François Boussu

Ecole Nationale Superieure des Arts et Industries Textiles · GEMTEX laboratory

In the era of enhancing protective textiles, understanding the performance of different textile materials under various testing procedures is of utmost importance. This book chapter endeavors to highlight and systematically reveal the results of various experimental studies on the stabbing and ballistic impact performances of different innovative m...

Three-dimensional (3D) warp interlock woven composites (3DWIWC) are in demand in various industries due to their excellent delamination resistance, damage tolerance and fracture toughness properties. The 3D warp interlock woven fabric architecture can be defined by numerous fabric parameters such as: the binding and stuffer warp yarns, the woven pa...

The availability of the Agave Sisalana plant in Morocco and the use of this plant only in traditional medicine was the subject of the choice of the Moroccan Agave Sisalana plant in the current study for the development of multilayer woven reinforcement. The variability of natural fiber properties requires a detailed approach to the behavior of pref...

The main objective of this paper aims at investigating the potential use of sisal yarn into composite material despite the inherent variability of properties of natural resources. A multi-scale approach of the behavior of sisal fiber woven reinforcements is conducted to understand and evaluate the different properties of woven reinforcements. At th...

Printed electronics (PE) is one of the most dynamic technologies in the world. It proposes low-cost electronic network production in flexible substrates by numerous printing techniques, (screen printing, gravure, offset, flexographic, and inkjet printing), used in various industries. In PE, ink pigments are replaced by metallic particles or precurs...

Composite materials are widely used in the transportation domain due to their favorable ratio of performance versus weight. However, due to the nonhomogeneous composition of composite materials as a result of the combination of fibrous reinforcement and matrix, some mechanical performances can be affected by the ageing effect, as well as some lack...

Three dimensional (3D) warp interlock fabric becomes a promising structure due to its good mechanical performances. However, its complex manufacturing process can cause severe yarn damage and affects its overall final performances. The current study addressed the effects weaving process and warp yarn ratios on the multi-filaments yarn degradations...

Fabrics constructed from 3 D warp interlock fabrics (3DWIFs) structures provide varying flexibility and durability and are promising structures for protective applications. However, its performance toward stab resistance from knife attack should be investigated before applying. In this work, the influences of fabric architectures, ply orientation o...

Composite materials which are reinforced with 3D warp interlock fabrics have outstanding mechanical properties such as higher delamination resistance, ballistic damage resistance and impact damage tolerance by means of their improved structural properties. Textile reinforcements are exposed to large deformations in the production stage of composite...

The high-performance fibres are employed largely as reinforced polymer fabrics and composites in the flexible and stiff stab-resistant personal protection equipment. To simulate the knife attack on the human body, a new methodology named pre-deformed stabbing is developed to characterise the stab performance taking into account the fabric’s deforma...

Personal protective body armor is one of the most important pieces of equipment which helps to guard human beings from different kinds of critical and fatal injuries. Besides, for the last few decades’, women’s participation has been also significantly increased in various threat exposed tasks such as military, law enforcement offices, personal gua...

In recent years, the research interest on three-dimensional warp interlock woven fabrics (3DWIFs) as reinforcement in composites is warranted and obtained popularity due to their advantages over two-dimensional laminated fabrics. The current literature tends to address the aspects of mechanical properties of 3DWIFs by experimental and numerical app...

This research paper presented recent advancements on the manufacturing technique of the 3D warp interlock fabrics (3DWIFs) as fibrous material. Four different types of 3DWIFs are designed by WiseTex© and DB-WEAVE software: Angle interlock/through-the-thickness binding (A/T), Angle interlock/layer-to-layer binding (A/L), Orthogonal interlock/through...

Textile materials can be used as a soft solution to protect the human body of the soldier and as a hard solution to provide more efficient armour for various types of vehicles. Their advantages are numerous in terms of performance versus weight, forming ability and availability of different types of high-performance yarns. Special attention has bee...

The 3D warp interlock carbon fabrics, which have different structural properties, were produced and their tensile, bending, shear and formability properties were tested in our previous study. However, further analyses and modelling studies are needed to have an overall understanding of the specific and complex behaviours of the 3D warp interlock ca...

