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Composites: Part A 38 (2007) 23832397 www.elsevier.com/locate/compositesa

Review

Review of z-pinned composite laminates

A.P. Mouritz
*
School of Aerospace, Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, RMIT University, GPO Box 2476V, Melbourne, Victoria 3001, Australia Received 16 January 2007; received in revised form 19 May 2007; accepted 10 August 2007

Abstract This paper reviews published research into polymer composite laminates reinforced in the through-thickness direction with z-pins. Research into the manufacture, microstructure, delamination resistance, damage tolerance, joint strength and mechanical properties of z-pinned composites is described. Benets of reinforcing composites with z-pins are assessed, including improvements to the delamination toughness, impact damage resistance, post-impact damage tolerance and through-thickness properties. Improvements to the failure strength of bonded and bearing joints due to z-pinning are also examined. The paper also reviews research into the adverse eects of z-pins on the in-plane mechanical properties, which includes reduced elastic modulus, strength and fatigue performance. Mechanisms responsible for the reduction to the in-plane properties are discussed, and techniques to minimise the adverse eect of z-pins are described. The benets and drawbacks of z-pinning on the interlaminar toughness, damage tolerance and in-plane mechanical properties are compared against other common types of through-thickness reinforcement for composites, such as 3D weaving and stitching. Gaps in our understanding and unresolved research problems with z-pinned composites are identied to provide a road map for future research into these materials. 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Keywords: A. Three-dimensional reinforcement; B. Mechanical properties; A. Polymermatrix composites (PMCs); z-Pins

Contents 1. 2. 3. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Manufacture of z-pinned composites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Microstructure of z-pinned composites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1. Fibre waviness, crimp and breakage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.2. Resin-rich zones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3. Cure stresses and microcracking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.4. Swelling and reduced fibre volume content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.5. z-Pin offset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Benefits of z-pinning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.1. Interlaminar fracture toughness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.2. Impact damage tolerance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3. Through-thickness properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4. Joint and bearing strengths . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Disadvantages of z-pinning. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.1. Elastic properties. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.2. Strength properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.3. Fatigue performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2384 2385 2386 2386 2387 2387 2388 2388 2388 2388 2390 2390 2391 2392 2392 2392 2393

4.

5.

Tel.: +61 3 99256269; fax: +61 3 99256108. E-mail address: adrian.mouritz@rmit.edu.au

1359-835X/$ - see front matter 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.compositesa.2007.08.016

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Concluding remarks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2394 Acknowledgements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2395 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2395

1. Introduction Many novel techniques have been developed to reinforce polymer laminate composites in the through-thickness direction as a solution to the problems of poor impact damage tolerance, low through-thickness mechanical properties, and weak strength of bonded joints. The most common through-thickness reinforcement techniques are 3D weaving [13], stitching [24] and braiding [2,3]. More specialist techniques include embroidery [3], tufting [5] and zanchoring [6]. These techniques are eective at increasing the delamination resistance and impact damage tolerance. 3D weaving and stitching are also eective at increasing the ultimate strength and damage tolerance of composite joints [7]. However, these techniques are only suitable for textile laminates made using a dry fabric preform which contains the through-thickness reinforcement prior to resin infusion. None of the techniques can be used for the through-thickness reinforcement of prepreg laminates. Attempts to reinforce uncured prepreg result in excessive bre damage that degrades the in-plane mechanical properties. This is a serious limitation because many highlyloaded composite components, including many aircraft structures, are made using prepreg laminates. The only technique capable of reinforcing prepreg laminates in the through-thickness direction in large commercial quantities is z-pinning. z-Pins1 act as ne nails that lock the laminate plies together by a combination of friction and adhesion (Fig. 1). Thin metal rods were rst used to reinforce laminates in the 1970s, although the pins were inserted individually using a labour-intensive manual process that is not practical for large-scale production [8]. Tomashevkii and colleagues developed an automated process during the 1980s for inserting thin wire bres through laminates [911]. At the same time, Aztex Inc. (Waltham, USA) developed the UAZ (Ultrasonically Assisted ZFibre) process for the rapid insertion of a large number of thin brous or metal pins [12,13]. UAZis now the most common process for the z-pinning of laminates in large quantities. z-Pins are made using high stiness, high strength material such as titanium alloy, steel or brous carbon composite with a diameter of 0.21.0 mm. Only a relatively small volume fraction of z-pins is needed to signicantly enhance the through-thickness properties and damage tolerance. Pin contents typically range from 0.5 to 4.0 vol% (which is approximately equivalent to about

Metal pins are almost always called short rods while brous rods are usually always called pins. In this paper, the term pin is used generically to describe all types of pin materials.

