Effect of mineral fillers on properties of composite matrix material

The influence of mineral fillers on thermomechanical properties of matrix material of composites is investigated. Different methods to determine elastic properties and thermal expansion coefficients of composite materials have been considered and compared. Injection moulded polyester samples containing varying concentrations of talc filler are tested and properties such as Young 's modulus, thermal expansion coefficients, and volumetric shrinkage during cure are measured. Results obtained by theoretical models and from experiments are compared and discussed.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. 435–445, July–August, 1995.     

Numerical-experimental estimation of the mechanical properties of an epoxy nanocomposite

The possible reasons for the violation of additivity laws for the density and elastic modulus of polymer nanocomposites (epoxy resin filled with silicon oxide nanoparticles) are considered. The fact that each nanoparticle is surrounded by a distinctive boundary layer is used to describe this phenomenon. The thickness and density of the layer are determined by measuring the density and elastic modulus of a polymer with different volume fractions of filler. A model for determining the strength of an epoxy nanocomposite by using the theory of short fibers is proposed. This model allowed us to describe the nonmonotonic relationship between the ultimate strength of the epoxy nanocomposite and the volume fraction of filler. It is shown that the filling of epoxy resin with silicon oxide nanoparticles beyond 5 vol. % decreases the strength of the composite in comparison with that of pure epoxy resin.     

Relationship of some mechanical and thermophysical properties of polymer compositions on reduced filler concentration

The dependences of the modulus of elasticity, coefficient of linear expansion, glass transition temperature, and decomposition temperature of epoxide compositions on the concentrations of four fillers of differing physical and chemical natures have been studied. The experimental data were interpreted from the point of view of a lowered mobility of the segments of the polymer molecules as a result of interaction with the filler surface. It was shown to be possible to construct universal curves for each of the studied properties, which were invariant with respect to the nature of the filler.Institute of Polymer Mechanics, Academy of Sciences of the Latvian SSR, Riga. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, Vol. 9, No. 3, pp. 487–491, May–June, 1973.     

Temperature reversal of the reinforcing effect of fillers

A previous investigation [4] of the tear strength of filled systems based on SKS-85 butadiene-styrene copolymer over a broad temperature interval revealed a reversal of the reinforcing effect of fillers with a coefficient of thermal expansion different from that of the filled polymer. At Tg the strength of mixtures containing polymer fillers [Kapron (polycaprolactam) and cellophane powder] exceeds that of mixtures containing chalk and carbon black. The temperature reversal effect is attributed to the severe weakening of the adhesion of the polymer to the surface of the filler particles as a result of the concentration of shrinkage stresses in the polymer-filler contact zone. The presence of shrinkage stresses around the filler particles at Tg is qualitatively demonstrated on model systems using a photoelastic technique. Moreover, it is shown that the unbalance, and hence the residual stresses, in filled systems at temperatures below the glass transition temperature of the filled polymer is determined by the difference in the coefficients of thermal expansion.Moscow Technological Institute of the Meat and Dairy Industry. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 4, pp. 579–583, July–August, 1969.     

Elastic and Sorption Characteristics of an Epoxy Binder in a Composite During Its Moistening

Results of an experimental investigation into the elastic and sorption characteristics of a model composite material (CM) — epoxy resin filled with LiF crystals — during its moistening are presented. Properties of the binder in the CM with different filler contents (v _f = 0, 0.05, 0.11, 0.23, 0.28, 0.33, 0.38, and 0.46) were evaluated indirectly by using known micromechanical models of CMs. It was revealed that, for the CM in a conditionally initial state, the elastic modulus of the binder in it and the filler microstrain (change in the interplanar distance in the crystals, measured by the X-ray method) as functions of filler content had the same character. The elastic modulus of the binder in the CM with a low filler content was equal to that for the binder in a block; the elastic modulus of the binder in the CM decreased with increasing filler content. The maximum (corresponding to water saturation of the CM) stresses in the binder and the filler microstresses as functions of filler content were of the same character. Moreover, the absolute values of maximum stresses in the binder and of filler microstresses coincided for high and low contents of the filler. At v _f = 0.2–0. 3, the filler microstrains exceeded the stresses in the binder. The effect of moisture on the epoxy binder in the CM with a high filler content was not entirely reversible: the elastic characteristics of the binder increased, the diffusivity decreased, and the ultimate water content increased after a moistening-drying cycle.__________Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, Vol. 41, No. 4, pp. 499–511, July–August, 2005.     

