Definitions /Dictionary/Glossary - nptel

Fabrication: The process of making a composite part or tool.
Fabricator: Manufacturer of reinforced plastic products.
Face Dimpling: The compressive buckling of the facing in between the honeycomb cell walls
caused by thin facings or large cell core.
Face Wrinkling: The local compressive instability of facing; similar to plate buckling on an
elastic foundation.
Facing: It is one of the two outer layers, which has been bonded to the core of a sandwich.
Facing Failure: It is the sandwich panel failure caused by the facing failing in compression,
tension or local buckling.
Fading: It is loss of color in the gel coat.
Fairing: A member or structure, the primary function of which is to streamline the flow of a
fluid by producing a smooth outline and to reduce drag.
Fatigue: The failure or decay of mechanical properties after repeated applications of stress.
Fatigue Life: The number of cycles of deformation required to bring about failure of the test
specimen under a given set of oscillating conditions.
Fatigue Limit: It is the stress below which a material can be stressed cyclically for an infinite
number of times without failure.
Fatigue Ratio: It is the ratio of fatigue strength to tensile strength.
Fatigue Strength: It is the maximum cyclic stress a material can withstand for a given number
of cycles before failure occurs; the residual strength after being subjected to fatigue.
Faying Surfaces: These are the surfaces of materials in contact with each other and joined or
about to be joined together.
FEA: Finite element analysis, a process of selecting the optimum combination of materials in a
composite based on software analysis.
Feathered Edge: In reference to chopped strand mat, this is a mat whose edge was not trimmed
during production. Consequently, the edge tapers down in weight instead of abruptly ending.
Fell: The point of braid formation, which is defined as the point at which the yarns in a braid
system cease movement relative to each other.