870 z-pins/cm2), and only rarely are higher pin contents necessary. z-Pinning is an eective and simple method to increase the delamination resistance, impact damage tolerance and joint strength of prepreg laminates. Pins may be used for the wide-area reinforcement of damage tolerant panels or used in selective areas requiring local reinforcement, such as structural bonds, stiener attachments, stress concentrations and holes. A variety of aerospace composite structures have been reinforced with z-pins to demonstrate the application of the technology, including joints and stiened panels, however, to date the use of z-pinned composites in aircraft is limited. The only current aerospace application of z-pins is in the F/A-18E/FSuperhornet, which are used to replace titanium fasteners in the air inlet ducts and engine bay doors [14]. This provides a good cost saving (US$83,000) and modest weight reduction (17 kg) per aircraft [15]. Partridge et al. [15] estimate that the automated insertion of z-pins in an aircraft structure reduces the manufacturing cost by 70% compared to drilling and then installing metal fasteners. Furthermore, the time to insert z-pins compares favourably with the time needed to install metal fasteners into composite structures. Despite the projected cost savings, z-pins are not used in aircraft other than the Superhornet, although they are being considered for the Joint Strike Fighter. z-Pins are also used to reinforce the composite roll-over bars on Formula 1 racing cars, although this is the only non-aerospace application of zpinning to be reported [16]. A review of recent progress in the development and characterisation of z-pinned composite laminates is presented in this paper. Most published works have examined the eect of z-pins on carbon/epoxy tape laminates because of their potential use in aerospace structures, although the research ndings are generally applicable to any composite application. The manufacturing processes used to make zpinned laminates are described together with changes to the microstructure of the laminate due to pinning. Following this, the benets of z-pinning in terms of improved delamination resistance, impact damage tolerance, through-thickness stiness, joint strength and bearing strength are outlined. Improvements to these properties due to z-pinning are compared against other throughthickness reinforcement techniques, such as 3D weaving and stitching. The detrimental eects of z-pinning on the in-plane mechanical properties are then described. Reductions to the elastic properties, strength and fatigue performance due to z-pinning are examined, and compared to changes to the in-plane properties of composite materials with other types of through-thickness reinforcement. The paper concludes with an assessment of the outstanding

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Fig. 1. (a) Photograph showing the size of a typical z-pin and (b) z-pins inside a prepreg composite.

issues that must be resolved by research and development before the full potential of z-pinning in aerospace applications can be realised. 2. Manufacture of z-pinned composites Various methods are used to manufacture z-pinned laminates, with the most common method being the UAZ process that involves inserting z-pins into an uncured prepreg stack using an ultrasonic tool, as shown in Fig. 2 [13,15,17].2 The UAZprocess involves several steps that are shown sequentially in Fig. 3. The process starts by placing a polymer foam carrier containing z-pins over the prepreg (Fig. 3). z-Pins are made from extruded metal wire or brous composite produced by pulling a continuous bre tow through a resin bath and then pultruding it through a circular die. The metal wire or composite strand is then cut to length and inserted into the foam carrier. Partridge et al. [15] give a full description of the manufacture of zpins. The z-pins are arranged in a square pattern inside the foam carrier (Fig. 2b). The foam is used to ensure an even spacing between the z-pins and to provide them with lateral support during insertion. The foam carrier does not form part of the nal composite product, and is discarded after the z-pins have been inserted. z-Pins are driven from the foam carrier into the prepreg using an ultrasonically actuated tool that can be operated in a manual hand-held mode by a trained operator or controlled using an automated system (Fig. 3b). The ultrasonic horn generates high frequency compressive waves that are transmitted into the foam carrier, which collapses under the pressure that drives the z-pins into the prepreg. The stress waves also cause moderate heating of the prepreg that softens the resin matrix which eases insertion of the pins. z-Pins are inserted progressively by moving the ultrasonic tool over the foam
2 z-Pinning can only be performed on uncured laminates, and not after the polymer matrix has gelled and cured. Freitas and Dubberly [18] report that it is possible to join aluminium plates using steel pins, however, the zpinning of cured laminates has not been achieved. Blunting of metal pins and splitting of brous composite pins occurs when high forces are used to drive them into cured laminates.

Fig. 2. (a) Hand-held ultrasonic horn and (b) collapsible foam carrier containing z-pins.

carrier several times until all the pins have penetrated the prepreg stack (Fig. 3c). The compressed foam carrier and any excess length of z-pin protruding the prepreg is shaved o using a blade to ensure a smooth surface nish (Fig. 3d). After z-pinning the prepreg is cured using conventional processes such as vacuum bagging and autoclave. This is an appealing feature of z-pinning compared to other throughthickness reinforcement techniques in that prepreg manufacturing processes common to the aircraft industry are used. z-Pinning only requires an extra step to the manufacturing process, and there is no need for a radical change in the processing route. Another benet of the z-pinning process is it oers the convenience of on mould, one-sided access to the preform, unlike 3D weaving and most stitching processes that need double-sided access. However, there are several concerns about the quality control of

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the prepreg [17]. However, this process is only suitable in specic circumstances, and is not commonly used. Vaidya et al. [20] and Mouritz et al. [21] have shown it is possible to manufacture z-pinned laminates from non-prepreg materials. However, more research and development into the manufacture and processing of z-pinned laminates using non-prepreg materials is required. In particular, the ability to make z-pinned composites with resin infusion processes, such as vacuum-assisted resin transfer moulding and resin lm infusion, needs further investigation. 3. Microstructure of z-pinned composites 3.1. Fibre waviness, crimp and breakage The microstructure of laminates is changed in several ways by z-pinning, which may have benecial and adverse eects on the damage tolerance and mechanical properties. Understanding the microstructural changes is essential to understanding the property changes to laminates caused by z-pinning. One obvious change to the microstructure is bre waviness near the z-pins, as shown in Fig. 4. The waviness occurs because the bres, which are very thin compared to the z-pins, are forced aside during the pinning process [2224]. The waviness angle (h) is greatest on the anks of the resin-rich region. Steeves and Fleck [24] found that the bres are not usually deected symmetrically around the pin; and instead there is an asymmetric distribution of waviness angles caused by irregularities in the z-pinning process and random pre-existing bre waviness. Fibre waviness alters the in-plane mechanical properties of z-pinned laminates, as discussed later, and therefore

pin
2 wavy fibres
Fig. 3. Schematic of the UAZ process.

