Article

2022, Vol. 51(4S) 6 484­S–6502S

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of crimping behaviour DOI: 10.1177/15280837211036215
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of triaxial braided
structures

Jerry Ochola1 , Benny Malengier2

and Lieva Van Langenhove2

Abstract
The mechanical properties of tubular braided structures influence their inherent per-
formance during application as biomedical materials. In their use as stents, braided
structures are forced to conform to the topology of the host tissues. Triaxial braided
structures have had limited use in tissue repair and organ support even though they
have the potential of offering equal if not better performance compared to bi-axial
braided structures. A study of the mechanical dynamics of tri-axial braids would be
crucial in the potential design of customised structures for advanced tissue repair and
organ support. This study therefore uses Finite Element Methods (FEM) to design and
develop triaxial braided structures and investigate their crimping behaviour using para-
metric modeling and numerical analysis in their potential application as biomedical
materials. The results in this study portrayed that the presence of axial yarns in tubular
braided structure offers improved performance in terms of stability of the structure.

Keywords
Finite element method, stent, triaxial, yarn, braided structures

1
Department of Manufacturing, School of Engineering, Industrial and Textile Engineering, Moi University,
Eldoret, Kenya
2
Department of Materials, Faculty of Engineering and Architecture, Textiles and Chemical Engineering,
Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
Corresponding author:
Jerry Ochola, Moi University, P.O. Box 3900, Eldoret, 30100, Kenya.
Email: jerry.ochola@mu.ac.ke
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Introduction
Biaxial braided structures are formed from two sets of yarns interlacing in the
clockwise and anticlockwise directions, while triaxial braided structures contain an
axial yarn alongside the clockwise and anticlockwise sets of yarns. A 2 D triaxial
braid therefore has three sets of yarns, one with þho in-plane orientation angle,
one with �ho in-plane orientation angle, and one set of axial yarns (longitudinal)
�
with orientation angle of 0 [1].
The application of narrow tubular braided structures relies on their mechanical
characteristics; most notably compression under loading in the radial direction
[2,3]. It has been established that polymer braided stents would provide good
radial strength and limited bending stiffness [4]. In essence the ease of radial defor-
mation of braided structures has been attributed to their conformity with
vessel walls [5].
This has necessitated an investigation of the radial deformation behaviour of
these structures using finite element analysis [6–10]. These studies mainly focused
on optimizing the structures [11–13] for customized bio-mechanical applications
[14]. It has further been illustrated that polymeric braided structures are capable of
elastic recovery after radial compression, which makes them adaptable for cardio-
vascular applications.
Studies have established that the design of braided structures influences their
mechanical behaviour [4,14] and overall performance during application, both in
the form of the mechanical design [15–17] or topology of the braided yarns [18].
In recent times research on triaxial braided structures have mainly focused on
their applications as components of energy harvesters [19], sensory devices [20],
and in composites [21].
These studies portray that mechanical modeling of biaxial braided structures
has been done in regard to their applications as stent structures, however inves-
tigations on the mechanical parameters of triaxial braided fabrics have not been
conclusively done especially in their use as stents. It has been established that axial
yarns cause stiffening effect on the effective stress-strain response [22], of triaxial
braided structures which might be vital in their applications as stents. In this
regard this paper aims is to investigate the significance of axial yarns in triaxial
braided structure with regard to their use as stents. In this regard, this study uses
numerical methods and Finite Element Analysis (FEA) approaches, to design and
develop biaxial and triaxial braided structures by applying parametric modeling to
investigate the crimping behaviour of braided structures under radial compression
for potential application as biomedical materials.

Materials and methods

We created 3 D models of tubular braided structures in both biaxial (Figure 1) and
triaxial forms (Figure 2) using a python programming script. These models were
generated at yarn level using parametric modeling and finite element approaches.
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This study used biaxial braided structure control models in the analysis of the
crimping behaviour of triaxially fabricated braided structures. This was accom-
plished by generating 3 D braided structure models using a python programming
script; then analysing the crimping mechanism of the 3 D models in terms of axial
deformation and radial compression to mimic realistic performance during cardio-
vascular applications; by applying a displacement boundary condition of 50% of
the initial braid diameter. Numerical and analytical algorithms were used to val-
idate the FEM models.

