Damage assessment of nanofiller-reinforced woven kevlar KM2plus/Epoxy resin laminated composites

The resiliency of advanced laminated nanocomposite materials to mitigate impact load is an essential characteristic for material selection and product design. This paper investigates the effect of nanofillers and its effect on the damage resistance performance of a newly developed woven Kevlar fabric. Three types of nanofillers were investigated: (1) Silicon carbide (SiC), (2) aluminum oxide (Al₂O₃), and (3) multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWCNT). The nanofillers were dispersed using shear mixing and sonication into the epoxy to reinforce Kevlar fabric. Moreover, the effect of the nanofiller's concentration on the damage resistance performance was analyzed. All specimens had 10 layers of Kevlar fabric (KM2plus) stacked with a 0° angle. To evaluate the damage resistance performance a drop-weight impact test was conducted using a maximum drop height of 100 cm. X-ray diffraction was used to evaluate the level of material damage caused by the impact load. The addition of nanofillers enhanced the flexural properties of the composite and as well as its resiliency towards impact loads. In particular, the 0.5 wt% MWCNT laminated Kevlar/epoxy composite possessed the highest impact damage resistance capacity. Furthermore, the damage evolution was not observed within the impact area and in the surrounding areas for specimens with 0.5 wt% MWCNT. Therefore, the results indicate that the optimal nanofiller content for Kevlar KM2plus/epoxy nanocomposites is 0.5 wt% MWCNTs.     

Evaluation of Ethylene Propylene Diene Terpolymer based insulation against Nitrile rubber based insulation for large Composite Rocket Motor Casing

Even though literature available on EPDM is abundant, the data on physical, mechanical, thermal, interface properties and ablative performance as specifically required for the design and acceptance of internal insulation of large Composite Rocket Motor Casing is scant in the plethora of literature available in the subject of EPDM insulation. This gave the impetus to take up this experimental work wherein most promising formulation of EPDM with Kevlar and silica as reinforcing fillers and with only silica as reinforcing filler were thoroughly characterized for the insulation requirements of large Composite Rocket Motor Casing and compared with the performance of proven Nitrile rubber based insulation. The significant findings which are unique, are discussed in this paper.     

Interlaminar Fracture Toughness of Carbon Fiber/Epoxy Composites using Short Kevlar Fiber and/or Nylon-6 Powder Reinforcement

Mode I (G_IC) and Mode II (G_IIC) interlaminar fracture toughness of carbon-fiber/epoxy composites have been investigated as a function of the amount of short Kevlar-29 fiber (SKF) and/or Nylon-6 powder (N6P) between continuous fiber layers. G_IIC increased with increasing crack length as a consequence of the presence of SKFs bridging in the wake of propagating crack. G_IIC of SKF alone could reach the maximum at an intermediate amount of SKF. G_IIC of SKF and N6P was lower than that of SKF alone because N6P prevented the orientation of SKF to out-of-plane. The extent of SKF's bridging phenomenon may be influenced by the amount and orientation of SKF. G_IC showed no significant effect with SKF and uniform irrespective of crack length. Scanning electron microscopy after G_IIC test showed that new surfaces were created by extensive fiber bridging, pull-out and fracture of SKF in random direction without any fixed pattern. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Partial carbonization of aramid fibers

Heat treatment of aramid fiber was conducted in the temperature range 300–710°C nominally for 10 and 30 s in both static air and flowing nitrogen atmosphere. Crystallinity, crystal orientation, and crystallite size were determined using x-ray diffraction. Fibers with a skin–core structure were produced at intermediate temperatures, as revealed by scanning electron microscopy of fibers after partial dissolution of the fiber in 95–98% sulfuric acid. The skin, which forms in both nitrogen and air, is amorphous and brittle. It is insoluble in sulfuric acid, suggesting it is a cross-linked polymer. Formation of the skin may be facilitated by the removal of an aggressive chemical species that forms during heat treatment. The species may diffuse out of the outer layer of the fiber, allowing it to cross-link. The molecular weight of the dissolved core, analyzed using intrinsic viscosity, decreases with increasing heat treatment temperature. The tenacity, modulus, elongation-to-break, and toughness of fibers with a skin–core structure decrease with heat treatment and the fiber loses its fibrillar character. Mechanical property reductions are greater in air than nitrogen. X-ray data are also consistent with the notion that oxygen assists attack of crystals at high temperatures. Scanning electron microscopy shows that fibers have become skin–core composites with quite different mechanical properties between the two regions. A fiber failure mechanism is proposed. © 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Mechanical characterization of 3D angle-interlock Kevlar/basalt reinforced polypropylene composites

The present work reported the mechanical characterization of novel polypropylene (PP) composites reinforced with three-dimensional angle-interlock (3D-A) Kevlar/basalt fabrics. Two homogeneous fabrics with Kevlar (K3D) and basalt yarns (B3D), and a hybrid fabric (H3D) with a combination of both Kevlar and basalt yarns were produced. Three types of two layer 3D-A composites were manufactured using vacuum-assisted compression molding method. Static tensile and in-plane compression tests were carried out on the manufactured composites. The mechanical behavior of the three 3D-A composites was compared in terms of stress-strain response, elastic modulus, strength and failure strain. Influence of hybridization on the mechanical behavior of the 3D-A composites was also studied. Significant improvement in the tensile behavior of 3D-A homogeneous composites was observed due to hybridization. Meanwhile, there was no considerable improvement in in-plane compression behavior. The damage patterns for in-plane compression loading were examined through scanning electron microscopy (SEM) to explore the possible damage patterns such as matrix cracking, fiber failure, delamination and deformation. Numerical simulations were carried out using ABAQUS/Standard, by implementing a user-defined material subroutine (VUMAT) based on the Chang-Chang linear orthotropic damage model. Good agreement between experimental and numerical simulations was achieved in terms of damage patterns.     

