Development of Multi-Bar Weft-Insert Warp Knit Glass Fabrics for Industrial Applications

The concomitant nature of the translational efficiency of material properties and the toughness of woven fabrics have been a technical problem in many industrial applications involving the use of high modulus materials. Recent advance in warp knitting technology has created new possibilities in the engineering of fabric structures. Work on Multi-Bar Weft-Insert Warp Knit (MB-WIWK) fiberglas fabrics showed that fabric elongation can be engineered without sacrificing yarn properties. The geometry of the structural unit cell in a MB-WIWK fabric is similar to a trellis mechanism which can elongate until jamming, thereby providing a controlled and recoverable amount of fabric extension without exerting a compressive stress on the high modulus yarns. This unique fabric geometry can provide structural integrity plus an energy-absorbing capability which is necessary for satisfactory performance under dynamic loading conditions.