Effect of surface modification of fibers with a polymer coating on the interlaminar shear strength of a composite and the translation of fiber strength in an F-12 aramid/epoxy composite vessel

The surface of aramid fibers was modified with a polymer coating — a surface treatment reagent containing epoxy resin. The resulting fibers were examined by using NOL tests, hydroburst tests, and the scanning electron microscopy. The modified fibers had a rougher surface than the untreated ones. The interlaminar shear strength of an aramid-fiber-reinforced epoxy composite was highest when the concentration of polymer coating system was 5%. The translation of fiber strength in an aramid/epoxy composite vessel was improved by 8%. The mechanism of the surface treatment of fibers in improving the mechanical properties of aramid/epoxy composites is discussed. Russian translation publeshed in Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, Vol. 42, No. 6, pp. 729–738, November–December, 2006.     

Effect of surface treatment of carbon fibers on the strength properties of carbon fiber plastics

Conclusions The strength characteristics of composites based on carbon fibers having a coating of silicon carbide are in direct dependence on the coating thickness and on the porosity, which makes it possible to assume the possibility of increasing the degree of realization of the strength characteristics of fibers having a coating in a composite by increasing the degree of impregnation of the carbon cord with the binder. The latter finds confirmation also in the fact that at a small coating thickness on the carbon fiber (of the order of 5 nm) the porosity of the composite obtained is equal to the porosity of the material based on the carbon fiber without coating. Moreover, as is evident from Fig. 3c, the casing of silicon carbide does not form a continuous coatting over the whole perimeter of the cord. The presence of these prerequisites, and also the high resistance of carbon fibers having a silicon carbide coating to oxidation [9], open up wide prospects for creating new composite materials based on them.Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, No. 4, pp. 603–606, July–August, 1979.     

On the effective moduli of composite materials: Effect of fiber length and geometry at dilute concentrations

An earlier theoretical, study [3] regarding the effect of inclusion length, and geometry on the bulk elastic moduli of fiber-or whisker-reinforced composite materials is hereby extended. Specifically, with slender-body theory, moduli for materials containing dilute dispersions of aligned inclusions of slender, but otherwise arbitrary, axial geometry are found for the elastic range, , where , the aspect ratio of the inclusion, is small andE ^* andE are respectively, Young's moduli for the inclusion and the matrix. To provide continuity with the results of [3] for the rigid range, > 1$$ " align="middle" border="0"> , the special case of slender prolate, spheroidal inclusions is considered and expressions for the moduli which are valid for all values of the above parameter are derived from a known general solution obtained by Eshelby. These analytic results are then presented in a compact graphical form which provides a useful means for estimating the moduli when the slender inclusions have non-prolate spheroidal geometries.

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Zusammenfassung Eine frühere theoretische Studie [3], die den Effekt von Einschlusslänge und Geometrie auf den totalen Elastizitätsmodul von druch Fasern oder Whisker (Haarkristalle) verstärkte Verbundmaterialien behandelt, wird hier erweitert. Moduln, besonders für Stoffe, die geringe Dispersionen von ausgerichteten Einschlüssen schlanker, aber sonst willkürlicher axialer Geometrie haben ergeben mit der Slender-Body-Theorie für den elastischen Bereich , wobei, , die Aspektratio des Einschlusses, kein ist undE ^* undE Young's Moduln für den Einschluss und die Matrix sind. Um die Kontinuität mit den Resultaten [3] für den starren Bereich aufrechtzuerhalten, ist der Spezialfall schlanker, abgeplatteter sphärischer Einschlüsse betrachtet worden. Ausdrücke für die Moduln, gültig für alle Werte der oben angegebenen Parameter, werden von einer allgemeinen Lösung nach Eshelby abgeleitet. Diese analytischen Ergebnisse werden in kompakter graphischer Form dargestellt, mit der man bequem die Moduln abschätzen kann, wenn die schlanken Einschlüsse eine nicht gestreckte sphärische Geometrie besitzen.

     

Effect of a filler on the strength properties of thermosets

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.     

