Tetraxial textiles: assessment of mesoscale mechanical modelling by experimental measurements

Tetraxial technical textiles were recently manufactured by a new loom developed to weave yarns in four directions. The textile has warp, weft, and two diagonal yarns oriented at symmetrical angles (typically ±45°) with respect to the warp direction. The peculiar yarns distribution could enhance the mechanical response of the textile in multiple directions aiming to almost isotropic in-plane behaviour. For the prediction of the mechanical performance of such tetraxial textiles, a reliable and accurate predictive model is of relevant importance. The present investigation aims to adopt the finite element numerical approach at the mesoscopic scale to predict the mechanical response for any in-plane loading of tetraxial textiles. An accurate modelling of the constitutive behaviour of the fibrous yarns was adopted considering a hyperelastic model. The modelling of the tetraxial unit cell allowed to have the mechanical behaviour for uniaxial and biaxial tensile and for shear loading conditions. The assessment of the accuracy of the numerical model was performed considering a huge experimental campaign dedicated to several hybrid tetraxial textiles. The comparison highlights the accuracy of the numerical model to predict the nonlinear behavior of the fabric for any loading condition and to provide the proper mechanical model for further optimization of tetraxial textiles supposed for different industrial applications.