resin zone

the z-pinning process, particularly accurate insertion of the z-pins in the orthogonal direction, swelling of the laminate that reduces the bre volume fraction, and bre damage [15,19]. Changes to the laminate microstructure during z-pinning that degrade the mechanical performance and durability are described in Section 3. Good quality control and consistent reproducibility of z-pinned parts can be achieved by xing the ultrasonic horn to a moving gantry system rather than manually operating the horn. z-Pins can be inserted into prepregs using vacuum bagging inside an autoclave without the need for the ultrasonic tool. Pressure applied by the bag and autoclave can compress the foam carrier and thereby force the z-pins into

width

Pin

Resin Zone

Length, wx
Fig. 4. Region of wavy bres and resin-rich zones at a z-pin.

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Maximum Fibre Waviness Angle, (degrees)

14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 0.0 0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0

waviness length
waviness angle

Fibre Waviness Length (mm)

Fig. 7. Fibre crimp and z-pin oset.

Z-pin Diameter (mm)

Fig. 5. Plot of z-pin diameter on the deection angle and length of the wavy region in a unidirectional carbon/epoxy composite. Data from Chang [23].

1.0
z-pin diameter = 0.28 mm

Volume Fraction of Wavy Fibers

0.8

0.6

0.4

angle and the volume fraction of the wavy region for any z-pinning condition. z-Pinning causes crimping of the bres in the throughthickness direction, as shown in Fig. 7. This is caused by the bending of bres under the force used to insert the zpins. Crimped bres are usually conned to a very small volume around each pin. Fibre crimp is a concern because it can reduce the compressive strength by promoting microbuckling and kinking. However, the volume fraction of bres that are crimped with z-pinning is usually much less that experienced with 3D weaving, stitching or knitting [2527]. The force needed to insert z-pins may also cause bre breakage [24,28]. 3.2. Resin-rich zones z-Pinning causes the formation of resin-rich zones at each pin location, as shown in Fig. 4 [15,19,22,24]. The zones have an eyelet shape that is elongated in the bre direction. Resin zones develop because voids are formed where the bres in the uncured prepreg have been pushed aside by the z-pins. These cavities are then lled with resin during the consolidation and cure process. The shape and dimensions of the resin zones change considerably with increasing z-pin content and diameter, which can aect the mechanical properties. When the z-pins are spaced wide apart the resin zones are isolated from each other, as shown in Fig. 4. However, when z-pins are closely spaced or large then the resin zones coalesce into a continuous resin channel that extends in the bre direction, as shown in Fig. 8. A resin channel develops along each row of pins which causes the laminate to contain a series of parallel resin channels. 3.3. Cure stresses and microcracking Stresses develop during the cure cycle due to the mismatch between the thermal expansion coecients of the z-pins and host laminate. The axial thermal expansion of brous carbon z-pins is much lower than the thermal expansion of the host laminate material during elevated temperature cure. z-Pins experience a very small change

0.2

0.0 0 1 2 3 4 5 6

Percent Volume Content of Z-Pins (%)

Fig. 6. Plot of volume content of z-pins on the volume fraction of wavy bres in a carbon/epoxy composite.

knowledge of the angle and volume fraction of wavy bres is required. Chang [23] measured a linear increase in the waviness angle (h) and length of the wavy region (wx) with the z-pin diameter, as seen in Fig. 5. The rate of these increases is dependent, of course, on several properties of the prepreg, including bre stiness, bre packing density and resin viscosity. The volume percent of a laminate that consists of wavy bres increases rapidly with the volume fraction of the z-pins, as shown in Fig. 6, as well as with z-pin diameter. It is seen that a relatively small volume fraction of z-pins (>5%) is needed for virtually all of the bres to be distorted. At the moment, measurements of the deection angle and volume content of wavy bres must be determined from photomicrographs and analyzed using image processing software, which is time-consuming. A model based on visco-plastic deformation mechanics of brous laminates when perforated by a circular punch (i.e., pin) is needed to calculate the average bre waviness

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Fig. 9. Debonding of a z-pin due to residual tensile stresses in the host composite. Photograph supplied courtesy of Dr R. Thomson.