Contact modeling
The modelling approach for the inter-yarn and yarn-to-surface contact was imple-
mented using the Abaqus/Explicit general contact interaction algorithm. In this
approach interactions were defined between selected surfaces: the circumferential
surface of the yarns and the inner surface of the crimper cylinder. This was applied
alongside a penalty method friction formulation with friction coefficients of 0.2
[23]. The contact between the yarns at the intersection points is modelled in
Abaqus/Explicit using CONN3D2 elements with a translation connection called
JOIN, which joins the position of the two opposing nodes at the yarns intersection.
This connection makes the position of node b equal to that of node a. If the two
nodes are not coincident initially, the cartesian coordinates of node b relative to
node a are fixed (Figure 3). The constraint force in the JOIN connection acts in the
three local directions at node a and b is defined by equation 1, [24].

f ¼ f1 ea1 þ f2 ea2 þ f3 ea3 (1)

The following steps were undertaken for 3 D model generation, pre-processing

and numerical analysis of braided structure crimping behaviour.

• The geometrical parameters of the braided structures (Figure 1 and Figure 2):
external diameter (Do), length (Lo), yarn diameter (d), number of yarns (n), and
braid angle (ao). These parameters were used to develop 3D computational
models of braided structures in an open-source python programming interface
[25]. This was done using the following steps:
• formulating mathematical transformations of points to form base lines.
• creation of a planar base module of two crossing wires;
• the planar base model was created using a mirror transformation.
• the base model was then replicated in X and Y directions to form a planar
grid.
• the planar grid was rolled into a cylinder to form a 3D model of tubular
braided structure.
• The python script was then used to extract nodes and elements of the braided
structure models at yarn level and the output compiled into an input file.
Python programming was adopted dues to suitability of libraries in the
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Figure 1. (a) Biaxial braided structure showing clockwise and anticlockwise helical yarns with
model parameters: length (Lo, mm), Diameter (Do, mm) and braid angle (aoo), (b) FEM model of
the biaxial braided structure.

Figure 2. (a) Triaxial braided structure with axial yarns alongside clockwise and anti-clockwise
yarns, (b) FEM model of the triaxial braided structure.

Figure 3. An illustration of connectors used to maintain a fixed distance between the wires in
the crossing points.
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python platform pyFormex to generate braided structures from constituent

yarns [25]. The model was meshed using beam (B31) elements, with linear
interpolation. The nodes and elements were extracted in a text file and imported
into Abaqus v17 for analysis and post-processing. The mesh size was adopted
from previous studies [26–28].
In order to save on computation time, the final 3 D model of the biaxial braided
structure was made up of 32 helical yarns half with þho in-plane orientation angle
(16 clockwise yarns), and half with �ho in-plane orientation angle (16 anticlockwise
yarns). In addition to this biaxial structure, 32 axial (longitudinal) yarns at orienta-
�
tion angle of 0 were incorporated to form 3 D models of triaxial braided structure.
The crimper geometry, which was used for the radial compression and deformation
study was modelled as a 3 D deformable shell and meshed using 4-node quadrilateral
surface elements with reduced integration (SFM3D4R) [18]. The inner surface of the
crimper is specified to enable the contact modeling with the braided structure models.
The material of the braided yarns was considered as PHYNOX wires with homoge-
neous and isotropic properties, with circular cross section. The material properties of
the yarns and mechanical parameters of braided structure are as shown in Table 1.
The coefficient of friction at yarn-yarn interface was considered to be 0.2 [23].
The structural analysis of the crimping behaviour of the braided structure models
in terms of axial deformation and radial compression was done by applying bound-
ary conditions to simulate crimping forces during cardiovascular applications. This
was accomplished by applying a radial compression on the crimper surface under a
displacement boundary condition of 50% of the initial braid diameter [29], as illus-
trated in Figures 4 and 5. This was done by a cylindrical coordinate system trans-
formation in Abaqus v17 on all nodes of the crimper to cause the radial
displacement of its surface. Eventually, visualization results and data at selected
regions on the braided structures were extracted, compiled and compared with ana-
lytical data. The deformation of the 3 D braided structures models considered in this
study was computed using strain data from the finite element results.

Table 1. Yarn material properties and parameters for braided structure 3 D models.

Parameter Value

Young’s modulus, E (gpa) 206

Density, q (g/cm3) 7.8
Poisson’s ratio,  (�) 0.3
yield strength, S (kN) 245
Initial braid diameter, Do (mm) 22
Initial braid angle, ao (o) 50
Yarn diameter, d (mm) 0.6
Initial length, Lo (mm) 50
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Figure 4. Illustration of the crimping mechanism induced using a radial compression force by a
displacement boundary condition on the crimper, showing initial braid diameter, Do, angle aoo and
length, Lo.

