Creep in unidirectionally reinforced polymer composites

Conclusions We have explored here the possibilities of predicting the permanent creep in unidirectionally reinforced polymer composite materials from the results of accelerated testing of their components. The mutually independent components of the viscoelastic compliance tensor under conditions of creep have been calculated with the aid of the Laplace transformation and an earlier verified variant of determining the mean elastic characteristics of a composite material, whereupon the originals of the sought functions have been obtained by a numerical inverse Laplace transformation. Experiments were performed with unidirectionally reinforced materials, a glass-plastic, an organoplastic, a carbon-plastic, and a boroplastic, all tested in tension in the direction of fiber reinforcement and in the transverse direction, also in longitudinal shear. The possibilities of predicting the creep in composite materials with the aid of functions characterizing the viscoelastic compliance of the binder and obtained by the method of temperature-time analogy have been confirmed twofold: by long-duration (up to 3 yr) control tests performed on the given materials and by control calculation of the creep in these composite materials from results of direct long-duration (up to 5 yr) tests performed on specimens of the binder.Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, No. 2, pp. 215–223, March–April, 1984.     

Thermal deformation of unidirectional hybrid composites. 2

Conclusions A variant of the solution of the problem of the thermorheologically complex temperature strain of a hybrid composite containing viscoelastic thermorheologically simple components with differing functions for temperature-time reduction in addition to elastic components, is proposed. An experimental study is conducted on unidirectional specimens of organic- and glass-fiber-reinforced plastic, organic- and carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic, and carbon- and glass-fiber-reinforced plastic at a constant rate of temperature change in the 20–150 °C range. Satisfactory correspondence is obtained between predicted and experimental data.For previous communication, see [1].Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, No. 6, pp. 969–979, November–December, 1989.     

Calculation of deformative and thermal properties of multiphase composite materials filled with composite or hollow spherical inclusions by the effective medium method

A theoretical investigation was carried out to examine the possibilities of a structural approach to prediction of elastic constants, creep functions, and thermal properties of multiphase polymer composite materials filled with composite or hollow spherical Inclusions of several types. The problem of determining effective properties of the composite was solved by generalizing the effective medium method, a variant of the self-consistent method, for the case of a four-phase kernel-shell-matrix-equivalent homogeneous medium model. Exact analytical expressions for the bulk modulus thermal expansion coefficient, thermal conductivity coefficient, and specific heat were obtained. The solution for the shear modulus is given in the form of a nonlinear equation whose coefficients are the solution of a system of 12 linear equations.To be presented at the Ninth International Conference on the Mechanics of Composite Materials, Riga, October 1995.Published in Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, Vol. 31, No. 4, pp. 462–472, July–August, 1995.     

Long-Term Creep of Hybrid Aramid/Glass-Fiber-Reinforced Plastics

The results of experimental investigation of the long-term creep of SVM aramid fibers, EDT-10 epoxy resin, aramid-epoxy FRP (fiber-reinforced plastics), glass-epoxy FRP, and aramid/glass-epoxy hybrid FRP with different volume fractions of aramid and glass fibers are presented. The long-term tests were continued for 50,000 h (5.7 years). A structural approach for predicting the long-term creep from the properties and content of the components is considered. The effect of hybridization (partial replacement of the aramid fibers by glass fibers) on the inelastic deformation of hybrid FRP is discussed. The redistribution of stresses in the components during long-term creep of the hybrid composites is analyzed.     