volume fraction of the z-pins. Chang et al. [19] suggest that swelling is caused by two eects: (i) expansion of the laminate to accommodate the z-pins and (ii) resistance against compaction of the prepreg stack during curing by the sti z-pins propping the mould surfaces. Careful control of the z-pinning and cure processes is needed to minimise the amount swelling and the corresponding reduction in the bre volume content. 3.5. z-Pin oset z-Pins are often inclined at an angle from the throughthickness direction, and only rarely are they perfectly orthogonal. Fig. 7 shows an inclined z-pin at an oset angle, /, in a carbon/epoxy laminate. When z-pins are inserted using a manually operated ultrasonic horn they are inclined over a wide range of angles up to 20, with the median oset angle typically in the range of 515 [19]. The use of an automated system where the ultrasonic horn is controlled in a gantry can minimize the oset of the z-pins. In most cases the microstructural changes caused by zpinning are similar to those caused by other through-thickness reinforcement techniques. Waviness, crimp, breakage and damage to bres, resin-rich regions, and debonding of the through-thickness reinforcement occur in 3D woven and stitched composites [3]. The only signicant dierence is that z-pinning causes swelling that reduces the bre volume content, whereas 3D weaving and stitching often compacts the preform that raises the local bre volume content by several percent. 4. Benets of z-pinning 3.4. Swelling and reduced bre volume content 4.1. Interlaminar fracture toughness Another problem experienced with z-pinning is swelling of the laminate that reduces the average bre volume content [15,19,31]. The amount of swelling increases with the An important benet of z-pinning is improved delamination toughness that increases the impact resistance,

Fig. 8. (a) Resin channel along a row of closely spaced z-pins. (b) Schematic of parallel resin channels running along the z-pin rows in the bre direction. Photograph supplied courtesy of Dr P. Chang.

in length because of their low expansion coecient and high axial stiness. During cool-down the host laminate undergoes a relatively large contraction in the throughthickness direction due to the high thermal coecient and low stiness of the polymer matrix. This induces an axial compressive stress in the z-pins and a tensile stress in the laminate. Finite element analysis studies into the stress elds in and around z-pins have been performed [29,30]. Sweeting and Thomson [30] showed that the principal tensile stress in a carbon/epoxy laminate surrounding a brous z-pin is up to four times higher than the far-eld residual stress. The tensile stress is greater than the failure stress of the resin systems used in most brittle matrix composites, and this causes partial or complete debonding of the z-pins from the host laminate (Fig. 9).

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14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 0.0

mode I toughness

mode II toughness

0.5

1.0

1.5

2.0

Percentage Volume Content of Z-Pins

Fig. 10. Plots of the eect of z-pin content on the apparent modes I and II delamination toughness of carbon/epoxy composites. Modes I and II data from Freitas et al. [17] and Cartie [50], respectively. Modes I and II toughness values determined by the double cantilever beam and end notch exure tests, respectively.

damage tolerance and joint strength. Delamination toughness is without doubt the most studied property of z-pinned laminates [17,20,29,3263]. A large body of theoretical and experimental research has led to a thorough understanding of the delamination properties and interlaminar toughening mechanisms of z-pinned laminates for the modes I, II and mixed I/II load conditions. The only outstanding fracture problem is the delamination resistance of z-pinned laminates under mode III loading, although for most engineering structures this is not an important load condition. z-Pinning is not eective at resisting the initiation and growth of short delamination cracks [28,35,51,63], but is remarkably eective at resisting the propagation of long delamination cracks (typically larger than 25 mm). Numerous experimental fracture studies have shown that z-pinning increases the interlaminar toughness of long cracks under modes I, II and mixed I/II loads [17,32 37,4345,50,51,53]. For example, Fig. 10 shows improve-

ment to the apparent modes I and II delamination toughness values for carbon/epoxy laminates when reinforced with z-pins [17,50]. The apparent delamination toughness values rise at a linear rate with the volume content of zpins, and the improvement to the mode I delamination resistance is particularly impressive with the toughness doubling for every 0.5% increase in the pin content. The mode II delamination toughness also increases steadily with z-pin content, although often at a slower rate than the mode I toughness. This is because z-pins are more eective at suppressing mode I crack opening displacements than mode II sliding displacements. z-Pinning not only improves the delamination toughness, but has the added benet of transforming the crack propagation from an unstable (i.e., fast fracture) to stable process in brittle matrix laminates, which is a desirable property in damage tolerant structures. Preliminary research by Graftieaux et al. [34] indicates that z-pinning is also eective at slowing the delamination crack growth rate under mode I fatigue loading, which is an important property because most interlaminar cracks in aircraft composite structures grow due to cyclic loading. Further research is required to determine the eects of the volume content and diameter of z-pins on the delamination fatigue resistance under modes I, II and mixed-mode conditions [64]. The delamination toughening mechanisms of z-pinned laminates have been determined by experimental observation using interlaminar fracture, lap shear, single pin pullout, single pin shear, and multiple pin pull-out tests [33,36,37,50,52]. Under mode I loading the main toughening mechanisms are elastic deformation, debonding, and frictional pullout of the z-pins. The debonding mechanism is absent when the z-pins have already detached from the host laminate due to cure stresses, and the two mechanisms are then elastic stretching and pullout of the pins. Pullout of the z-pins forms a bridging zone along the delamination that extends many tens of millimetres behind the crack front (Fig. 11). A large amount of strain energy is needed to overcome the frictional resistance of the z-pins during pullout. This generates a traction force in the bridging zone

Apparent Interlaminar Fracture Toughness (kJ/m2)

Fig. 11. Large-scale crack bridging by z-pins.

