EFFECTS OF REPLACEMENT OF A DYNAMIC CRASH TEST WITH A OUASI-DYNAMIC ONE: TEST OF PW-5 WORLD CLASS GLIDER

Abstract

This paper presents the results of a comparative study carried out to investigate the possibility of replacing a dynamic crash test with a quasi- dynamic one in a case of a glass-epoxy structure. In the case of gliders, the general practice is that the fuselage is subjected to the required static load and the extent of the damage in the longitudinal direction is judged. Such a procedure is relatively simple and inexpensive and for these reasons it's often applied. However, the relationship between the amount of energy absorbed in a dynamic crash and that absorbed in a quasi- dynamic one is not well known. To obtain necessary information, preliminary investigations with the use of coupons and sub-components were carried out. The results showed that in both cases the failure modes in macro scale were similar, (the same deformation modes) but in micro scale a pronounced difference occurred with respect to the damage modes and the energy absorption mechanisms. The quasi-dynamic loading resulted in the damage caused by the local bending of the laminar composite structure. The dynamic loading resulted in the local bending as well but in addition it produced the extensive delamination being the main mechanism of energy absorption. The results of the tests suggest that the quasi-dynamic test will produce conservative results with respect to the amount of the energy absorbed.