Current research realize to develop a safer, lighter and higher energy absorbing fully thermoplastic (polypropylene fibres and acrylic Elium resin) and hybrid composite helmets (polypropylene/carbon hybrid and Elium resin) and perform the CPSC 1203 certification tests on different anvils.The failure and energy absorption mechanisms were studied and 5 Piece LAF Sectional compared with widely used polycarbonate helmets (PC/EPS) and the composite shells manufactured with epoxy resin.The fully thermoplastic and hybrid composite shells have shown up to 65% of absorbed energy while the polycarbonate shells have absorbed a maximum of 13% of the absorbed energy.
The usage of composite shells has lead to minimal energy transfer to the foam which is directly attached to the human head and provided improved safety.The high-speed camera has shown clear deformation of the thermoplastic composite shell owing to the ductile behaviour while the catastrophic failure with significant cracks was observed in the Epoxy-based composite shell.Considering the head injury criteria, the PC/EPS helmet showed the highest fatality rate (6%) when Tryptophan impacted on the flat anvil.
The usage of fully thermoplastic and hybrid composite shell reduces the probability of critical and fatal injury by around 40% and 60% respectively when compared to PC/EPS configuration.