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that reduces the strain energy at the crack tip, thus improving the delamination toughness. z-Pins may break rather than pullout when their tensile failure load is lower the frictional pullout load, although this only occurs when pins are fully embedded in very thick laminates. In reality, pure mode I toughening does not occur in z-pinned laminate due to the slight oset of the z-pins from the orthogonal direction (Fig. 7), and this induces some toughening by mode II processes. Under mode II loading the main delamination toughening mechanisms are elastic shear deformation, debonding, snubbing, and shear-induced pullout of the z-pins [33,37,45,47,48]. Snubbing is an important toughening process when the crack sliding displacements become large, and involves the lateral deection of z-pins near the delamination crack plane into the laminate [65]. The snubbing eect greatly increases friction between the z-pin and composite, which increases the resistance against shear-induced pullout. Cox and colleagues have shown that inserting the z-pins at an inclined angle (/) can enhance the snubbing eect and thereby increase the mode II delamination toughness [33,37,45,65]. Modelling the delamination properties of z-pinned laminates is a complicated problem because of the numerous toughening processes that occur over a wide range of scales. Based on the observed toughening mechanisms, several large-scale bridging fracture models have been developed to calculate the mode I [32,40,5262], mode II [41,46,4,49] and mixed mode delamination toughness of z-pinned laminates [46,49]. In addition, the discontinuous stitch model developed by Jain and Mai [66] for mode I delamination of stitched composites can be applied. Models for calculating the mode I delamination toughness assume the composite is a double cantilever beam in which deection of the beam arms and the crack opening displacement is calculated using EulerBernoulli beam theory. Bridging laws are used to calculate the traction force of the z-pins when treated as elastic inexible rods [32,39,40,42,52,53,5761], elastic exible rods [55,56] or discrete springs [54]. The bridging models need empirical data on the pullout resistance of the pins, which must be determined by single or multiple pin pullout tests for the specic combination of z-pin/composite type. Linear elastic fracture mechanics coupled with the bridging laws for zpins are then used to calculate the interlaminar fracture toughness. While numerous fracture models have been developed, only the models by Cartie et al. [32] and Liu et al. [52] have been tested against experimental data. Improvements to the delamination toughness gained by z-pinning are similar or greater in magnitude to those achieved with other through-thickness reinforcement techniques. For equivalent amounts of through-thickness reinforcements, the interlaminar fracture toughness values of 3D woven and stitched composites (e.g. [67,68]) are similar to z-pinned laminates. For example, for a 1% volume content of through-thickness reinforcement, the mode I delamination toughness of 3D woven, stitched and z-pinned

composites is about 46 kJ/m2. This is because the interlaminar toughening mechanisms are similar; involving elastic stretching, debonding and pull-out of the through-thickness reinforcement that forms a large-scale bridging zone. The only signicant dierence is that z-pins (embedded in thin laminates) usually fail by pull-out whereas woven z-binders and continuous stitches fail by tensile rupture. 4.2. Impact damage tolerance Impact damage is a long-standing problem with conventional laminated composites because of their low delamination toughness. Experimental research has proven that z-pinning reduces the amount of delamination damage caused by impact events from low energy objects, ballistic projectiles and high-speed hailstones [15,17,31,35,44,63,6971]. For example, Zhang et al. [71] found that z-pinning reduced the impact damage area by 1964%, depending on the impact energy level and laminate thickness. As another example, Childress and Freitas [44] measured reductions of 3050% in the amount of damage sustained by hailstone impacts. Damage is reduced because bridging traction forces are generated by the z-pins which increase the delamination toughness. However, damage resistance is only increased in impact events that cause the delaminations to grow large enough (usually longer than several millimeters) for the bridging zone to develop. z-Pinning is ineective at raising the threshold impact energy to initiate damage and suppressing very short delaminations caused by impact loading [20,35]. The same behaviour is found with 3D woven and stitched composites; that is, these materials only exhibit improved impact resistance when the delaminations are longer than several millimetres and the bridging zone is fully developed [3]. While experimental tests have demonstrated improvements to the impact damage resistance gained by z-pinning, a dynamic fracture-based model that considers large-scale bridging eects has not been developed to predict the impact damage response of z-pinned laminates. The improved impact resistance achieved by z-pinning often results in higher post-impact properties [28,50, 63,71]. For example, Fig. 12 compares the post-impact compressive strengths of a carbon/epoxy laminate with and without z-pins [63]. The higher strength is due to the lower amount of impact damage and the greater buckling resistance of the delaminated plies due to the bridging action of the z-pins. Yan et al. [72] developed an analytical model to calculate the eect of z-pinning on the local buckling strength of a delaminated composite beam under edgewise compression loading. z-Pins resist the separation of delaminated plies because of the bridging tractions, and this increases the post-impact compressive strength. 4.3. Through-thickness properties Large improvements to the through-thickness elastic properties of laminates can be achieved by z-pinning.

A.P. Mouritz / Composites: Part A 38 (2007) 23832397

500

2391

Residual Compressive Strength (MPa)

4.4. Joint and bearing strengths

4% z-pins

400

300

2% z-pins

200

no z-pins

100

10

15

20

25

Impact Energy (J)

Fig. 12. Post-impact compressive strength of composites with and without z-pins. From Rezai et al. [63].

