Braiding is a very old textile manufacturing technology that traditionally has been used to produce items like ropes, shoe laces, and cables. Recently, braiding has gained attention in the medical, aerospace, transportation, and civil engineering communities, among others, due to its ability to produce structures that can fulfill the explicit deman

There has been a major resurgence of braiding in worldwide manufacturing and new testing technologies using imaging processes are now being employed. This has allowed significant findings and a better understanding of braided materials. The Handbook of Advances in Braided Composite Materials, Second Edition extensively reviews the properties, design, and manufacturing, testing and next generation applications of braided composite materials. Following the introductory chapter and the opening topic of working with the enclosed composite apps, Part One discusses manufacturing processes and advanced testing of braided composite materials. Part Two then looks at predicting properties and designing braided composite materials, including mechanics for braided composite materials such as micromechanics, macromechanics and ply mechanics. Advances in 2D and 3D modeling, as well as design of braided composite materials, are also covered. Finally, Part Three provides information on the applications of Next Generation braided composite materials. These topics consist of shape memory composites, nanostructures in braids, electrospinning, braidtrusion and green braids. The book presents up-to-date technology developments and recent research findings, along with an android and IPhone App to support design criteria, which is available via an online open source platform provided by the editor. Industrial manufacturers of braided composites, academic researchers working in the design and development of braided composites, professional engineers and postgraduate students will find this book an essential read. - Covers new developments in advanced testing methods and imaging technology - Presents new findings in manufacturing and material properties - Discusses new developments in sustainable green braided composites, and in 3D braiding

Braided fabrics are made by interlacing yarns or strips of fabric. Braiding produces a wide range of structures for technical textile applications from medical sutures to cables for anchoring ships. Written by one of the world's leading experts in the field, the book reviews the basic principles, design and processes used in braiding. The book also discusses specialised braiding techniques such as spiral braiding and lace technology. - Provides a solid foundation in the fundamentals of braiding design, processes and machinery - Covers the patterning of braided products and the structural and colour design of both flat and tubular braids - Reviews maypole braiding machines and mechanics

The manufacturing processes of composite materials are numerous and often complex. Continuous research into the subject area has made it hugely relevant with new advances enriching our understanding and helping us overcome design and manufacturing challenges. Advances in Composites Manufacturing and Process Design provides comprehensive coverage of all processing techniques in the field with a strong emphasis on recent advances, modeling and simulation of the design process. Part One reviews the advances in composite manufacturing processes and includes detailed coverage of braiding, knitting, weaving, fibre placement, draping, machining and drilling, and 3D composite processes. There are also highly informative chapters on thermoplastic and ceramic composite manufacturing processes, and repairing composites. The mechanical behaviour of reinforcements and the numerical simulation of composite manufacturing processes are examined in Part Two. Chapters examine the properties and behaviour of textile reinforcements and resins. The final chapters of the book investigate finite element analysis of composite forming, numerical simulation of flow processes, pultrusion processes and modeling of chemical vapour infiltration processes. - Outlines the advances in the different methods of composite manufacturing processes - Provides extensive information on the thermo-mechanical behavior of reinforcements and composite prepregs - Reviews numerical simulations of forming and flow processes, as well as pultrusion processes and modeling chemical vapor infiltration

This unique volume presents the latest developments in the field of advanced woven and braided textile composites, with particular emphasis on computational approaches (finite elements, meshfree). Advanced textile composites such as woven, braided, knitted and stitched fabrics are increasingly being used as structural materials in industrial applications due to their efficiency at reinforcing more directions within a single layer and their ability to conform to surfaces with complex curvatures. Furthermore, textile composites provide improved impact resistance, exceptional thermal, fatigue and corrosion resistance, as well as being easier and cheaper to handle and fabricate compared to UD composites. Topics covered in this book include: 2D and 3D plain, twill, satin woven and braided composites, micro-level and macro-level modelling, failure mechanisms, theoretical studies on cryogenic crack behaviour and the specific deformation modes of textile reinforcements, which include the kinematic and hypoelastic models. This book will be particularly relevant to professional engineers, graduate students and researchers interested in composite materials.

Fibre reinforced polymer (FRP) composites are used in almost every type of advanced engineering structure, with their usage ranging from aircraft, helicopters and spacecraft through to boats, ships and offshore platforms and to automobiles, sports goods, chemical processing equipment and civil infrastructure such as bridges and buildlings. The usage of FRP composites continues to grow at an impessive rate as these materials are used more in their existing markets and become established in relatively new markets such as biomedical devices and civil structures. A key factor driving the increased applications of composites over the recent years is the development of new advanced forms of FRP materials. This includes developments in high performance resin systems and new styles of reinforcement, such as carbon nanotubes and nanoparticles. This book provides an up-to-date account of the fabrication, mechanical properties, delamination resistance, impact tolerance and applications of 3D FRP composites. The book focuses on 3D composites made using the textile technologies of weaving, braiding, knitting and stiching as well as by z-pinning.