Micromechanical modelling and two-scale simulation of epoxy/glass composites with interphases and interfaces

Composite systems consisting of glass fibres and epoxy matrix with interphases and interfaces will be considered in the modelling approach. The interphase forms the transition zone between the epoxy matrix and the glass fibre. The interface is the layer between the glass fibre and the surrounding interphase. The macroscopic strength of the composite material is intrinsically related to the bond strength of the polymeric/solid interface and the micromechanical characteristics of the three phases (epoxy, glass and interphase). Homogenization is an appropriate methodology to link these two scales to predict the overall physical behaviour of the composite. The nonlinear behaviour of amorphous polymers, cohesive interface elements and the elastic behaviour of glass fibres as part of the considered composite material are presented, as well as a representative example to show the necessity of taking interface influences into account. (© 2010 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Thermal conductivity of unidirectionally reinforced hybrid composites

Conclusion The thermal conductivity of organic-glass, organic-carbon, and carbon-glass plastic in dependence on the volumetric content of organic, glass, and carbon fibers was experimentally investigated. The solution for transverse thermal conductivity of unidirectional hybrid composite, obtained in [8] by generalizing the method of self-congruence to the case of a triphase model, is in satisfactory agreement with the experimental data.Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, No. 5, pp. 817–822, September–October, 1990.     

Aging of polymer composite materials exposed to the conditions in outer space

A comprehensive investigation is made of glass, carbon, organic fiber-reinforced plastics, and epoxy-based hybrid composite materials employed in Salyut-type spacecraft which remained in space for up to 1501 1501 days. In particular, the properties, aging mechanism, and strain-strength variations in these materials due to exposure to the conditions in outer space were studied. After a series of tests were performed in space the standard strain and strength parameters as well as the mass, density, and thickness changes in the composite materials were estimated. Electron-microscopic and dynamic-mechanical analyses were performed, and the thermal expansion was estimated for a wide range of temperatures. The principal, dominant process occurring due to the continuous presence in outer space was found to be post-curing of the resin materials, which in turn affected the mechanical characteristics of the composite materials. After 456–1501 days in space the room-temperature strength of the composite materials (except for organic plastics) did not decrease, while at high temperatures it even increased. The post-curing and restructuring of some composite materials lowered their dynamic shear moduli in the glassy state of the resin. Due to consolidation of the surface layer of hybrid composite materials irradiated and subjected to thermal cycles, failure during bending varied from transverse fracture to delamination. The negative effect of the post-curing process was expressed as higher internal tension in the hybrid composite materials with different linear thermal expansion coefficients. The magnitude of this effect depended on the amplitude of the thermal cycles. The unprotected surface of the composites bombarded by atomic oxygen, microparticles, and space garbage were subjected to pickling and microerosion, the maximum effect occurring at the initial stage of exposure. Desorption of moisture and low-molecular products during the first 100–200 days of thermal cycling in the vacuum of near-earth orbit must be considered when estimating the total mass loss of composite materials. Data from microscopic, dynamic-mechanical, and other types of analyses revealed that the outer-space factors improved the supermolecular order of the resin volume, while the subsurface layer structure of the composite materials had loosened. Microcracks formed in the plastic's surface during 1501 days in outer space did not, in general, affect the mechanical parameters of the composite materials. Most of the observed effects of exposure to conditions in outer space were less pronounced for plastics protected by aluminum foil or other plastic coatings. The data obtained can be used for designing external elements of spacecraft by selecting materials with specified and predictable properties for long-term service.Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, Vol. 29, No. 4, pp. 457–467, July–August, 1993.In conclusion we thank I. G. Zhigun and R. P. Shlits for assisting in determining the mechanical properties of PCM as well as the crew of the Salyut-6 and Salyut-7 space stations for setting up, monitoring, and delivering samples to earth.     