Studies using nite element analysis report that the through-thickness tensile modulus rises rapidly with the volume content and axial stiness of the z-pins [22,35,73,74]. For example, Dickinson et al. [22] predict that the through-thickness modulus of a carbon/epoxy laminate will increase by 23% when reinforced with only 1.9% z-pins and rise to over 60% with 4.9% z-pins. However, the calculated improvements in elastic modulus have not been veried by through-thickness tensile testing. It is believed the actual increase will be less than predicted using nite element analysis because the calculations assume a perfect bond between the z-pins and host composite which allows full transfer of interlaminar loads from the laminar into the pins. Debonding of the z-pins during the cure cycle reduces the load transfer eciency. Furthermore, oset of the z-pins from the orthogonal direction also lowers the improvement to the through-thickness modulus [22]. The eect of z-pinning on the through-thickness tensile strength of z-pinned laminates has not yet been investigated.

Composite structural joints in aircraft are often reinforced with metal fasteners, such as rivets and screws, for high strength and fatigue resistance. However, the aircraft industry incurs great cost in drilling fastener holes with high dimensional tolerance. Furthermore, the holes are potential sites for fatigue damage or bearing failure when incorrectly designed or drilled. The holes also provide a site for the ingress of moisture, aviation fuel and other liquids when not properly sealed. The benets of using z-pins are that drilled holes and metal fasteners are not required, resistance against moisture ingress in the event of sealant failure should be superior, and the load is more evenly distributed over the joint. It is for reasons such as these that the rst aerospace application for z-pins on the Superhornet was in joints. The strengthening of composite joints using z-pins has been veried by experimental testing [31,37,45,70,7579]. Most studies have examined the reinforcement of singlelap joints with z-pins, although these are not necessarily representative of practical aircraft joints. Large improvements to the ultimate strength and fatigue life of lap joints are achieved by z-pinning [31,45,76,78]. For example, Fig. 13 shows the eect of z-pin content on the ultimate strength and fatigue life of carbon/epoxy lap joints loaded in tension. The mechanical performance of the joints is improved by the ability of z-pins to stabilise cracking along the polymer bond-line and carry load by a bridging action after the bond-line has ruptured. The improvements gained by z-pinning are similar or greater than the increase in joint strength achieved by other through-thickness reinforcement techniques, such as stitching [80,81]. z-Pins are also eective at increasing the ultimate strength of lap joints at elevated temperature (up to $200 C) [77]. Improvements to the ultimate strength or fatigue performance of other z-pinned joint types have also been reported, including T-joints [31,79], L-shaped joints [70] and blade stiened

20

20
+ 41% + 23%

4% pins

Ultimate Lap Strength (MPa)

Fatigue Shear Stress (MPa)

15

+8%

15
2% pins 0.5% pins

10

10

no pins

0 0% 0.5% 2.0% 4.0%

Z-Pin Content

0 1 10 100 1000 10000 100000 1000000

Cycles to Failure

Fig. 13. Eect of z-pin content on the ultimate strength and fatigue life of a composite lap joint. Data from Chang et al. [76].

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Young's Modulus (GPa)

panels [75]. As with lap joints, the increase in mechanical performance is due to the bridging action of the z-pins following rupture of the bond-line. Several models based on large-scale bridging mechanics have been developed to calculate the ultimate strength of z-pinned lap joints [45,76]. However, modelling work is required for other joint congurations that are used in aircraft, such as L- and C-shapes. Crosky and colleagues [82,83] recently examined the inuence of z-pins on the bearing strength of carbon/epoxy joints. Bearing failure of composite materials without through-thickness reinforcement is a long standing problem, with the failure load being much lower than for metals due to shear-induced rupture from the fastener hole. Crosky et al. [82,83] found that reinforcing the region surrounding the fastener hole with z-pins increased by more than 10% the bearing failure load and strain energy absorbed in the failure process. The improvement in bearing strength is achieved by z-pins increasing the throughthickness stiness and delamination toughness. These improvements indicate that z-pinning may be an eective method for strengthening fastener holes in aircraft, which are usually reinforced by increasing the laminate thickness near the hole which increases cost and weight. 5. Disadvantages of z-pinning Most research into z-pinned laminates has focussed on the benets, such as improved delamination toughness, impact damage tolerance and joint strength. The adverse eect of z-pinning has received less attention, particularly reductions to the in-plane mechanical properties. Several studies into the eect of z-pinning on the elastic modulus, strength and fatigue life of laminates have been performed, although much remains to be done. 5.1. Elastic properties The eect of z-pinning on the in-plane elastic properties of laminates has been evaluated using nite element analysis [22,73,74] and material testing [19,28,35,84,85], and all studies report reductions to the Youngs modulus and/or shear modulus. The elastic properties decrease gradually with increasing volume content and diameter of the z-pins, as shown in Fig. 14 [19,85]. Several studies have shown that the loss in modulus due to z-pinning is dependent on the bre lay-up pattern of the laminate [19,73,85]. The reduction to the elastic properties is greatest for unidirectional laminates, and becomes less severe when the percentage of load-bearing [0] bres in the laminate is reduced. For example, the percentage reduction to the modulus decreases in the order: unidirectional [0], cross-ply [0/90], quasi-isotropic [0/+45/45/90] and bias [+45/45] layups. In the case of cross-ply and quasi-isotropic laminates that are commonly used in aircraft structures, the reduction in modulus due to z-pinning is usually under 10% [19,22,73,84,85]. It is expected that the knock-down in the elastic properties will also depend on the amount of

