Abstract
Square specimens of laminated glass having different glass layer and polymer layer thicknesses were prepared and tested under impact loading. Impact absorbed energy was measured using an instrumented drop weight testing system. The measured energy was then divided into two parts, namely, energy I and energy II. The energy I is related to the initial fracture of glass layers, and the energy II is associated with the subsequent crack propagation in glass layers, plastic deformation and shear fracture of polymer layer. The energy III is defined as the total absorbed energy, i. e., the sum of the energy I and II. Effects of glass layer and film thickness on these energies were examined. The energy absorbed by each of the three mechanisms, glass fracture, plastic deformation and shear fracture of polymer film, was estimated independently by conducting a unique impact testing method designed for each mechanism. For each configuration of laminated glass, an analytical value of impact absorbed energy was derived from these energy values, and compared with the three energies I, II and III. Good correspondence was then obtained, and thus, impact fracture behavior of laminated glass was qualitatively characterized.