The 3D warp interlock weaving process, derived from the 2D weaving loom, can face to many problems during the production. Based on our previous research works using several looms and different types of yarns, with variations on the raw material and linear density, the 3D warp interlock weaving could led to yarn-to-yarn and yarn to loom parts fricti...

This chapter is dedicated to provide the basic knowledge to design a dobby fabric. A first part of this chapter will provide a brief classification of the different types of existing 2D and 3D fabric. Then, basic knowledge on the weave diagram theory and the different rules to model a fabric will be introduced. General definitions with examples of...

After introducing and explaining the main interest to use 3D warp interlock fabrics, a step-by-step methodology will be proposed to design the elementary woven pattern by using a cross-section view with the drawing of the different warp yarns path inside the architecture. Thus, different types of product parameters will be introduced to obtain the...

The dynamic behaviour of a woven fabric submitted to a ballistic impact is a complex phenomenon. The dynamic deformations of yarns over time are still unknown both from the experimental and modeling point of view. To overcome this lack of information, a sensor yarn has been developed to monitor the dynamic strain while based on the same raw materia...

Modern industry can produce composite materials with a wide range of mechanical properties applicable in the medicine, aviation, and automotive industries, etc. However, the construction industry is responsible for a substantial part of the budgets worldwide and uses vast amounts of materials. Engineering practice has revealed that innovative techn...

The performance of bulletproof vests is mainly based on the energy absorption capacity of the flexible fibrous reinforcements. To understand the in situ behaviour of these textile structures during a ballistic impact, we find the use of sensor yarns integrated into these fibrous reinforcements to be a non-invasive and reliable solution. Measurement...

In this work, a sensor yarn based on a natural sisal yarn containing a non-electro-conductive core impregnated with PVA polymer and coated by PEDOT:PSS polymer as an electro-conductive sheath was investigated. The main objectives include the development of this new sensor yarn as a first step. Then, we look towards the insertion of this sensor yarn...

Despite the variability of Moroccan natural resources, few Moroccan natural fibers are exploited as natural textile composites. This study aims to investigate the characteristics of 3D warp interlock fabrics based on Moroccan sisal yarns. Before weaving, the characteristics of sisal yarns have been analyzed following standards. Based on these natur...

Le procédé de tissage 3D permet de réaliser des renforts tissés complexes et adaptés à la forme finale du matériau composite. Les différents paramètres produits de ces tissus 3D permettent d’obtenir des propriétés mécaniques plus adaptées à la résistance au délaminage et à l’impact. Une définition générale de ces tissus 3D interlock chaîne, incluan...

This paper presents the influence of fabric structures and stab angles on single-pass stab impact and the repeated and multi-angle stabbings of 3-dimensional (3D) warp interlock structural fabrics based on the high-molecular-weight polyethylene (HMWPE) yarns. Five kinds of samples with different structures were experimentally tested using the drop...

The aim of the current study is to further investigate the impact of the sisal fiber content up to 30% on the mechanical and thermal properties of polylactic acid (PLA) matrix composites following up to our previous study for sisal content up to 15%. The biocomposites were prepared successfully using a twin‐screw extruder and an injection molding m...

This paper investigates the influences of woven fabric type, impact locations and number of layers on ballistic impact performances of target panels through trauma dimension and panel surface damage mechanisms for lightweight women ballistic vest design. Three panels with 30, 35 and 40 layers of two-dimensional plain weave and another two panels wi...

The effects of the yarn composition system inside 3D woven high-performance textiles are not well investigated and understood against their final ballistic impact behaviour. The current study aims to examine the ballistic impact performances of armour panels made of different 3D woven fabric variants through postmortem observations. Four high-perfo...

Personal body armour is one of the most important pieces of equipment to protect human beings from various critical and fatal injuries. In today’s modern world, various organizations including law enforcement and security service have made it mandatory for their personnel to wear personal protection system while on field duty. However, the systems...