250
compression

Young's Modulus (GPa)

200

150
tension

100

50
pin diameter = 0.28 mm

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Percentage Volume Content of Z-Pins 250

200

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150

100

tension

50
pin content = 2 vol%

0.0

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

Z-Pin Diameter (mm)

Fig. 14. Eect of (a) z-pin content and (b) z-pin diameter on the compression and tensile moduli of a unidirectional carbon/epoxy composite.

waviness and crimp inherent in the bre plies. z-Pinned laminates containing coarse woven fabrics are expected to show a smaller loss in their elastic properties than z-pinned laminates made with prepreg tape having straight bres, although this has not been veried by experimentation. The reduction to the elastic properties is due to microstructural damage caused by z-pinning, particularly bre waviness, bre crimp, and swelling that reduces the bre volume content. The loss in the elastic properties can be minimised by using extremely ne diameter z-pins and controlling the z-pinning and cure processes to suppress swelling. Other types of 3D composites can also experience a loss in their elastic properties due to bre waviness and bre crimp by the through-thickness reinforcement. Reductions to the Youngs modulus of 3D woven and stitched composites is typically under 20%, which is similar to the loss experienced by z-pinned laminates [3]. 5.2. Strength properties The in-plane tensile [17,19,28,31,35], compressive [17,24,28,8587] and bending [84] strengths are reduced

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1000
[0] carbon/epoxy

2393

2000

800

tension

1600

600

compression

1200

400

800

Pin Volume Content (%)

Fig. 15. Eect of z-pin content on the tensile and compressive strengths of a unidirectional carbon/epoxy composite.

by z-pinning. The strength properties, like the elastic modulus, decrease at a quasi-linear rate with increasing volume content and size of the z-pins. For example, Fig. 15 shows a linear relationship between the z-pin content and the tensile and open-hole compressive strengths of a unidirectional carbon/epoxy laminate. This is a serious problem because it is often desirable to use a relatively high volume content of z-pins to maximize damage tolerance and to use relatively thick z-pins to reduce the total number of pins that must be inserted. That is, increasing the volume content and diameter of the pins in order to improve the damage tolerance will unavoidably cause a loss in the in-plane strength properties. The reduction in tensile strength is attributed mainly to breakage of bres during the z-pinning process [19,24,28]. As the pins are forced into the laminate they create a small cluster of broken bres at each pin location, which act as sites for splitting cracks and tensile failure. The number density and size of the broken bre clusters increase, respectively, with the volume content and diameter of the z-pins, and this causes a corresponding reduction to the tensile strength. Dilution of the bre volume content due to swelling is a contributing factor to the loss in tensile strength [19,31]. Reduction in the compressive strength caused by z-pinning is attributed to bre waviness and bre crimp that causes microbuckling and kinking [24,28,8588]. The reduced bre content due to swelling may also contribute to the fall in compressive strength [85]. Steeves and Fleck [24] and OBrien and Krueger [87] used a nite element model called FLASH to predict the compressive strength of z-pinned laminates. FLASH calculates the failure strength of composites with elliptical patches of bre waviness at z-pins subjected to compression and shear loads [88]. OBrien and Kruger [87] predict the compressive strength will decrease with increasing volume content and diameter of z-pins. The FLASH model also reveals that increasing the pin density (for a xed pin diameter) is more

detrimental to strength than increasing z-pin size (for a xed pin density). These trends were recently conrmed by experimental testing [85]. Chang et al. [19,84] and Mouritz [85] propose a simple model for predicting the tensile, compressive and exural strengths of z-pinned laminates. The strength properties are known to decrease at a linear rate with increasing zpin content and diameter, and therefore the linear equation rp = ro[1 aDcr] can be used to calculate the failure strength (rp) of a z-pinned laminate. ro is the strength of the laminate without z-pins, a is an empirical material constant, and cr and D are the volume content and diameter of the z-pins, respectively. The strength properties can be accurately calculated for any z-pin content and size provided the linear relationship is retained, which is true for most pinning conditions. The reduction to the strength properties of z-pinned laminates is more predictable than the strength of other 3D composites. The tensile, compressive and exural strengths of 3D woven and stitched composites do not show a clear relationship with the volume content or diameter of the through-thickness reinforcement [3,89]. This makes it dicult to calculate the strength of 3D woven and stitched materials. Furthermore, published strength data cannot be used to indicate the change in strength, which can be increased or degraded by weaving or stitching by a large amount. 5.3. Fatigue performance The fatigue life of laminates is reduced by z-pinning under cyclic tension [19], compression [85] and bending [84] loads. While z-pinning improves the fatigue performance of bonded joints and stieners, as reported earlier, it adversely aects the fatigue life of the material. The fatigue life and fatigue strength decrease with increasing volume content and diameter of the z-pins. For example, reductions to the tensile and compressive fatigue life (SN curve) of a unidirectional carbon/epoxy laminate caused by z-pinning are shown in Fig. 16. The SN curve decreases with increasing z-pin content. The percentage reduction in fatigue strength after one million load cycles is given in Fig. 16, and this also decreases rapidly with increasing z-pin content despite the considerable scatter in the data. This suggests that the development of fatigue-induced damage is accelerated in the presence of z-pins, with the damage growth rate increasing with the volume content of the pins. Chang et al. [19,84] attribute the deterioration to the fatigue life under cyclic tensile and exural loading to the development of fatigue-induced damage at the clusters of broken bres near the z-pins. The reduction to the compressive fatigue performance is due to progressive rotation of the wavy bres near the z-pins with increasing number of load cycles, which accelerates failure by microbuckling and kinking [85]. The reduced bre volume content caused by swelling from the z-pins is also responsible for the

