-
tributions. Computationally however, direct evalu-
ation of equation (2) is not straightforward and
only a limited number of solutions are available
nowadays. By subdividing every inclusion into a
number of smaller subregions or segments
(Fig. 2(b)), both the perturbation strain and the
eigenstrain can be approximated by their average
values. In this case, the eigenstrain can be brought
outside the integral in equation (2) and integration
over Or leads to the generalized averaged Eshelby
tensor relating the average perturbation strain er in
inclusion Or to the presence of an average eigen-
strain e*s in Os:
… …
1
S rs
ijkl ˆ r Pijkl …x ÿ x 0 † dx 0 …Os † dx…Or † …5†
O Or Os
If it would be possible to evaluate equation (5) for
every inclusion pair, the solution of the composite
from Fig. 2(b) requires the determination of the
2M + 1 unknowns er, e*r (r = 1, M) and the aver-
age perturbation strain in the matrix em for a given
far ®eld strain e0 from the following set of 2M + 1
equations:
Cr …e0 ‡ er † ˆCm …e0 ‡ er ÿ e*r † …r ˆ 1, M †
X
s6ˆr
er ˆSrr e*r ‡ Srs e*s …r ˆ 1, M †
sˆ1,M
X
m
…1 ÿ f †em ‡ f r er ˆ 0 …6†
rˆ1,M
Eshelby [15] solved the problem of equation (6) for
the case of a single (M = 1) ellipsoidal inclusion in
an in®nite matrix. In this case, the summation in
the second part of equation (6) can be omitted, and
only the tensor Srr needs to be evaluated. Eshelby
showed that for the dilute ellipsoid the perturbation
strain inside the ellipsoid for a constant eigenstrain
or an eigenstrain which is a polynomial of the coor-
dinates is also a constant eigenstrain or a function
3006 HUYSMANS et al.: KNITTED FABRIC COMPOSITES
of the coordinates. Hence, the Eshelby tensor can
be directly evaluated from equation (2) [14, 16].
Nemat-Nasser considers periodic composites [17]
with a regular distribution of spherical voids [18].
In this case, the integration in the Fourier space of
equation (3) reduces to an in®nite summation.
In [19], this series has been treated for an orthor-
hombic distribution of cuboidal inclusions. Other
worked out solutions for the Eshelby tensor can be
found in [20] for general polygon shaped inclusions.
3. MEAN FIELD APPROXIMATION
For composite applications, the general method
described above would necessitate the evaluation of
the tensors Srs. These are through equation (5) a
function of the inclusion spacing vx ÿ x'v, which is
in many composite applications not clearly de®ned.
A periodic distribution can be a good approxi-
mation of a partially random distribution like in
Fig. 2(b) [19]. Nevertheless, to avoid the evaluation
of the interaction tensors Srs for r$ s, mean ®eld
schemes were developed where the interaction term
is accounted for in a global sense. The mean ®eld
models reduce equation (6) to the solution of M
auxiliary single inclusion models derived from
equation (6) with suitable boundary conditions.
Moreover, since a lot of inclusion shapes can be ap-
proximated by ellipsoids, one can make use of the
attractive solution by Eshelby for the evaluation of
Srr. Two basic schemes which are widely used for
the modelling of short ®bre and particle reinforced
composites are the Mori±Tanaka method and the
self-consistent method. Each method has some
speci®c assumptions and thus restrictions related to
the inter-inclusion interaction and the way it is dis-
tributed amongst the di€erent inclusions. Both
methods are reviewed here brie¯y with an indication
of their advantages and possible shortcomings.
To start with, let us assume that for each in-
clusion Or a tensor Ar can be found relating the
average strain e0+er in the inclusion to the average
composite strain ec. Then the composite sti€ness
tensor can be expressed in function of the matrix
and the inclusion properties as [21]:
Cc ˆ Cm ‡ f h…Cr ÿ Cm †Ar i, …7†
where the brackets h.i stand for the ensemble aver-
age over the whole set of inclusions. The strain con-
centration tensor Ar depends upon the matrix and
inclusion properties, and upon the shape of the in-
clusion. In the following, the derivation of the
