Deformation and strength properties of carbon-reinforced plastics in compression

The deformation and strength properties of unidirectionally reinforced carbon plastics have been experimentally investigated for uniaxial compression in the longitudinal and transverse directions and at 45° to the direction of reinforcement in both short-time and long-time tests. On the basis of the deformation properties of the components an attempt is made to describe the creep curve of the plastic in all three loading directions. The Mohr theory is used to predict the compressive strengths in the direction of reinforcement and at right angles to the reinforcement.Institute of Polymer Mechanics, Academy of Sciences of the Latvian SSR, Riga. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 1, pp. 29–35, January–February, 1973.     

Creep and long-time strength of oriented glass-reinforced plastics in interlaminar shear

The creep and long-time strength in interlaminar shear and the creep in compression in the direction of the reinforcement have been experimentally investigated for certain types of oriented glass-reinforced plastics. The specimens in the interlaminar creep tests took the form of short beams loaded in bending. The experimental creep data for shear and compression are well described by the hereditary theory with a kernel of the Abel type (shear) or in the form of a Rabotnov function (compression). If the stresses are constant in time, good agreement with experiment is also given by Findley's form of the aging theory. A deformation criterion of interlaminar shear strength is also obtained. The experimental curves and values of the creep and long-time strength constants are presented.Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 6, pp. 1003–1012, November–December, 1971.     

Experimental evaluation of the strength anisotropy of a unidirectionally reinforced organic fiber-reinforced plastic

Conclusions The strength of a unidirectional organic fiber-reinforced plastic has been experimentally determined in various special cases of plane stress. An analysis of the data obtained shows that it is possible to describe the strength of the material in plane stress by means of a second-order surface equation containing linear and quadratic terms. The dependence of the strength in tension and compression on the angle between the directions of loading and reinforcement has been predicted and experimentally confirmed using the values found for the components of the strength surface tensors. The results of the study can be used to estimate the strength of multilayer organic fiber-reinforced plastics in cases where a unidirectionally reinforced layer can be taken as the basic structural element of the material.Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, No. 5, pp. 799–803, September–October, 1979.     

Structural characteristics of materials reinforced with high-modulus fibers

Research on the mechanics of boron and carbon-reinforced plastics is briefly reviewed. The design and testing characteristics of these materials associated with the high degree of anisotropy of their elastic properties, as compared with those of glass-reinforced plastics, are discussed. Problems relating to testing at an angle to the direction of the reinforcement, the effect of misorientation and distortion of the fibers, and the consequences of the low shear strength are considered. Experimental confirmation has been obtained by testing unidirectional (1 : 0), orthogonally reinforced (1 : 1 and 2 : 1), and tridirectional (1 : 1 : 1 in the 0°, +60°, and –60° directions) boron and carbon-reinforced plastics.DeceasedInstitute of Polymer Mechanics, Academy of Sciences of the Latvian SSR, Riga. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 4, pp. 676–685, July–August, 1971.     

Entropy principle in the theory of creep and long-time strength of polymeric materials

The possibilities of applying thermodynamic methods in the theory of creep and long-time strength are considered. General principles are employed to construct creep equations for certain types of media and to formulate a criterion of long-time strength.Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 1, pp. 113–121, January–February, 1971.     

Experimental investigation of the strength of glass-reinforced plastics in biaxial compression in three planes of symmetry

Glass-reinforced plastics (GRP) with fiber (wound) and fabric (hot-molded textolites) reinforcement have been investigated in biaxial compression in the three planes of symmetry. The high strength in biaxial compression in the transverse plane, observed for all the GRP investigated, is explained. A method of investigating the tensile strength of the fiber components of the GRP from the results of testing a unidirectional composite in biaxial compression in the transverse plane is proposed. The possibility of a nondestructive estimation of the strength of GRP in biaxial compression at an arbitrary stress ratio is demonstrated.Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 1, pp. 63–72, January–February, 1976.     

Creep stability of anisotropic shallow spherical shells with account for transverse shear strains

The deformation properties of glass-reinforced plastics are approximated by the relations for a homogeneous anisotropic material, only the shear creep strains being taken into account, since the normal forces, coinciding with the direction of the reinforcement, produce much less creep. Deflections commensurable with the thickness of the shell are considered (geometric nonlinearity), but the strain components are assumed small. The nonlinear relations obtained for this problem have been solved (for a particular case) on a computer. At loads less than the long-time critical value the growth of deflections in time is damped; at large loads the rate of growth of deflections increases.Mekhanika Polimerov, Vol. 2, No. 6, pp. 875–885, 1966     

Effect of building structure on the distribution of random bending strength of multilaminate reinforced plastics

A probabilistic structural model has been constructed for predicting the bending strength distribution in multilaminate reinforced plastics. The number and random strength/elastic properties of the layers or repeating structural elements are parameters of the structure. The random properties of the repeating structural elements are characterized by the scheme and geometry of the unidirectional layers. Two failure conditions have been analyzed: multistep failure caused by successive failure of separate layers and failure caused by the failure of the weakest component. The effect of the number of layers and the instability of the strength and elastic properties on the basic statistical properties of the bending strength was analyzed numerically for typical structures and for both failure conditions. The quantitative significance of the size effect determined by the thickness of the plastic was investigated. The main theoretical results were checked experimentally for unidirectional reinforced carbon plastic under uniaxial bending. The experimental distribution agrees well with the predicted distribution.Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, Vol. 29, No. 3, pp. 336–344, May–June, 1993.     