Study of prefracture states of rigid polymers. 2. Elastic limit and strength

An explanation is offered for the relation between the magnitude of stresses at the elastic limit (strength) and the strains in rigid polymers. The possibility of high-elastic deformation and orienting processes, which have been considered in [1], is also explained here. Expressions are derived that relate the elastic limit to the strain, the modulus of elasticity, the coefficient of thermal expansion, and the Poisson ratio.For communication 1, see [1].A. F. Ioffe Physicotechnical Institute, Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Leningrad. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 2, pp. 195–201, March–April, 1976.     

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.     

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.     

Experimental study of the effect of the technological factor of rolling-in (packing) on the physicomechanical properties of glass plastic

Conclusions 1. The rolling-in (packing) of wound glass-plastic objects is a favorable technological factor, improving the homogeneity of the material, increasing the elastic and strength characteristics of the glass plastic, and reducing the thermal expansion coefficients and macroscopic residual stresses due to the thermal shrinkage of the objects.2. However, extremely large packing forces may reduce certain of the mechanical characteristics of the material, chiefly the strength and modulus relating to interlayer shear.Moscow Power Institute. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 6, pp. 1043–1047, November–December, 1976.     

Temperature dependence of the deformation properties of compositions based on polyethylene and polyisobutylene

The temperature dependence of the deformation properties (deformability and recoverability) of compositions based on low-density polyethylene and polyisobutylene has been investigated. For two-component polyethylene—polyisobutylene systems this dependence varies with the component ratio. Introducing a filler (talc) reduces the recoverability of the compositions owing to increases in both the delayed high-elastic deformation and the flowability. The deformation properties of compositions plasticized with paraffin change abruptly at the melting point of the latter.Moldavian Scientific-Research Institute of the Food Industry, Kishinev. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 4, pp. 758–760, July–August, 1971.     

Relaxation and optical properties of cured epoxy resin

Epoxy resin cured with methyltetrahydrophthalic and maleic anhydrides has been tested in relaxation, creep, and compression at constant strain rate. The constants characterizing the relaxation properties and the approximate limits of the spectrum of most probable relaxation times have been determined; it is shown that the mechanical properties can be described by means of equations with two relaxation times. The residual optical effect has also been investigated. A linear relationship between the high-elastic strains and the path difference in the birefringent state is preserved at temperatures below the glass transition region.Read at Moscow State University polymer mechanics seminar.Moscow. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 1, pp. 15–23, January–February, 1970.     

Temperature dependence of the mechanical properties of polymers of different chemical structure in the temperature range from 4.2 to 300°K

Conclusions 1. The temperature dependences obtained for the ultimate alongation, tensile strength, and elastic modulus of various polymers showed that the relationship between the mechanical properties and chemical structure of macromolecules found in our earlier work at 4.2°K is retained at 78°K and, possibly, up to 90°K.2. It was shown that the passage of the tensile strength through a maximum upon warming from 4.2°K results from a corresponding increase in deformability, which is accompanied by a decrease in the elastic modulus and deviation of the polymer bodies from Hooke's law progressively with increasing temperature.3. It was shown that the amorphization of crystallizing polymers, for example, by quenching, gives a marked change in the deformability, tensile strength, and elasticity of the polymer body over the entire range from 300 down to 4.2°K.4. Study of the mechanical properties of polymers at 78°K in a helium medium and liquid nitrogen showed a marked effect of contact of the polymer with liquid nitrogen on these properties. This effect is different for polymers of varying chemical structure as well as for the same polymer in different physical states.Report presented at the Third All-Union Conference on Polymer Mechanics, Riga, November 10–12, 1976.L. Ya. Karpov Scientific-Research Institute of Physical Chemistry, Moscow. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 3, pp. 387–391, May–June, 1977.     