strain concentration tensor will be reviewed for
both the Mori±Tanaka method and the self-consist-
ent method.
3.1. Mori±Tanaka speci®cation
The Mori±Tanaka method replaces the sum-
mation in the second part of equation (6) by a
single unknown interaction term, the image strain
eim, which is superimposed on the far ®eld strain in
the M subproblems. The constant (average) stress
®eld inside each inclusion is expressed using the
equivalent inclusion principle [9] applied to the sub-
problem:
sr ˆCr :…e0 ‡ eim ‡ Srr e*r † ˆ Cm :…e0 ‡ eim
‡ …Srr ÿ I†e*r † …8†
In the single inclusion subproblem, the far ®eld
thus re¯ects the average matrix strain surrounding
the inclusion [10]:
hem i ˆ e0 ‡ heim i ˆ e0 ‡ eim …9†
Hence, equation (8) states that each inclusion feels
its neighboring inclusions indirectly through the
total strain in the matrix. In view of this hypothesis,
it is physically not meaningful to apply this model
for composites with an inclusion volume fraction
approaching unity, as this involves immediate con-
tact between several inclusions. This topic will
further be addressed in Section 5.
The key assumption in the solution of the Mori±
Tanaka model concerns the way in which the image
strain is sampled by the di€erent inclusions. It is
common practice, although not always explicitly
stated, that the image strain is homogeneously dis-
tributed amongst the di€erent inclusions, which is
immediately clear from the way the image strain is
introduced above. This is the most straightforward
choice for the further solution of the model. While
this might be acceptable for aligned or randomly
oriented inclusions and for spherical particles, it is
an approximation for general anisotropic inclusions
with non-trivial orientation distribution. In the lat-
ter case, the environment seen from every inclusion
will necessarily be di€erent, which directly follows
from the summation term in the second part of
equation (6). Therefore, this approximation might
be the source of some physical inconsistencies of
the Mori±Tanaka model reported by several
authors [11, 12].
A dilute strain concentration tensor relating the
inclusion strain to the far ®eld strain can be com-
puted from the righthand side of equation (8) as:
m ÿ1
Adil rr r m ÿ1
m ˆ ‰I ‡ S …C † …C ÿ C †Š , …10†
rr
where S is the Eshelby tensor for the inclusion in
an isotropic medium, relating the perturbation
strain to the inclusion eigenstrain for the
unbounded problem. The Eshelby tensor for this
particular case depends only upon the matrix prop-
erties and the inclusion shape. If the inclusion is
ellipsoidal and the matrix isotropic, the Eshelby ten-
sor can be evaluated very eciently [14, 16].
From the global equilibrium and compatibility
equations, the strain concentration tensor for the
Mori±Tanaka assumptions can be derived as:
 HUYSMANS et al.: KNITTED FABRIC COMPOSITES
ArMT ˆ Adil dil ÿ1
m ‰…1 ÿ f †I ‡ f hAm iŠ : …
The main advantages of the Mori±Tanaka are
that an explicit formula of the composite sti€ness is
obtained, and that the Eshelby tensor in
equation (10) can be evaluated eciently for ellip-
soids in an isotropic medium. Therefore, this
method received widespread attention and was used
with success to model the elastic behavior of short
®bre composites, metal matrix composites (MMC),
particle reinforced composites.
Some speci®c drawbacks of the method are re-
lated to the fact that for some composites (non iso-
tropic inclusions with non-trivial orientations), the
composite sti€ness is diagonally asymmetric and
that theoretical bounds on the moduli might be vio-
lated. Some authors therefore proposed to modify
equation (11) by replacing the volume averaged
strain concentration tensor with a concentration
tensor for aligned ®bers (equation (10)), to meet the
physical requirements of the composite tensor [12].
This was done merely on a mathematical basis,
while the basic source of this inconsistency is situ-
ated in the physical simpli®cation of the model as
discussed above. While their modi®ed model yields