Thermal deformation of a composite reinforced with hybrid cloth strips

Conclusion We tested (for mechanical and thermal effects) composites reinforced with hybrid cloth COS and VAI strips; five alternate schemes of material, which differred in terms of the content of VAI layers and layers reinforced with COS, were tested. The elasticity characteristics, tension diagrams, and CLTE of the composites were determined. It was established experimentally that variation in the relative content of the above-indicated layers makes it possible to regulate the thermal expansion of the composite in the longitudinal direction of the reinforcing strips Objectively over significant ranges; in this case, the elastic modulus varies negligibly, while the specific elastic modulus remains virtually unchanged,An alternate scheme for determining the elasticity characteristics and CLTE of laminar polymeric materials reinforced with hybrid cloth strips on the basis of component properties is developed. The model according to which the structural organization of the composite is subdivided into several levels is primarily a computational model. The stress-strain state of the repeating structural elements is evaluated by methods of the strength of materials. The proposed algorithm for computing the physicomechanical characteristics of laminar composites is implemented in the form of a computer program. The experimental elasticity characteristics and CLTE obtained for composites with a different content of COS and VAI layers are compared with those calculated in accordance with the method developed (the computed values correspond to the experimental with an accuracy acceptable for engineering applications).Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, No. 3, pp. 392–401, May–June, 1988.     

Comparative micromechanical analysis of nonelastic behavior of unidirectional plastics with tetragonal and hexagonal structures

A mathematical model for determining the effective elastic properties and describing the processes of inelastic deformation and damage accumulation of unidirectional fiber-reinforced composites with tetragonal and hexagonal structures is developed. A comparative analysis of the effective elastic moduli of glass, boron, organic, and carbon unidirectional plastics shows that, if the fiber volume fraction does not exceed 0.5, the effective elastic properties calculated by the models presented give closely related results. The calculation results for nonlinear fields of deformation and failure are presented and the limiting strength surfaces of fibrous glass plastics with hexagonal and tetragonal structures are obtained for different transverse loading paths. It is found that the structure of a composite affects significantly its strength properties.Submitted to the 11th International Conference on Mechanics of Composite Materials (Riga, June 11–15, 2000).Perm' State Technical University, Perm', Russia. Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, Vol. 36, No. 4, pp. 455–464, July–August, 2000.     

Prediction of the deformation properties of a polymeric composite with a granular-fibrous filler

Conclusion A variant of calculation of the characteristics of the deformation properties of a hybrid composite containing a complex disperse filler in the form of granular particles and short fibers was proposed. The effect of aggregation of the granular filler, the statistical distributions of the fibers by lengths and orientation in the material, and the anisotropy of the fibers are taken into consideration in the calculation. The statistical distribution of the orientation of the fibers is given by a function proportional to the distance from the center to the surface of a triaxial ellipsoid in the corresponding direction. The uniform random distribution of the fibers in bulk and in the plane is a special case of this distribution. The results of the analysis of the effect of the parameters of the statistical distributions of the length and orientation of short fibers on the elasticity characteristics of a composite are reported. The dependence of the creep of the composite on the ratio of the concentration of the components of the complex filler was determined, and the efficiency of partial replacement of a granular filler by a short-fiber filler to inhibit creep of the composite was demonstrated. The possibilities of predicting the long-term creep were experimentally confirmed on the example of LDPE filled with ground limestone and short glass fibers.Presented at the Sixth All-Union Conference on the Mechanics of Polymer and Composite Materials (Riga, November, 1986).Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, No. 5, pp. 898–909, September–October, 1987.     

Asymptotic evaluation of effective complex moduli of fibre‐reinforced viscoelastic composite materials

We propose an asymptotic approach for the evaluation of effective complex moduli of viscoelastic fibre‐reinforced composite materials. Our method is based on the homogenization technique. We start with a non‐trivial expansion of the input plane‐strain boundary value problem by ratios of visco‐elastic constants. This allows to simplify the governing equations to forms analogous to the complex transport problem. Then we apply the asymptotic homogenization method, coming from the original problem on multi‐connected domain to the cell problem, defined on a unit cell of the periodic structure. For the analytical solution of the cell problem we apply the boundary perturbation technique, the asymptotic expansion by a distance between two neighbouring fibres and the method of two‐point Padé approximants. As results we derive uniform analytical representations for effective complex moduli, valid for all values of the components volume fractions and properties.     