Influence of Moisture on the Structure and Properties of the Interphase Layer of a Composite Based on an Epoxy Binder with a Disperse Filler

Properties of a model composite based on an ED-22 epoxy binder, cured with polyprophylene polyamine, and disperse LiF crystals as a filler were investigated by the methods of dilatometry and X-ray diffractometry. It was established that the density of cross-links of the epoxy binder in the interphase layer was lower than in a block specimen. Therefore, the thermal expansion of the composite on heating to 120°C, in terms of that of the binder, grew significantly with the degree of filling ϕ, and the water uptake also increased at the initial stage. The presence of absorbed water led to considerable changes in the structure and properties of the composite interphase: the binder became more cross-linked, its structural ordering decreased, the thermal expansion at heating diminished by a factor of 3. 7 (at ϕ = 50%), and the glass-transition temperature increased. As a result of long-term action of moisture, changes in the internal stresses had an extreme character.__________Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, Vol. 41, No. 4, pp. 535–544, July–August, 2005.     

Nature and mechanism of friction of rubberlike polymers in different physical states

We have investigated the frictional properties of crosslinked butadiene-nitrile and butadiene-styrene copolymers and natural rubber in friction against polished steel under vacuum conditions in the temperature interval from –200 to +150° C, which embraces the glassy and high-elastic states, as well as the transition region between them. The temperature dependence of polymer friction is characterized by two maxima, a principal and a low-temperature maximum. The principal maximum, observed in the glass transition region, is not associated with the mechanical loss maximum observed in the polymers themselves. The temperature dependence of the force of friction is composed of three parts. In the high-elastic region there is an increase in the force of friction with fall in temperature, in accordance with the molecular-kinetic theory of friction of rubberlike polymers. In this region the nature of friction is associated with mechanical losses in the surface layer of polymer. The mechanical losses inside the polymer itself are unimportant. The deviation from the theoretical curve and the fall in the force of friction below a certain temperature in the transition region are chiefly associated with a decrease in the actual area of contact as the polymer passes into the glassy state. In the glassy region the friction is significantly determined by the mechanical losses in the polymer itself associated with the repeated elastic and forced-elastic deformation of the asperities in the layer of polymer in contact with the rigid surface. Therefore the low-temperature maximum is closely related to the mechanical loss maximum observed in the same temperature region in dynamic tests. Apart from this, the friction maximum is also associated with the increase in the forces of adhesion and the reduction of the actual area of contact at temperatures at which a forced-elastic mechanism of compression of the polymer asperities is not realized.Mekhanika Polimerov, Vol. 3, No. 1, pp. 123–135, 1967     

The effect of the concentration and dispersion of quartz on the physicomechanical properties of polyvinylacetate films

Data are given from a study of the effect of the concentration and dispersion of quartz on the structure, the coefficient of thermal expansion, the elastic modulus, the strength, and the extension under tension of polyvinylacetate films. The change in the properties of these films is associated with a change in the structure of the polymer on filling.Institute of Physical Chemistry, Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Moscow. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 1, pp. 63–67, January–February, 1972.     

Multifibre polymer composites: Prediction of deformation and thermophysical properties

Conclusions A theoretical and experimental investigation was carried out to examine the possibilities of a structural approach for prediction of elastic constants, creep functions and thermophysical characteristics of hybrid polymer composites reinforced with anisotropic fibres of several types. The theoretical solutions were obtained by generalizing the self-consistent method for the case of a three phase model. The effects of brittle fibre breakdown under tension in the direction of reinforcement of a unidirectional hybrid composite were studied under conditions of a short-term loading and a long-term creep. It has been shown that a creep of viscoelastic fibres plays a principal role in creep of the hybrid composite. It is just this creep that significantly increases the fibre damage during creep of the composite.A variant of the solution has been proposed for predicting the thermorheologically complex behavior of hybrid composites containing not only elastic but also viscoelastic thermorheologically simple components with different temperature-time shift factors. The peculiarities of thermal expansion of hybrid composites and the possibilities for a purposeful control of thermal expansion coefficients by hybridization were studied. The considered thermal interval included a region of transition of the polymer matrix from a glass state into a viscoelastic one.The control tests were performed for specimens of organic/glass, organic/carbon, glass/carbon and organic/boron polymer composites with different ratios of fibre volume contents. On the whole, the obtained accuracy of predicting the characteristics of the examined hybrid composites may be considered as acceptable for engineering applications.Published in Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, Vol. 30, No. 3, pp. 299–313, May–June, 1994.     