Figure 5. Illustration of the final configuration of the deformed crimper and braided structure
after crimping, showing final diameter D ¼ 0.5 Do, angle ao and final length, L.

Validation approach
Analytical models and approaches proposed by Shanahan, et al., [18] were used to
validate the numerical models developed in this study. This was done by comput-
ing axial force (Fa), axial stiffness (Ka), von Mises and Tresca stresses during
crimping of the braided structure models at various steps of loading. The compu-
tations were done using equation 2–7:

• The force (Fa) due to axial deformation was computed using equation 2, [18],
which is a modified version of the axial force (F) deforming a wire stent [30].

" � � � �#
GIp 2cosa EI 2sina
Fa ¼ 2n � � j1 � � j2 (2)
j3 j3 j3 tana j3
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n ¼ number of braided yarns, initial braid diameter¼ Do, initial braid angle¼ ao,
final braid diameter¼ D, final braid angle ¼ ao, yarn diameter¼ d, E ¼ Young’s
modulus of elasticity, and G ¼ rigidity modulus.
I ¼ moment of inertia of the yarn and Ip¼ polar moment of inertia of the yarn
given by:
pd4
Ip ¼ 2I ¼
32
j1, j2, j3 are constants given by:

sin2ao 2cos2 ao Do
j1 ¼ ; j2 ¼ ; j3 ¼
Do Do cosao

• The longitudinal stiffness Kl [18,30], due to axial deformation as a result of

crimping the braided structure was computed using equation 3:
� � � � ��
2n GIp 2sina EI 2sina 2
jl ¼ � � � j2 csc a (3)
pj3 t sina j3 j3 j3 j3

• According to literature [18], the stress due to crimping force that causes mechan-
ical de-formation in the braided structure was computed in the form of bending
stress, r (equation 4) and shear stress s (equation 5):
!
64EI sin2 a sin2 ao
r¼ � � (4)
pd3 D Do
� �
16GIp sin2a sin2ao
s¼ � � (5)
pd3 D Do

These stress components (r and s) was used to formulate the tresca stress (se) of
the braided structure as shown in equation 6; and also the von Mises stress (re)
(equation 7):
pffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
se ¼ 0:5 � r2 þ 4s2 (6)
pffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
re ¼ r2 þ 3s2 (7)

We will compare these analytical results to the FEM results of our model.

Results and discussions

The FEM model is validated using equation (1), comparing the analytical model
with the constructed FEM model for the biaxial braided structure, for the material
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Figure 6. Validation results showing analytical model [31] and FEM curves in close agreement
between theoretical and numerical model for the biaxial braided structure.

properties given in Table 1. The results are shown in Figure 6 and indicate close
conformity between analytical data (Fa) and the FEM numerical models developed
in this study for the axial force versus final braid angle, ao of the braid.
The results of the braided structures under crimping in the form of deformation
contour plots is shown in Figure 7 for the biaxial braided structure, and Figure 8
for the triaxial braided structure. The deformed configurations contour plots for
the biaxial braided structure (Figure 7(b)), portray a peak deformation of 3.69%
after 50% crimping of the structure, while the contour plots for the triaxial braided
structure (Figure 8(b)), indicate a peak deformation of 3.79% after 50% crimping
of the structure. The results from the contour plots illustrate that the peak strains
mainly appear on axial yarns within the braided structure and less strains on the
clockwise and anticlockwise yarns within the structure, which shows that axial
yarns can be used to offers additional support to braided structures.

Axial load and stiffness analysis

The axial deformation of a braided structure has been characterized by first a low
increase in axial loading (force (Fa) due to axial deformation) under increasing
radial compressive deformation, then a near linear increase of the axial load as the
braid continues to undergo deformation. It has been established that during this
deformation criterion all the biaxial yarns contribute to the stiffness of the braided
structure and that yarn properties govern the behaviour of the structure [32]. This
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Figure 7. (a) 3 D model of biaxial braided structure inside the crimper prior to radial com-
pression, (b) contour plots for deformed configuration of 16 biaxial braided structure and
crimper at D ¼ 0.5 Do.