indeed a mathematical improvement for two-phase
composites, it is not straightforward to extend this
approach to multi-phase composites. The presence
of the yarn curvatures inherently necessitates the
use of a multi-phase composite model.
3.2. Self-consistent speci®cation
At large inclusion volume fractions the average
distance between the inclusions decreases, and it
becomes more appropriate to state that every in-
clusion feels the interaction of the other inclusions
directly through the composite as a whole. One can
imagine the inclusion now as embedded in a com-
posite with yet unspeci®ed properties. The latter is
the most basic form of a self-consistent model [22].
More re®ned higher order versions can be found in
literature [23], but they will not be addressed here.
Every inclusion is treated individually where the
e€ect of the matrix and the other inclusions are
smeared out in Fig. 2(b) by replacing the matrix
properties Cm c
ijkl with the composite properties Cijkl.
The equivalent inclusion principle of equation (1)
can now be expressed for the subproblem in terms
of the reference composite sti€ness as:
sr ˆ Cr :…e0 ‡ Srr e*r † ˆ Cc :…e0 ‡ …Srr ÿ I†e*r †, …12†
where the far ®eld strain e0 equals the composite
strain ec. Implicitly, it is assumed in equation (12)
that the interaction is again equally distributed
amongst the di€erent inclusions comparable to the
Mori±Tanaka approach. Therefore, the same incon-
sistencies will presumably be encountered for aniso-
tropic inclusions with nontrivial orientation
3007
distribution. At least a double inclusion model [23]
11†
would be required to solve this shortcoming.
The strain concentration tensor for non-dilute in-
clusion volume fraction can now be written as:
ArSC ˆ Adil rr c ÿ1 r c ÿ1
c ˆ ‰I ‡ S …C † …C ÿ C †Š : …13†
The complexity of the self-consistent method arises
®rstly from the fact that only an implicit expression
of the composite sti€ness is obtained by putting
equation (13) into equation (7). Because for textile
composites a large number of geometrically di€er-
ent inclusions has to be considered, to accurately
describe the yarn structure, the computationally
e€ort is increased compared to the Mori±Tanaka
method.
A second complication in the application of the
self-consistent method is related to the evaluation
of the Eshelby tensor in equation (13). As opposed
to the Mori±Tanaka solution, the Eshelby tensor
will now be a function of the inclusion geometry
and the composite properties. In general, textile
composites show an anisotropic behavior and the
analytical formulas for the evaluation of the
Eshelby tensor for isotropic media can no longer be
used. Therefore, the Eshelby tensor has to be evalu-
ated numerically using quadrature methods [24].
3.3. Application to knitted fabric composites
In the discussion of the mean ®eld approxi-
mations, emphasis was put on inclusions with ellip-
soidal shape, for which the evaluation of the
Eshelby tensors Srr is well known. However, the
yarn segments in a knitted fabric composite have a
position dependent curvature, therefore requiring
the complex integrations of equation (3) to be car-
ried out for each segment. In the current approach,
a semi-empirical alternative was used in which the
attractiveness of the ellipsoidal shape was used to
reduce the original composite into an equivalent
composite containing only ellipsoidal inclusions.
Before this will be discussed, the geometrical
description of the yarns in the fabric will be out-
lined.
The yarn orientations and curvatures can be
described by the yarn centerlines within a single
RVE. In the present work, a Krige curve is used to
represent the yarn centerlines [25]. The parametric
representation of a point on the yarn axis is given
by:
X
N
p…t† ˆ a1 ‡ a2 t ‡ bi jt ÿ ti j3 , …14†
iˆ1
where the parameter t is the spline parameter,
which is taken as the normalized curve parameter
de®ned by:
8
< t1 ˆ 0:0
t ˆ tiÿ1 ‡ ckxi ÿ xi 0 k 1<i<N …15†
: i
tN ˆ 1:0
3008 HUYSMANS et al.: KNITTED FABRIC COMPOSITES