Compression Strength (MPa)

Tensile Strength (MPa)

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2000
no pins

Tensile Fatigue Stress (MPa)

0.5% thin pins

1500

1000

2.0% thin pins 4.0% thin pins

[0] carbon/epoxy

500

no pins: 13% strength reductio n 0.5% thin pins: 15% strength reduction 2.0% thin pins: 33% strength reduction 4.0% thin pins: 35% strength reduction

0 0 10

10

10

10 10 Cycles to Failure

10

10

700 Compressive Fatigue Stress (MPa) 600 500

2.0% thin pins

no pins

400
4.0% thin pins

300 200 100 0

1
[0] carbon/epoxy
No pins: 4% strength reduction 2% pins: 17% strength reduction 4% pins: 28% strength reduction

10

100 1000 10000 100000 1000000 Cycles to Failure

Fig. 16. Eect of z-pin content on the SN curves of a unidirectional composite with dierent z-pin contents subjected to (a) cyclic tension tension and (b) cyclic compressioncompression loading.

deterioration in the fatigue performance under the dierent cyclic load states. It is worth noting that the fatigue performance of 3D woven and stitched composites is also degraded by the through-thickness reinforcement [9094]. Reductions to the fatigue life and fatigue strength for these composites are similar or greater than that experienced by z-pinned materials with the same volume content of through-thickness reinforcement.

6. Concluding remarks This paper has presented an overview of published research and development work into z-pinned composite materials. Over the past 10 years there has been signicant progress, with benets such as improved delamination resistance, damage tolerance, through-thickness stiness and joint strength being demonstrated. The detrimental eects of z-pinning on the in-plane mechanical properties, such as lower elastic modulus, strength and fatigue performance, have also been investigated. In general, the improvements to the interlaminar properties achieved by

z-pinning out-weight the reductions to the in-plane mechanical properties. For example, the through-thickness modulus, impact damage resistance and joint strength of a quasi-isotropic composite can be increased by 50% or more with a relatively modest amount of z-pinning ($24% by volume), at the expense of a comparatively small loss to in-plane modulus and strength (typically under 510%). It is generally observed that the gains to the interlaminar properties are improved by using thinner z-pins (for a xed pin content) while at the same time the losses to the inplane properties are reduced. Therefore, it is desirable to reinforce laminates with the thinnest z-pins, which are currently about 0.2 mm. Further research and development is needed to enable the through-thickness reinforcement of laminates with even smaller z-pins, possibly in the micron-size range using single bres, which is beyond the capabilities of existing z-pinning technology. The research published to date provides a sound basis upon which the application of z-pinned laminates in next-generation aircraft may be evaluated. However, several important technical issues require investigation. Most of the research into z-pinned laminates has been performed on material coupons under well-dened loading conditions (e.g., axial loading). Much less work has been performed on sub-components [31,69,71,95] and full-size aircraft structures containing z-pins subjected to realistic structural and ight loads. This research is very expensive and time-consuming, but is essential for z-pinned laminates to be certied for use in civil aircraft and used with condence in military aircraft. In addition, research into the durability of z-pinned laminates under aerospace environmental conditions is needed (e.g., hot/wet, thermal cycling, moisture ingress, aviation uids, paint strippers). Cracks develop when z-pins detach from the host composite during the cure cycle which provides a pathway for the ingress of moisture and liquids. A complete program of environmental testing on z-pinned laminates is required to determine changes to their durability caused by cracking. More research is needed into modelling the structural performance of z-pinned laminates. Models have been developed to predict the eect of z-pinning on the delamination toughness, local buckling strength, elastic properties and compressive strength, but models do not exist for other properties. A suite of models capable of predicting all the key engineering properties is needed to design zpinned aircraft structures. Further work is needed to develop low-cost, automated manufacturing methods for inserting z-pinning in commercial quantities. In particular, methods of inserting z-pins are needed that minimise the microstructural damage that degrades the mechanical properties, such as bre breakage and swelling. Only after these and other technical issues have been resolved is it possible for z-pins to be used in civil aircraft. Lastly, the awareness by aircraft engineers of the potential benets of z-pinning is essential for it to be considered a viable method for producing damage tolerant aircraft composite structures.

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Acknowledgements The author acknowledges the many valuable discussions with Dr Paul Chang and Dr Brian Cox and the Australian Research Council (Grant No. DP0211709) for funding support. References
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