Effect of temperature on the fracture surfaces of filled systems based on SKS-85 butadiene-styrene copolymer

The tear fracture surfaces of mixtures of SKS-85 butadiene — styrene copolymer (85% styrene) with ordinary (carbon black, chalk) and polymeric (Kapron and cellophane powder) fillers have been investigated on the interval from –60 to +40°C. As the temperature varies within the limits of the glassy state (T_g SKS-85=+24°C) of the filled polymer, the nature of the fracture surface of specimens of filled mixtures, like that of the unfilled polymer, changes; in the region of the temperature transition of the copolymer associated with the mobility of the phenyl groups (–10±5°C) there is a slowing of the fracture process. At temperatures below the T_g of the copolymer the tear fracture surfaces of specimens of mixtures containing ordinary and polymeric fillers differ sharply. The introduction of fillers (20 vol. %) with a coefficient of thermal expansion different from that of the filled polymer considerably reduces the resistance of the material to fracture and leads to a sharp increase in the rate of crack propagation; the introduction of polymeric fillers with coefficients of thermal expansion similar to that of the filled polymer leads to an increase in the resistance of the material to fracture and to a decrease in the rate of crack propagation.Moscow Technological Institute of the Meat and Dairy Industry; State Institute of Polymer Adhesives, Kirovakan. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 5, pp. 819–826, September–October, 1969.     

Effect of aging creep of polyestermalein resin/mineral filler composites

Long-term (More than 20 years) creep under compression of two polymer concretes, polyestermalein resin/mineral filler composites, was studied. The concretes differ with diabase filler size (d=5–10 mm and d=10–20 mm). It was shown that nonlinearity of viscoelastic properties of concrete increases as the size of filler particle decreases. Aging of the polymer concretes reduces their viscoelastic compliance and shortens the time interval necessary to reach equilibrium conditions under stable loading state.Presented at the Ninth International Conference on the Mechanics of Composite Materials, Riga, October, 1995.Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics of the AS CR, Prague 9, Prosecká 74, Czech Republic. Central Laboratory of Physical-Chemical Mechanics of the BAS, Sofia 1113 Acad. Bontchev Street, IV km, Bl. 1. Published in Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, Vol. 32, No. 2, pp. 190–194, March–April, 1995.     

Effect of the nature of the filler surface on the properties of phenol-formaldehyde molding powders

The physicomechanical properties and microstructure of phenolic molding powders containing fillers with different surface energies have been investigated. It has been found that an increase in filler surface energy leads to an increase in the density of the resin around the filler particles and hence to an improvement in the physicomechanical properties of the molding powder. A parallel investigation of a molding powder containing a lubricant shows that adsorption of the lubricant on the filler surface reduces the density of the resin, which is accompanied by a deterioration in the properties of the material.Scientific-Research Institute of Precision Engineering Moscow. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, Vol. 4, No. 4, pp. 677–681, July–August, 1968.     

The effect of C<Subscript>60</Subscript> fullerene on the toughening of epoxy compositions

The effect of C₆₀ fullerene on the mechanical properties of epoxy resins has been investigated. It is found that this filler affects the tensile modulus and tensile strength of epoxy compositions only slightly, but their impact strength at a 0.01–0.12 wt.% content of C₆₀ increases by about 100–200%. A molecular mechanism of the toughening effect of C₆₀ on epoxy resins is suggested.