Considering the critical energy E

cri
(energy level below which no apparent damage is induced within the
specimen) for the range energies at which composite specimens are subjected during impact events, the overall
response of the specimen can be divided into two main categories: subcritical and supercritical responses. The
force corresponding to the critical energy is often called delamination threshold force (F
d
) and appears at the
same level under any impact value E
0
.

The critical energy was determined here conducting several trials with small increments of the incident impact
energy until damage was observed.