with c a normalizing constant, equal to the total

spline length.
The vectors ai and bi are determined by the con-
dition that the yarn must pass through the N key-
points. This reveals a ®rst set of N vector
equations:
p…ti † ˆ xi i ˆ 1, N: …16†
Two additional equations are obtained by imposing
that the curve must be as smooth as possible
(equation (17a)) or by the continuity of the ®rst
and second derivatives at begin and end points of
the curve (equation (17b)). Both conditions lead to
very small di€erences in the curve (Fig. 3), so only Fig. 4. De®nition of the equivalent ellipsoid replacing the
original curved yarn segments.
equation (17a) will be used further on.
XN XN
bi ˆ 0 and bi ti ˆ 0: …17a† Rr …x†
ar ˆ b , …18†
iˆ1 iˆ1 d r …x†

X
N XN where a is the equivalent aspect ratio, R the local
bi ‰…1 ÿ ti †2 ‡ t2i Š ˆ 0 and bi ‰ti ÿ j1 ÿ ti jŠ ˆ 0: yarn radius, and d the yarn diameter. The factor b
iˆ1 iˆ1 must be obtained by calibration of the model
…17b† against experimental data. To clarify equation (18),
consider a segment of a continuous straight yarn
Each yarn is subdivided into a suciently large
oriented parallel to the loading direction, Fig. 5(a).
number of small, straight segments. Next one imag-
The stress state over the cross section of this yarn
ines an equivalent ellipsoid replacing the original
yarn segment such that the (average) stress and will be constant and equal to the average stress in
strain states in both the original segment and the the whole yarn. If now a small curvature R is intro-
ellipsoid are the same (Fig. 4). Although the exact duced in the yarn (Fig. 5(b)), the average normal
relationship between the original segment and the stress component in the cross-section will decrease
replacing ellipsoid is unknown at this point, one and bending stresses will be introduced. The
can be guided by following considerations. decreased normal load in the yarn is compensated
For the case of a segment taken from an in®nite by an increased load transfer through the matrix.
straight yarn, the equivalent ellipsoid should have The average bending stress over the cross-section
an in®nite aspect ratio. A curved yarn will loose will be zero however, and will not contribute to the
some of its eciency Ð hence the aspect ratio of average cross-sectional stress state in the considered
the equivalent ellipsoid for a segment taken from segment. If the radius becomes very small
this yarn will decrease. Therefore it is clear that the (Fig. 5(c)), the nominal normal stress of a straight
equivalent aspect ratio will be a monotonic decreas- yarn cannot be built up and thus further decreases,
ing function of the local yarn curvature. The sup- while the bending stresses will become dominant. It
plest mathematical relationship between yarn is clear that the factor b in equation (18) is a€ected
curvature and equivalent aspect ratio is given by: by the load transfer mechanism from the matrix to
the yarn. Therefore, it is expected that b will be a
function of the relative sti€ness of yarn and matrix
properties. This was however not investigated yet.
The yarn curvature can be computed at every
point of the yarn axis using:

Fig. 3. Spline ®t through measured keypoints for the

knitted fabric BT/307 using equation (17a) (Type 1) and
equation (17b) (Type 2). The di€erence between both
types is not visible on the ®gure. Fig. 5. Yarn eciency as a function of yarn curvature.
 HUYSMANS et al.: KNITTED FABRIC COMPOSITES
r kp…t†
p0…t†k
R …x† ˆ …19†
kp 0 …t†k3
with p(t) the parametric expression of the yarn axis
of equation (14). The yarn diameter d (mm) is com-
puted from the yarn tex number y (g/km), the ®bre
density r (kg/m3) and the yarn packing factor Vp
following:
s
r 106 y
d ˆ2 : …20†
pVp r
For each segment, the yarn curvature is computed
using equation (19) and the yarn diameter using
equation (20). Next, the equivalent ellipsoid is
determined following equation (18). The volume
fraction of the ellipsoid is kept the same as the
volume fraction of the original segment in the com-
posite. Hence, the original knitted fabric composite
is replaced by an equivalent composite with the
same orientation distribution function, but with the
continuous curved yarns replaced by discrete ellip-
soids. Two further assumptions which will be
adopted in the remainder of this paper are related
to the shape of the yarn cross section:
(1) The yarns have a circular cross-section. From
cross-sections of knitted fabric composites, it was
observed that the aspect ratio of the yarn cross-sec-
tions varied between 1:1 (circular) to 1:5 (elliptical).
However, the orientation of the longest axis is not
constant but varies from point to point. As no geo-
metrical information of the yarn shape in function
of axial position is available, the assumption of a
circular cross-section is the most straightforward.
(2) Yarn twist is currently ignored. It is however
recognized that, even for rovings, some twist may
be induced during the knitting process as a result of
the changing curvature plane.
In view of assumptions (1) and (2), each segment
can be treated as transversely isotropic and geome-
trically characterized by only two angles yr and fr
(Fig. 6).
Fig. 6. Segment geometrical characteristics and co-ordinate
systems. yr de®nes the angle between the local segment
axis Zr and the global Z-axis ZG. fr is the angle between
the local (Yr, Zr)-plane and the global (XG, ZG)-plane.
3009
4. NUMERICAL RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The above theory was applied to six types of
two-dimensional glass/epoxy warp knitted fabric
composites. Geometrical and technical details of the
fabrics can be found elsewhere [8]. For each fabric
type, a number of characteristic keypoints was
measured using a stereo image of the dry textiles
(typically 20 keypoints). Next, each loop was
decomposed into typically 100 linear segments using
the spline representation of Section 3.3. Every seg-
ment Or is thus characterized by its orientation
angles (yr, fr), its total volume fraction f r, and the
local yarn curvature radius Rr (equation (19)).
The yarn properties were computed from the
matrix and ®bre properties using a uni-directional
Mori±Tanaka model for the yarn.
4.1. Determination of the empirical factor b
Figure 7 shows the typical dependency of the pre-
dicted in-plane elastic constants upon the parameter
b using the Mori±Tanaka approach. The models
were evaluated with the factor b in the range 0.1 to
and 1, and the properties were normalized to the
case b = 1. Note that the latter value assumes that
each segment behaves as if it were taken from a
continuous, straight yarn. The best correlation with
experimental data for the tensile moduli for all
investigated fabrics is obtained for b lying around
3. Therefore, in the rest of this paper b will be set
equal to p (=3.14). This leads to the physical in-
terpretation that each segment with local curvature
radius R is replaced by an equivalent straight ellip-
soid with a total length equal to one half of the cir-
cular arc with radius R. Figure 8 shows the
predicted moduli for b equal to p and b equal to 1
(uncorrected). In addition, the packing degree of
the yarns was varied into 60% and 78%. From
Fig. 8, it is clear that the uncorrected model leads
to an overestimation of the composite sti€ness, and
thus that the presence of the yarn curvature signi®-
cantly reduces the load carrying capability of the
Fig. 7. E€ect of the empirical factor b on the in-plane
moduli (E, G) and the Poisson ratio (PR) for the fabric
BSS/505. The values were normalized to the case b = 1.
3010 HUYSMANS et al.: KNITTED FABRIC COMPOSITES

Fig. 8. Mori±Tanaka Young's modulus predictions for

di€erent knitted fabric types with b = 1 and b = p, and
varying packing degree Vp in the yarns. The latter par-
ameter has no in¯uence for in®nite segments.

yarns. The packing degree has no in¯uence on the

macroscopic properties for the uncorrected model.
However, there is a slight dependency when the cur-
vature is taken into account. This follows immedi-
ately from the relationship of equation (18) between
aspect ratio and yarn diameter.
Physically, the obtained sti€ness matrices are not
perfectly symmetric, which is a well known draw-
back inherent to the Mori±Tanaka approach for
textured composites. The asymmetry increases with
the anisotropy of the composite. However, the error
associated with this inadmissibility is lower than the
experimental scatter on the elastic properties. Every
approximate method will yield some physical error
by de®nition, and it has to be justi®ed by experience
whether the error associated with the proposed
method is practically allowable.

