Comparative Study of Low-Velocity Impact on Carbon Fiber and Glass Fiber Composite Cylinders

This paper presents an analytical and numerical study of low-velocity impact response in composite cylinders made of carbon fiber, glass fiber, and hybrid layups. A triangular approximation was used to model the analytical force–time history [1,2], while finite element (FE) simulations were performed using Abaqus/Explicit [7,19]. Four configurations were analyzed: carbon-only, glass-only, carbon-outside/glass-inside, and glass-outside/carbon-inside. The analytical model derives closedform expressions for impulse, contact duration, displacement, and stiffness [3,5]. Results show that CFRP cylinders exhibit higher peak forces and shorter contact durations, while GFRP cylinders undergo larger displacements and absorb more energy through deformation [4,6,23]. Hybrid specimens display intermediate responses, with stacking sequence strongly influencing the outcome [8,9,13]. Fiber-reinforced composites are widely used in aerospace, automotive, marine, and energy applications due to their high strength-to-weight ratio [16]. Among these, CFRP are valued for their high stiffness but are relatively brittle and costly [1,2]. GFRP, in contrast, are cheaper and tougher but less stiff [3,4]. Cylindrical structures such as pipelines, pressure vessels, and shells are often exposed to accidental low-velocity impacts [23,24]. Understanding the comparative performance of CFRP, GFRP, and hybrids is essential for safe and optimized design. While several studies explored impact response of plates [10,12,14], fewer works addressed cylindrical shells. The present study combines analytical and numerical approaches to compare CFRP, GFRP, and hybrid cylinders.