Objectives  In order to study the impact resistance of ship local composite structures,

  Methods  the low speed impact tests of large scale glass fiber reinforced vinyl resin composite laminate were carried out by using a pendulum test device, in which a spherical steel punch was adopted. For specimens under the impact of different energy, the damage responses were analyzed in detail by means of surface observation, ultrasonic C scanning and observation of cross-section by microscope. Meanwhile, the impact force and the back center displacement of the specimens were compared.

  Results  The test results show that the composite laminates have no obvious damage on the surface when the collision energy is low, but the inner part of the composite laminates has a large scale of matrix cracking and delamination. And with the increase of collision energy, the degree of damage deepens. Besides the obvious surface damage, there is a wide range of internal delamination inside the composite laminate, accompanied by the phenomenon of fiber fracture.

  Conclusions  The work of this paper can provide reference for assessment of collision resistance of the glass fiber reinforced vinyl resin composite structures.