This work aims to investigate the physical and mechanical properties of sisal fiber and yarn of Moroccan origin. The cellulosic and non-cellulosic constituents of the Moroccan sisal fiber were identified by FTIR spectroscopy. The thermal properties were studied by thermogravimetric analysis. The hydrophilicity of the fiber was evaluated by the cont...

Materials used in the technical application including composite reinforcements and ballistic fabrics should show not only good mechanical performance but also better deformational behaviors. Meanwhile, three dimensional (3D) warp interlock fabrics have been widely employed in such applications to substitute the two dimensional (2D) fabrics because...

Recently, three-dimensional (3D) warp interlock fabric has been involved in composite reinforcement and soft ballistic material due to its great moldability, improved impact energy-absorbing capacity, and good intra-ply resistance to delamination behaviors. However, understanding the effects of different parameters of the fabric on its mechanical b...

This paper investigates the effects of warp yarns ratios on the ballistic performances of three-dimensional (3D) warp interlock p-aramid fabrics. Four 3D warp interlock variants with different binding and stuffer warp yarns ratios were designed and developed. Except for warp yarns ratios, similar fabric parameters and manufacturing conditions were...

3D weaving process has been more and more used as reinforcement for composite materials. However, 3D weaving applications are recent and the mechanical properties of the 3D warp interlock fabrics are not well known. Tensile tests have been performed both in the warp and weft directions of the fabrics, indeed they lead to different behaviour regardi...

The aim of this research is the valorization of Moroccan natural resources through the manufacturing of innovative 3D interlocks textiles. In order to investigate the potential of the sisal yarns used into 3D warp interlock fabrics, the 3D fabrics were studied at multi-scales (micro-scale, meso-scale and macro-scale). Before starting the manufactur...

The aim of the current study is to develop and optimize a flexible sensor based on a natural sisal fiber. Based on this sensor yarn, different fibrous reinforcements of 3D warp interlock fabrics used in composite materials could be monitored. This natural yarn (Sisal) has been pre-coated with a layer of PVA solution which makes it possible to homog...

As promising fibrous reinforcements in the thick composites manufacturing, 3-dimensional warp interlock fabrics (3DWIFs) are recognised more and more in the industry for their outstanding mechanical properties compared to the 2D laminates. The present work shows the influence of the fabric’s architecture on the tensile behaviour of 3DWIFs. Five kin...

The three-dimensional weaving process enables to produce near-net shaped complex preforms used as reinforcement of composite materials. However, the lack of knowledge on the mechanical behaviour of these three-dimensional woven structures may restrict their use for composite material. To fill this gap, we have tempted to highlight their specific me...

Multiscale characterization of the textile preform made of natural fibers is an indispensable way to understand and assess the mechanical properties and behavior of composite. In this study, a multiscale experimental characterization is performed on three-dimensional (3D) warp interlock woven fabrics made of flax fiber on the fiber (micro), roving...

The feasibility to manufacture a 3D warp interlock preform from 1000 Tex flax roving is investigated by means of a prototype machine developed to GEMTEX laboratory. The provided flax roving has low tensile failure load because of lack of twist so it isn’t suitable for weaving. The first step was dedicated to improve the tensile properties of the ro...

Mouldability, along with other mechanical properties, is a very crucial material parameter in various technical textile applications, including composites and soft body armour products. Moreover, the mouldability and recovery behaviours of the material will be affected by various internal and external parameters before, during and after the forming...

Flax is a natural fiber with a growing industrial interest. Technical textiles and composites industries are increasingly fond of this type of fiber, with good mechanical properties. The aim of this study is to characterize 3D warp interlock fabric, from the raw material, here a flax roving. After a brief introduction of this type of fabric, struct...

The material forming capability becomes one of the most important characteristic of textile performance in the manufacturing of three-dimensional (3D) components to fit a 3D surface in various technical applications. In this study, different forming characteristics of 3D warp interlock fabrics in dry fabric condition were investigated. 3D warp inte...

This paper investigates the influences of woven fabric type, impact locations and number of layers on ballistic impact performances of target panels through trauma dimension and panel surface damage mechanisms for lightweight women ballistic vest design. Three panels with 30, 35 and 40 layers of two-dimensional plain weave and two panels with 30 an...