Creep of orthogonally reinforced spherofibrous composites

Models of composites with three-dimensional structure, a proposed problem solving method, and Rabotnov's creep operators were used assuming purely elastic deformation of the composite along the orientation of the fibers to determine the viscoelastic properties of composites on inclined surfaces in a three-dimensional stressed state. The formulas used in viscoelasticity theory in the elastic region of component deformation lead to results in satisfactory accord with the reported experimental elastic properties of composites with three-dimensional structure.A. A. Blagonravov Mechanical Engineering Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow. Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, Vol. 32, No. 6, pp. 780–786, November–December, 1996.     

Effect of fillers on the structure and properties of cured resins

The elastic (modulus of elasticity and equilibrium high-elastic modulus) and thermal (volume coefficients of thermal expansion below and above the glass transition temperature) properties of compositions based on ÉD-5 epoxy resin cured with polyethylenepolyamine have been investigated. Quartz powder and aluminoborosilicate glass powder were employed as fillers at concentrations from 0 to 0.413. The thermal expansion coefficients of the compositions were studied in a dilatometer, in which the specimen is free of mechanical loads. The Young's modulus at 25°C and the equilibrium high-elastic modulus at 125°C of the compositions were determined in the compression regime in an instrument based on the IZV-2 optical length gage. The thermal expansion coefficients of the polymer matrix were calculated with allowance for the elastic properties of the resin and the filler. It is shown that, as the filler concentration increases, the thermal and elastic properties of the resin in the filled system change. This can be interpreted as a change in the properties of the resin as it approaches the surface of the filler particles. Increased interaction between the filler surface and the epoxy resin tends to stiffen the polymer network.Scientific Research Institute of Precision Technology, Moscow. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 6, pp. 1018–1022, November–December, 1969.     

Generalized self-consistent method: Modeling and computation of effective elastic properties of composites with composite or hollow inclusions

A new approach to the generalized self-consistent method [1,2] has been developed for problems of the statistical mechanics of composites with composite or hollow inclusions. The approach can reduce the problem of predicting the effective elastic properties of composites to a simpler averaged problem of a single, composite, or hollow inclusion with inhomogeneous elastic surrounding in a homogeneous effective elastic medium. The problem of predicting the effective elastic properties of composites with unidirectional hollow fibers or hollow spherical inclusions are studied by using the new approach.Submitted to the 10th International Conference on Mechanics of Composite Materials, April 20–23, 1998, Riga, Latvia.Perm' State Technical University, Russia. Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, Vol. 34, No. 2, pp. 173–183, March–April, 1998.     

Creep simulation in polymer matrix — disperse filler composites

The deformation properties of composites with disperse fillers in close to maximum amounts were investigated. Two types of matrices were selected: epoxy resin with high structural stability in filling, and a crystalline polymer-trioxane-dioxolane copolymer. Materials with a high and low relative surface area-diatomite and ceramic-were used as fillers. The elastic properties were simulated with the Kerner model and creep was simulated with its viscoelastic analog. The model was extended to a matrix-filler-buffer layer model. The possibility of estimating the part of the matrix entering the pores of the filler was examined. Differences in the use of the structural models in predicting elasticity and viscoelasticity were examined. The best results in describing creep were obtained for epoxy resin-ceramic filler composites which have the least interaction between matrix and filler. The possibility of estimating the change in the degree of crystallinity of the matrix and formation of buffer layers in filling with active fillers was examined.Presented at the Ninth International Conference on the Mechanics of Composite Materials (Riga, October, 1995).Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, Vol. 31, No. 6, pp. 754–768, November–December, 1995.     

Time — Temperature superposition for thermorheologically complex materials

The shift factora _T for thermorheologically complex bodies is a function not only of temperature T but also of the deformation time t. A method is given for determining the vertical shift factor on the basis of macro-tests within the experimental time window. A procedure for determining the shift functiona _T(T, t) is described with reference to the isothermal creep of a polyester glass-reinforced plastic in shear in the plane of reinforcement, and a master curve, simulating the long-term creep of a thermorheologically complex composite, is constructed. The predictions are compared with a long-term control experiment.Institute of Polymer Mechanics, Academy of Sciences of the Latvian SSR, Riga. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 2, pp. 209–215, March–April, 1974.     