Two interfacial shear strength calculations based on the single fiber composite test

The fragmentation of a single fiber embedded in a polymer matrix upon stretching (SFC test) provides valuable information on the fiber-matrix bond strength (), which determines stress transfer through the interface and, thus, significantly affects the mechanical properties of the composite material. However, the calculated bond strength appears to depend on data interpretation, i.e., on the applied theoretical model, since the direct result of the SFC test is the fiber fragment length distribution rather than the value. Two approaches are used in SFC testing for calculation of the bond strength: 1) the Kelly-Tyson model, in which the matrix is assumed to be totally elastic and 2) the Cox model using the elastic constants of the fiber and the matrix. In this paper, an attempt has been made to compare these two approaches employing theory as well as the experimental data of several authors. The dependence of the tensile stress in the fiber and the interfacial shear stress on various factors has been analyzed. For both models, the mean interfacial shear stress in the fragment of critical length (l_c) was shown to satisfy the same formula () = (_cD)/2l_c, where D is the fiber diameter and _c is the tensile strength of a fiber at gauge length equal to l_c. However, the critical lengths from the Kelly-Tyson approach and Cox model are differently related to the fragment length distribution parameters such as the mean fragment length. This discrepancy results in different () values for the same experimental data set. While the main parameter in the Kelly-Tyson model assumed constant for a given fiber-matrix pair is the interfacial shear strength, the ultimate (local) bond strength _ult may be seen as the corresponding parameter in the Cox model. Various _ult values were obtained for carbon fiber-epoxy matrix systems by analyzing the data of continuously monitored single fiber composite tests. Whereas the mean value of the interfacial shear stress calculated in the Cox approach was comparable to the interfacial shear strength from the Kelly-Tyson model, its ultimate value characterizing the true adhesional bond strength appeared to be three or four times greater.To be presented at the Ninth International Conference on the Mechanics of Composite Materials in Riga, Latvia, October, 1995.Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, Vol. 31, No. 4, pp. 446–461, July–August, 1995.     

Effect of interphase layers on the elastic properties of a carbon-nanotube-reinforced composite

A variant of a stepwise analysis of the elastic properties of a carbon-nanotube-reinforced composite with account of the effect of interphase layers between the nanotubes and the polymer matrix is reported. The preliminary calculation of the elastic constants of a structural element incorporating a nanotube and an interphase layer and the subsequent calculation of independent elastic constants of a composite with such transversely isotropic structural elements oriented in one direction are both performed by using the Mori–Tanaka theory of an equivalent medium. The calculations are carried out for a wide range of ratios between the elastic moduli of the interphase layer and matrix. The elastic constants of a composite with randomly oriented nanotubes are obtained by using the method of orientational averaging.     

Effect of curvature of the reinforcement on the mechanical and thermophysical properties of a composite

The elastic constants and thermal expansion coefficients of a composite consisting of a matrix with low elastic properties and exceptionally stiff fibers have been experimentally determined. The curvature of the reinforcement in the specimens has been investigated. The results of the experiments are compared with the corresponding theoretical characteristics. The calculations are based on a model with an ideal arrangement of the fibers [4] and a model that takes the curvature of the reinforcement into account [5, 6].Moscow Power Engineering Institute. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 6, pp. 1036–1039. November–December, 1971.     

Effect of molding conditions on fracture mechanisms and stiffness of a composite of grid structure

Methods of determining a complex of stiffness and deformability characteristics of a composite with rhomb-type grid structure were elaborated. Rhomb-type specimens were used for testing the ribs of the structure in tension, compression, and bending and the nodal points in shear in the plane of the ribs. The effect of additional tensioning of the ribs preceding the curing of the binder was investigated (ten tensioning levels ranging from 8 to 70 N/bundle with a linear density of 390 tex were applied). In testing epoxy-carbon specimens (UKN-5000+EHD-MK) in compression and tension, the failure mode changed depending on the tensioning level, i.e., the presence or absence of delamination and the appearance of dry fibers were detected. Dependences of the mechanical properties on tensioning were of a markedly pronounced extreme nature. The methods elaborated allow us to investigate the effect of other molding parameters, as well as the conditions and nature of loading, on the mechanical characteristics of composites.Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, Vol. 35, No. 1, pp. 71–78, January–February, 1999.     

Effect of hydrostatic pressure on the strength properties of polymer materials

On the assumption that the strength characteristics of homogeneous polymer materials depend on the specific volume, equations are derived for the dependence of the strength or high-elastic limit on the hydrostatic component of the stress tensor and temperature. The ultimate strengths in simple tension, compression and shear are considered in relation to brittle and plastic fracture.Institute of Polymer Mechanics, Academy of Sciences of the Latvian SSR, Riga. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 3, pp. 449–454, May–June, 1969.