Structural theory of the tensile and compressive strengths of reinforced plastics

The strength conditions of unidirectionally and orthogonally reinforced plastics subjected to uniaxial tension and compression in the direction of, and at an angle to, the reinforcement are developed, with consideration given to possible failure of the fibers, binder, or the bond between the fibers and binder. Proposed strength conditions take into account the structure of the material, the properties of its components, and stress concentration.Institute of Polymer Mechanics, Academy of Sciences of the Latvian SSR, Riga. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 6, pp. 988–995, November–December, 1975.     

Deformative characteristics of plastics reinforced with high-modulus anisotropic fibers

The independent elastic constants of plastics unidirectionally reinforced with transversely isotropic fibers have been determined. It has been assumed that the distribution of reinforcement in a transverse section of the plastic is regularly rectangular or hexagonal. To determine the transverse elastic modulus and the shear modulus in the plane of reinforcement, a constancy-of-plane-sections hypothesis was used. Values of deformative characteristics determined by the assumed calculational dependences have been compared with the experimental ones for plastics reinforced with graphite fibers.Institute of Polymer Mechanics, Academy of Sciences of the Latvian SSR, Riga. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 4, pp. 631–639, July–August, 1972.     

On the theory of anisotropic creep of unidirectional glass-reinforced plastics

The basic relations of the theory of anisotropic creep of unidirectional glass-reinforced plastics (GRPs) in a three-dimensional stress state are found using a model of a material with inhomogeneous structure and the rheological properties of the resin. These relations are suitable for investigating the stress state of GRPs for resin stresses not exceeding certain values. The phenomena of simple creep and stress relaxation are studied with reference to a unidirectional GRP with an epoxy-maleic resin matrix.Mekhanika Polimerov, Vol. 1, No. 2, pp. 64–69, 1965     

Behavior of rigid plastics under cyclic loading

Research progress on the dynamic fatigue of plastics is briefly reviewed. Attention is concentrated on the problems of damage accumulation and self-heating. The effect of various factors on the fatigue of plastics is considered. The possibility of predicting the cyclic life-time from the results of long-time static strength tests is examined. The prospects for the construction of a theory of fatigue strength in complex states of stress are weighed.Institute of Polymer Mechanics, Academy of Sciences of the Latvian SSR, Riga. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, Vol. 5, No. 1, pp. 97–107, January–February, 1969.     

Mechanical properties of a hollow-fiber glass-reinforced plastic

The strength and elastic properties of a hollow-fiber glass-reinforced plastic are investigated together with the effect of temperature, and long-time and cyclic loading on its mechanical characteristics. The instantaneous moduli of elasticity and the creep kernel parameters are obtained on the basis of the creep diagrams.Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 2, pp. 341–345, March–April, 1971.     

Strength of reinforced plastics under static loading

The question of the static fatigue of reinforced plastics is considered for plane stress. Relations that predict the static fatigue are given for very simple types of loading. Experimental data are presented for thin-walled tubes of SVAM (5:1) glass-reinforced plastic subjected to long-time tests at constant internal pressure.Institute of Polymer Mechanics, Academy of Sciences of the Latvian SSR, Riga. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, Vol. 5, No. 2, pp. 265–273, March–April, 1969.     

Effect of tensile stresses on the strength of heat-treated glass fibers

Possibilities of controlling the internal stresses developing during production of glass reinforced plastics were investigated. A favorable effect can be obtained by prestressing the glass fiber reinforcement during molding. Prestressing during heat treatment was found to increase the strength of the fibers. The strengthening is due to a reduction in stress concentration around microcracks as a result of forced elastic and plastic deformation.Mekhanika polimerov, Vol. 1, No. 1, pp. 89–92, 1965     

Effectiveness of using hollow fibers to improve the rigidity of glass-reinforced plastics

Calculated and experimental relations between the modulus of elasticity and rigidity of unidirectional glass-reinforced plastics (GRP) and the capillarity coefficient of the hollow fiber reinforcement are presented. It is established that in calculating the flexural rigidity ratio of hollow- and solid-fiber GRP specimens of equal weight it is not permissible to neglect the mass and modulus of elasticity of the resin. The potentialities of hollow fibers as reinforcement for GRP shells subjected to external pressure are demonstrated.All-Union Scientific-Research Institute of Glass-Reinforced Plastics and Glass Fibers, Moscow Region. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, Vol. 4, No. 4, pp. 672–676, July–August, 1968.     

The effect of glass fiber inelasticity on the long-term strength of reinforced plastics subject to uniaxial tension along the fibers

Relationships are presented for determining the long-term strength of reinforced plastics subject to uniaxial tension by a constant load directed along the fibers; these relationships are based on the rheological characteristics of the components of the plastics. The proposed expressions agree quite well with experiment. Treatment of the experimental data by mathematical statistics showed that the relative strain at fracture remains constant; it does not depend either on the relative reinforcement content or on the applied load (i. e., on the time to fracture).Mekhanika Polimerov, Vol. 3, No. 4, pp. 719–725, 1967     

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.     

Elastic constants of glass-reinforced plastics with anisotropic structure

The macroscopic elastic constants of plastics reinforced in one direction are calculated by solving the statistical boundary value problem of the theory of elasticity. The results obtained and the method proposed in [15] are used to compute the macromoduli of GRP with an anisotropic layered structure created by an orthogonal arrangement of unidirectional tapes and to compute the moduli of elasticity of a unidirectional layered material with random deviations of the layers from the direction of preferred orientation.V. A. Steklov Mathematical Institute, Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Sverdlovsk Branch. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, Vol. 4, No. 4, pp. 631–637, July–August, 1968.