Abstract: | The effect of a filler on the strength properties of polymers in tension is investigated. The thermostructural stresses that develop in the composite during cure are taken into account. Relations are given for the strength of the filled polymer as a function of the percentage filler content. In the process of analyzing the thermostructural stresses an analytic expression is obtained for the linear expansion coefficient of the composite with allowance for the structural distribution of the components. Calculated values of the strength and thermostructural stresses are presented for composites with different filler contents. The theoretical determination of the strength of filled polymers is compared with the results of experimental investigations of composites based on epoxy resin filled with quartz dust.Leningrad Mechanical Institute. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 1, pp. 97–101, January–February, 1973. |