Figure 8. (a) 3 D model of triaxial braided structure inside the crimper prior to radial com-
pression, (b) contour plots for deformed configuration of triaxial braid and crimper at
D ¼ 0.5 Do.

explains the results for the axial force and axial stiffness for the braided structures
developed in this study. According to the results in Figure 9, the axial force (force
(Fa) due to axial deformation) during the crimping of the braided structures
increases with decrease in diameter of the structures. The results show that the
rate of increment of axial load in triaxial braided structure is higher than that of
the biaxial braided fabric, it was also observed that the analytical axial force was
lower than the triaxial force. This could be attributed to the fact that yarn defor-
mations in the braided structures increased with the number of axial yarns. Hence,
interacting biaxial yarns and axial yarns form a mechanical reinforcement that
increases the ability of the braided structure to resist external loading [32,33].
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Figure 9. Effect of change in axial force causing elongation of the braided structure (Fa) with
final diameter, D (mm) during crimping of biaxial and triaxial braided structures showing analytical
model [31] and FEM curves.

The difference between the analytical model and numerical model could be due to
the action of connectors in the numerical model at the intersection between the
braided yarns. The connector elements were used to control the translation of the
yarns at the crossing points causing a pivot like movement at the intersection. In
Figure 10, the stiffness-length results show that the stiffness of braided structures
increases with decrease in the diameter of the structures during radial compression
of the braided fabrics (crimping). The triaxial braided structure was seen to have
the faster rate of increment of stiffness with change in diameter compared to the
biaxial braided structures, it was also observed that the analytical longitudinal
stiffness (equation 3) was slightly lower than the triaxial longitudinal stiffness.
This could be attributed in part to axial yarns affecting the compression resistance
of triaxial braided structures; axial yarns are stiffer and resist deformation [33],
however the friction at the yarn-yarn interface could also be contributing factor to
this scenario. Triaxial braided structures are generally stiffer than conventional
(biaxial) braids, which is also portrayed by our data in this section. The difference
in stiffness could be attributed to the type of connector element that was chosen to
model the contact between two crossing yarns. It was noted that one of the factors
influencing the magnitude of the radial forces and the hysteretic behaviour of the
braided structure was the friction force between the braided yarns and the crimp-
ing tool. In all case scenarios, the higher the friction, the greater the force required
for the braided yarns to slide inside the crimper, inducing higher radial forces in
the loading phase moreover metallic braided yarns are more susceptible to inter-
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Figure 10. Effect of change in longitudinal stiffness, Kl with final diameter, D (mm) during
crimping of biaxial and triaxial braided structures showing analytical model [31] and FEM curves.

wire wear due to friction as compared to polymeric braided yarns [34]. Clinically
this would enable triaxial braids to offer more support as compared to biaxial
braids.

Mechanical stress analysis

The analysis of stress results, Figure 11, shows that the von Mises stresses
increased with a decrease in the braid diameter considered in this study, with the
stresses in the triaxial braided fabric having a higher rate of increment than the
biaxial braided structure. It was also observed that the analytical von Mises stress
was lower than the triaxial von Mises stresses, in essence the triaxial braided
structure results show a faster rate of decrease up to 20% of the braid diameter
(17.6 mm, diameter) then decreases slower than biaxial, but remains above von
Mises stress values of the biaxial braid model. Other findings have established that
Von Misses stress was influenced by axial yarns in braided structures [33]. In
Figure 12, the rate of change of tresca stress with diameter of the braided structure
is depicted. It shows that the tresca stress of braided structures increases with
decrease in braid diameter during radial compression (crimping). The results fur-
ther indicate that the curve for triaxial braided structure model decreases faster up
to 20% of the braid diameter (17.6 mm, diameter) then decreases slower than
biaxial, but remains above tresca value for biaxial braided structure, it was also
observed that the analytical tresca stress [18] was lower than the triaxial tresca
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Figure 11. Effect of change in von mises stress (re) with final diameter, D (mm) during crimping
of biaxial and triaxial braided structures showing analytical model [31] and FEM curves.

Figure 12. Effect of change in tresca stress (se) with final diameter, D (mm) during crimping of
biaxial and triaxial braided structures showing analytical model [31] and FEM curves.
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Figure 13. Effect of change in radial pressure (PR) with final diameter, D (mm) during crimping
of biaxial and triaxial braided structures showing analytical model [31] and FEM curves.

stress from the finite element model. This is attributed to the fact that tresca stress
measures the maximum shear stress in the material, in the case of the braided
structures considered in this analysis, the crimp at the interface between clockwise
yarn and anti-clockwise yarn is a contributing factor in the shear stresses in the
braid during radial loading.