The influence of surface treatment of stitch threads and stitching on interlaminar properties of unidirectional laminates

An experimental investigation was carried out to study the influence of graft treatment for Kevlar stitch threads on the interlaminar properties of stitched unidirectional laminates. The surfaces of Kevlar stitch threads were immersed in a solution of Dimethyl sulfoxide mixed with NaH for some time, and then alkoxysilane was grafted onto the surface of modified Kevlar threads. The corresponding physical and chemical changes in the surface of Kevlar threads were carefully evaluated using XPS, SEM, water absorption, and tensile measurement. Results show that the treated Kevlar threads have much rougher surface morphologies, its tensile strength is slightly improved, and their wettability are greatly improved. The stitched carbon /epoxy composite using surface-treated Kevlar threads has excellent hydrothermal property. The resins can better wet the surface treatment of Kevlar stitch threads, and the sizes of rich resin can be reduced. The moisture uptake of stitched composites decreases by 53.3% and its residue ratio of interlaminar shear strength in a wet state improves by 13.1%.     

High strain rate compression testing of intra-ply and inter-ply hybrid thermoplastic composites reinforced with Kevlar/basalt fibers

In this study, the influence of hybridization on the compression response of thermoplastic matrix-based composites under high strain rate loading was investigated. The intra-ply and inter-ply hybrid composites were manufactured with Kevlar/Basalt yarns as the reinforcements with Polypropylene as a matrix. Cylindrical composite specimens were laser cut from the flat compression moulded laminates. The composite specimens were loaded under high strain rate using split-Hopkinson pressure bar setup at strain rates ranging from 2815/s to 5481/s. The study revealed differences in the rate-dependent growth of peak stress, peak strain and toughness with the strain rate. Intra-ply hybrid composites with alternate weaving of Kevlar and basalt yarns exhibited highest peak stress as compared to the Inter-ply hybrid composites (alternate layers of Kevlar and basalt fabrics) and another intra-ply composite containing Kevlar in the warp and basalt in the weft direction. Whereas in inter-ply hybrid composite, with Kevlar as the loading face attained higher stress, while composite with Basalt as the loading face attained higher strain. SEM micrographs revealed that Kevlar on the loading face can bear the impact with lesser delamination as compared to the Basalt on the loading face. Damage studies revealed that Kevlar fiber surface loading results in higher stress as compared to basalt (brittle) surface loading with lower overall damage.     

Enzymatic surface modification of Kevlar fibers

Horseradish peroxidase catalyzed grafting of acrylamide (AM) onto Kevlar fibers has been studied. The modified fiber has been characterized with scanning electron microscopy (SEM), elemental analysis and the grafting yield. From the SEM micrographs, the surface of the grafted Kevlar fiber is rougher than that of the untreated fiber, and the elemental analysis indicated that the nitrogen content of the treated fibers is higher than that of the untreated fiber. All the results suggested that AM must have been grafted onto the Kevlar surface through HRP-mediated radical initiated grafting reaction. The probably mechanism of HRP catalyzed grafting of AM onto Kevlar surface is proposed.     

The effect of oxygen-plasma treatment on Kevlar fibers and the properties of Kevlar fibers/bismaleimide composites

The effect of oxygen-plasma treatment for Kevlar fibers on the interfacial adhesion and typical macro-properties of Kevlar fiber/bismaleimide composites was intensively studied. It is found that oxygen-plasma treatment significantly affects the interfacial adhesion by changing the chemistry and morphology of the surfaces of the fibers, and thus leading to improved interlaminar shear strength, water resistance and dielectric properties of the composites. However, the improvement is closely related to the treatment power and time. The best condition for treating Kevlar fiber is 70 W for 5 min. Oxygen-plasma treatment provides an effective technique for overcoming the poor interfacial adhesion of Kevlar fiber based composites, and thus showing great potential in fabricating high performance copper clad laminates.     

Kevlar纤维增强复合材料动态压缩力学性能实验研究

通过实验较系统地研究了Kevlar纤维增强复合材料的动态压缩力学性能,实验结果表明,在冲击压缩载荷作用下Kevlar纤维增强复合材料有明显的损伤软化现象和应变率效应,针对Kevlar纤维增强复合材料动态应力应变实验曲线,提出了含损伤的率相关动态本构方程,由于所引入的损伤最反映了Kevlar纤维增强复合材料内部基体开裂、脱层、纤维断裂等多种破坏模式的总体效果,因此所提出的本构方程形式相对说来比较简便并易于嵌入目前有关冲击力学的有限元或有限差分程序,有一定的工程应用价值。