4.2. Comparison with FE-results

Figures 9(a)±(c) show the comparison in wale
and course directions between the experimental and
predicted values for the moduli, the compliance
terms S12 and shear moduli, respectively. The pre-
dictions were based on the Mori±Tanaka approach
(with b = p), and on simulations using a binary
®nite element model [8]. Fig. 9. Comparison of predicted in-plane elastic properties
The Young's moduli are in excellent agreement between experimental data, Mori±Tanaka model and ®nite
element calculations. (a) Young's Modulus, (b) compliance
for both models. For the compliance terms S12, the S12, (c) shear modulus.
scatter around the experimental data is somewhat
larger for both models. This is for a great deal
explained by the large scatter on the experimental
data itself. The shear moduli (Fig. 9(c)) predictions
are largely improved with respect to the binary FE- posite is however considerable (>1.5 h on a
model, which always predicted very conservative SunSparc workstation), compared to the solution
shear moduli. time for the Mori±Tanaka model (01 s for 100 in-
Globally, the accuracy of the predictions using clusions on workstation). For this reason, the in-
Mori±Tanaka is improved compared to the numeri- clusion models probably have a large potential for
cal model. The model generation and solution time modelling the mechanical behavior of textile com-
for the binary FE-model of a complex knitted com- posites.
 HUYSMANS et al.: KNITTED FABRIC COMPOSITES
Fig. 10. Mori±Tanaka method compared to self-consistent
method for the Young's modulus predictions (both for
b = p).
4.3. Comparison with self-consistent solution
The accuracy of the Mori±Tanaka method in
general decreases at larger inclusion volume frac-
tions. Indeed, at large volume fraction the micro-
structure consists of closely packed inclusions with
small resin pockets in between. The basic hypothesis
of the Mori±Tanaka approach no longer holds and
the self-consistent method is more appropriate. For
the investigated knitted fabric composites the ®bre
volume fraction was in the range 35±42%.
However, the ®bers appear in the composite as im-
pregnated bundles with a more or less loose degree
of packing. Therefore, the yarn volume fraction
exceeds 60% for a yarn packing factor of 55±60%.
For this reason, the elastic properties were alter-
natively evaluated using the self-consistent method.
To limit the number of iterations, a good estimate
for the composite sti€ness tensor is required. From
experimental data, it is observed that the moduli
for many cases are lying close to the Voigt bounds.
Iso-strain models provide good estimates when no
®ber clusters in one or more directions are present.
As a ®rst trial therefore, the concentration matrix
in equation (13) can be set to the identity matrix,
thereby obtaining a Voigt model. Using the iso-
strain estimate as a starting value, the self-consist-
ent scheme requires in general less than 10 iter-
ations to reach convergence. The computation time
is increased compared to Mori±Tanaka (04 min for
100 inclusions), in particular because the Eshelby
tensor has to be evaluated numerically.
Figure 10 shows that the self-consistent predic-
tions for the E-moduli are slightly higher than the
Mori±Tanaka predictions. The same was observed
for the Poisson ratios and the shear moduli. As a
general conclusion, both approaches are competitive
with respect to the prediction of composite proper-
ties (Fig. 11).
3011
Fig. 11. Relative error of Mori±Tanaka (MT) and self-
consistent (SC) in-plane property predictions (average over
six knitted fabric types).
The close correlation between the Mori±Tanaka
and the self-consistent sti€ness predictions, allows
to speed up the self consistent procedure by using
the Mori±Tanaka estimate instead of the iso-strain
estimate as a ®rst trial. This will be useful when it
appears that the self-consistent approach is more
suitable for damage modelling than the Mori±
Tanaka approach.
As for the Mori±Tanaka approach, the self-con-
sistent method yields a slightly asymmetric sti€ness
matrix when applied to textured composites. This
indicates that the source of this error is most prob-
ably the assumption that every inclusion feels the
same environmental in¯uence, regardless of its
shape and orientation.
4.4. Internal stress distribution
The basic assumptions for the Mori±Tanaka
method and the self-consistent method are substan-
tially di€erent. Although the predicted macroscopic
behavior for both methods is comparable, this is
not the case for the internal stress distributions.
This is illustrated here on the knitted fabric compo-
site (BD/362), loaded in the 08-direction, which is
the course direction of the fabric. The internal seg-
ment stresses can be evaluated after elimination of
the segment eigenstrains from equations (8) and (9)
for the Mori±Tanaka method, and from
equation (12) for the self-consistent method.
Figure 12 shows the axial (local) segment stresses
szz as a function of the in-plane segment orientation
angle f. The segment stresses were evaluated using
both the Mori±Tanaka and the self-consistent
approach, and were normalized to the externally
applied load. The axial stress distribution reaches a
maximum for segments oriented near to the direc-
tion of the composite load (08 and 1808). The ¯uc-
tuations result from the yarn curvatures, and are
the most pronounced in the Mori±Tanaka method.
This can be explained by the larger sti€ness incom-
patibility between inclusions and their direct en-
vironment (in casu the matrix) for the Mori±
Tanaka model.
3012 HUYSMANS et al.: KNITTED FABRIC COMPOSITES