高体积百分比颗粒增强聚合物材料的有效粘弹性性质

聚合物材料通常表现为粘弹性性质．为了改进聚合物材料的力学性能,通常将某种无机材料以颗粒或纤维的形式填充到聚合物中,从而得到增强、增韧的聚合物基复合材料．提出了一个新的细观力学模型,用于预测颗粒增强聚合物复合材料的有效粘弹性性质,尤其针对高体积百分比的颗粒夹杂复合材料,该方法基于Laplace变换和双夹杂相互作用的弹性模型．计算了玻璃微珠/ED-6复合材料的有效松弛模量以及恒应变率下的应力应变关系．计算结果表明在高体积百分比下该文方法比基于Mori Tanaka方法预测的粘弹性效应明显减弱．     

Generalized self-consistent method for predicting the effective elastic properties of composites with random hybrid structures

The feasibility of using a generalized self-consistent method for predicting the effective elastic properties of composites with random hybrid structures has been examined. Using this method, the problem is reduced to solution of simpler special averaged problems for composites with single inclusions and corresponding transition layers in the medium examined. The dimensions of the transition layers are defined by correlation radii of the composite random structure of the composite, while the heterogeneous elastic properties of the transition layers take account of the probabilities for variation of the size and configuration of the inclusions using averaged special indicator functions. Results are given for a numerical calculation of the averaged indicator functions and analysis of the effect of the micropores in the matrix-fiber interface region on the effective elastic properties of unidirectional fiberglass—epoxy using the generalized self-consistent method and compared with experimental data and reported solutions.Perm State Technical University. Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitmykh Materialov, Vol. 33, No. 3, pp. 289–299, May–June, 1997.     

Creep of Heat-Resistant Composites of an Oxide-Fiber/Ni-Matrix Family

A creep model of a composite with a creeping matrix and initially continuous elastic brittle fibers is developed. The model accounts for the fiber fragmentation in the stage of unsteady creep of the composite, which ends with a steady-state creep, where a minimum possible average length of the fiber is achieved. The model makes it possible to analyze the creep rate of the composite in relation to such parameters of its structure as the statistic characteristics of the fiber strength, the creep characteristics of the matrix, and the strength of the fiber-matrix interface, the latter being of fundamental importance. A comparison between the calculation results and the experimental ones obtained on composites with a Ni-matrix and monocrystalline and eutectic oxide fibers as well as on sapphire fiber/TiAl-matrix composites shows that the model is applicable to the computer simulation of the creep behavior of heat-resistant composites and to the optimization of the structure of such composites. By combining the experimental data with calculation results, it is possible to evaluate the heat resistance of composites and the potential of oxide-fiber/Ni-matrix composites. The composite specimens obtained and tested to date reveal their high creep resistance up to a temperature of 1150°C. The maximum operating temperature of the composites can be considerably raised by strengthening the fiber-matrix interface.     

A generalized self-consistent method for composites with random elastic properties of inclusions

The generalized self-consistent method is extended to the problems of statistical mechanics of composites with random elastic properties of inclusions. This approach makes it possible to reduce the problem of predicting the effective elastic properties of composites with random structures to a sequence of simpler homogenized boundary-value problems for solitary inclusions with inhomogeneous elastic transition layers in a homogeneous effective elastic medium and with the corresponding boundary conditions. The elastic properties of a solitary inclusion for the gth homogenized problem are found from the solutions of the gth and (g+1)th homogenized problems. The elastic properties and sizes of the transition layers account for the random distribution, random sizes, and random elastic properties of inclusions in the composite. A test problem of predicting the effective elastic properties of a transversely isotropic layer composite with random elastic properties of some layers is solved by using the method proposed. The solution obtained coincides with the known exact solution [1].Perm State Technical University, Perm, Russia. Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, Vol. 35, No. 6, pp. 785–796, November–December, 1999.