Effect of interfacial bonding on impact properties of chopped glass fiber polymer nanocomposites

This paper aims to presents the investigations made on the effect of impact response of chopped glass fiber–epoxy nanocomposite laminates subjected to low velocity impact using instrumented falling weight impact tests. The laminates were prepared using six layers of chopped strand mat with density of 610 gsm with epoxy resin and nanoclay content varied from 1, 3, and 5 wt%, by hand lay-up method. The nanoclay was dispersed into the epoxy by high shear mixing process in order to obtained uniform distribution of individual nanoclay. Laminates were impacted at constant mass with different impact energies. During these low velocity impact tests, the maximum load, absorbed energy, and deflection at peak load were recorded. It was observed that by dispersion of nanoclay as reinforcement, there was significant improvement in load carrying capacity and energy absorption. When a small amount of nanoclay (1 wt%) was added into the epoxy, the maximum load was enhanced by 20%. The presence of stiffer nanoclay significantly reduced the surface cracks propagation and controlled delamination area. Scanning electron microscopy was performed to characterize the damage progression.