Fig. 12. Normalized axial element stresses (szz) for the knitted fabric composite BD/362 loaded in the
08-direction. Comparison of Mori±Tanaka and self-consistent results.

The transverse stress state in the inclusions,
shown in Fig. 13, is however substantially di€erent.
Maximum values are reached near the 908-direction,
for segments oriented perpendicular to the loading
direction. Figure 12 only shows the stress com-
ponent sxx, but is representative for the global
transverse segment behavior. For segments near
908, the estimated transverse stresses following the
self consistent model are almost three times higher
than predicted using the Mori±Tanaka model. For
the self consistent model, the direct environment of
each segment has the same elastic properties as the
composite. The transverse yarn properties for the
currently investigated composites have the same

Fig. 13. Normalized transverse segment stresses (sxx) for the knitted fabric composite BD/362 loaded in
the 08-direction. Comparison of Mori±Tanaka and selfconsistent predictions.
 HUYSMANS et al.: KNITTED FABRIC COMPOSITES
order of magnitude as the composite properties.
For segments perpendicular to the external load an
iso-stress state is therefore approximated, in which
the transverse stresses are almost equal to the
applied stress. This observation is not applicable to
Fig. 11, as the axial yarn properties are much
higher than the composite properties, so that seg-
ments aligned with the external stress carry a much
higher load.
At this point it is dicult to evaluate the appro-
priateness of both approaches. This is currently
under investigation by further damage modelling.
Probably the selfconsistent model is best suited for
strongly clustered fabrics, while Mori±Tanaka is a
suitable alternative for moderate volume fractions,
where each segment is surrounded by a suciently
large resin region.
5. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS
An analytically based model was proposed for
modelling the mechanical behavior of knitted fabric
composites. The model takes into account ®bre
volume fraction, yarn orientation, and yarn curva-
ture. These micromechanical features are completely
contained within a spline representation of the
di€erent yarns in the fabric. They are used to derive
an equivalent composite with ellipsoidal inclusions
characterized by the same ®bre volume fractions
and orientation distribution as the original compo-
site. The aspect ratio of the equivalent inclusions is
based upon the local curvatures of the related yarn
segments. The approach can equally be applied to
any solid (two-dimensional or three-dimensional)
textile composite.
The elastic properties of the original composite
were derived by solving the equivalent composite
using a mean ®eld approach based on the equival-
ent inclusion theory. Both the Mori±Tanaka and
the self-consistent averaging schemes were investi-
gated. They yield the same accuracy for the predic-
tion of the overall composite properties. Because of
the textured nature of textile composites, the com-
posite sti€ness matrix is slightly asymmetric, which
can be inherently related to the mean ®eld assump-
tion.
Nevertheless, the present theory opens new per-
spectives for modelling of textile composites. The
essential concepts are available from the microme-
chanics of short ®bre composites and metals.
Therefore, models developed for these materials can
3013
be extended to include a range of technically im-
portant new composite materials.
AcknowledgementsÐThe authors gratefully acknowledge
the Flemish government for their support of this research
in the IWT-project ``The Use and the Optimization of
Knitted Fabrics in Composite Structures''. This paper pre-
sents research results of the Belgian program on
Interuniversity Poles of Attraction initiated by the Belgian
State, Prime Minister's Oce, Science Policy
Programming.
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