Radial pressure and radial force analysis

There has been evidence that as the number of constituent yarns within the braided
structure increases, there is likelihood of the resistant force in the structure increas-
ing, due to the fact that the more braided yarns there are, the denser the braided
structure becomes [35]. This is consistent with the results of radial pressure and
radial force recorded from the braided structures considered in this study. The
analysis of radial pressure results shown in Figure 13, indicate that the radial
pressure increased with decrease in diameter of the structures. The triaxial braid
decrease (up to 17.6 mm, diameter) then started decreasing at a slower rate than
the biaxial braid model, it was also observed that the analytical radial pressure
model [18] was lower than the radial pressure from the finite element model. In
terms of the radial force, results in Figure 14 show triaxial braided structure model
decreases faster up to 20% of the braid diameter (17.6 mm, diameter) then
decreases slower than biaxial, but remains above the radial force biaxial value.
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Figure 14. Effect of change in radial force (FR) with final diameter, D (mm) during crimping of
biaxial and triaxial braided structures showing analytical model [31] and FEM curves.

Cover factor and braid angle analysis

The cover factor is defined as the ratio of yarn-occupied area within a unit cell to
the area of the unit cell [36–38] During deformation of the braided structure as a
result of crimping action, constituent yarns within the structure tend to be dis-
placed towards the transverse axis. This leads to yarns getting closer to each other
resulting in deposition of the higher number of yarn coils [39]; consequently, the
longitudinal length of the braided structure increases to accommodate the trans-
verse displacement of the yarns [5] and reduction of diameter of the structure. This
is portrayed by the results in Figure 15. The figure shows that there was a uniform
rate of change of the cover factor of braided structures with diameter of the
fabrics. The results further illustrate that the triaxial braid diameter decreases by
20% (17.6 mm, diameter) after which it decreases slower than biaxial, but
remains above biaxial braid values. The results further show that the analytical
model initially follows the biaxial curve well, but after 20% compression predicted
a higher rate of cover factor with change in diameter. Analytical models of the
braided structure [18] also portrayed a profile similar for the biaxial and triaxial
braided structures.
The difference between the cover factor for the models considered in the anal-
ysis, is due to the fact that in the case triaxial braids, the cover factor is influenced
by axial yarns. Moreover, the area covered by the axial yarn depends on the
position of the individual yarns [37,38].
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Figure 15. Effect of change in cover factor with final diameter, D (mm) during crimping of biaxial
and triaxial braided structures showing analytical model [31] and FEM curves.

Figure 16. Effect of change in braid angle (a) with final diameter, D (mm) during crimping of
biaxial and triaxial braided structures.
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An increase in braid angle leads to deposition of braiding yarns more towards

the transverse axis. This leads to an increase in the length of the braided structure
[39] as its diameter D decreases, which explains the profile of the curves plotted in
Figure 16; which shows rate of change of braid angle with diameter of the braid. It
was established from the results that the braid angle decreased with decrease in
diameter during radial compression of the structures (crimping). The results for
braided structure in Figure 16 show biaxial braid increases faster in first 20%
(17.6 mm, diameter) of increase of the braid diameter (D), after which it
decreases slower than triaxial, but remains above triaxial braid angle biaxial
value. This suggests that the evolution of braid angle during deformation of the
structures are similar for triaxial or biaxial braids, implying that the mechanical
behaviour is highly dependent on braiding angle [32]. Furthermore, it has been
established in past studies that cover factor has a strong influence on the in-plane
mechanical properties of triaxial braided structures than in biaxial braided struc-
tures [37]. In this case the type of braid has the greatest influence on cover factor.
As the triaxial braid has a higher level of undulation due to the additional set of
standing yarns, the cover factor decreases as a result of an increased number of
gaps [40].

Conclusion
The methodology for parametric modeling of the crimping behaviour of triaxial
and biaxial braided structures has been developed in this paper. The biaxial braid-
ed structure was used as a control model to illustrate that the triaxial braided
structure considered in this study had a better performance in terms of stiffness
and could withstand more stress configuration before failure as illustrated by the
von misses stress configuration, radial pressure and force. The analysis performed
and the results obtained could be used in design and optimization of geometrical
and material properties of triaxial braided structure as well as in evaluation of their
performance at real conditions.

Declaration of conflicting interests

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, author-
ship, and/or publication of this article.

Funding
The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication
of this article.

ORCID iDs
Jerry Ochola https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5133-3636
Benny Malengier https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8383-8068
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