This paper investigates the influences of woven fabric type, impact locations and number of layers on ballistic impact performances of target panels through trauma dimension and panel surface damage mechanisms for lightweight women ballistic vest design. Three panels with 30, 35 and 40 layers of two-dimensional plain weave and two panels with 30 an...

Landmines and Improvised Explosive Devices are known to be major threats for the coalition armies in operation. In order to protect the soldiers from their effects, armored vehicle manufacturers developed some blast protective solutions. However, these solutions often reduce the vehicles’ mobility and payload capacity because of their shape or weig...

Le tissage 3D interlock chaine permet de réaliser des préformes épaisses pour matériaux composites. Or, cette technologie est très peu employée pour des renforts à base de fibres naturelles. Cette étude démontre à la fois la faisabilité du tissage 3D interlock chaine pour les fibres naturelles et s’intéresse à l’influence du nombre de couches sur l...

3D warp interlock fabric became a promising structure to develop women body armour due to its good mouldability. However, its ballistic performance for different threats should be investigated This paper aims to investigate the ballistic performances of 3D interlock p-aramid (Twaron®) fabric panels’ against NIJ (National Institute of Justice) stand...

Ballistic impact mechanism is a very complex mechanical process which depends on various parameter mainly the thickness, strength, ductility, toughness and density of the target material and projectile parameters. Nowadays, the developments of tough, high-strength and high- modulus fibres have led to the use of fabrics and their composite laminates...

In today’s scenario, numerous studies have shown a great interest on 3D woven structures like 3D warp interlock fabric as a fibre reinforcement for composite material to provide a better impact than 2D laminated fabrics with unlinked structures in the thickness. The impact energy absorption capacity depends on different and independent parameters,...

In today’s scenario many personnels including police officers, security guards, field journalist etc. made it mandatory to wear ballistic protection garments while on duty. In order to give the required protection, most of the ballistic protecting garment (vests) were developed with higher number of fabic layers.The development of such garment usin...

Smart textile structures such as sensor yarns provide real possibility for in situ structural health monitoring of textile reinforced thermoplastic composites. In this work thermal properties of E-glass/polypropylene (GF/PP) and E-glass/poly(N,N’-hexamethylene adipamide) (GF/PA66) sensor yarns based on conductive polymer complex [3,4(ethylenedioxy)...

Cette étude décrit à la fois la faisabilité du tissage 3D interlock chaine à base de mèches de lin et la caractérisation multi-échelle de ces renforts secs pour matériaux composites. Le tissage 3D interlock chaine permet de réaliser des structures épaisses, plus résistantes aux délaminages que les empilements de tissus 2D. Les propriétés mécaniques...

The final geometry of 3D warp interlock fabric needs to be check during the 3D forming step to ensure the right locations of warp and weft yarns inside the final structure. Thus, a new monitoring approach has been proposed based on sensor yarns located in the fabric thickness. To ensure the accuracy of measurements, the observation of the surface d...

The advantages of green composites are including, but not limited to their environmental friendly nature, lightweight, reduction of production energy and costs, and recyclability. This work focuses on the mechanical, thermal, and dynamic mechanical properties of biocomposites. For that purpose, biosourced polymers were used, namely polylactic acid...

Significant efforts have been made so far to improve the overall performance of female soft body armor. However, still designing female soft body armor which accommodates the bust area for different women morphological differences with good comfort, fitness, and better ballistic protection is in its great demand. This research paper presents an eff...

The present study carries on the characterization of dry reinforcement structure for composite material. Yarn properties were analyzed to select the optimal level of twist. The influence of 3D-warp interlock structure's bending type was also investigated. Structures, made with 1000Tex flax roving, were woven on a dobby loom. Physical characterizati...

Female participants in different perilous tasks including law enforcement offices have been considerably increased in the last few decades. However, they mostly wear men’s body armour with smaller sizes which brings a negative upshot not only in ballistic protection performance, comfort, fitness but also in a psychological point of view. Hence, man...