Effect of enhancement of interface performance on mechanical properties of shape memory alloy hybrid composites

Effect of enhancement of interface performance on mechanical properties of shape memory alloy hybrid composites (SMAHCs) was investigated in this work. Composite laminates without Ni-Ti shape memory alloy (SMA) fibers, with Ni-Ti SMA fibers polished, corroded and modified by silane coupling agent KH550 were taken into comparison to investigate the effect of surface treatments. Surface morphology of Ni-Ti fibers under different treatments were observed with scanning electron microscope. The mechanical performance of specimens without Ni-Ti fibers and with Ni-Ti fibers under different treatments were investigated through tensile, three-point bending and low-velocity experiments. The morphology and micromorphology were observed to study the effect of different surface treatment methods. The conclusion shows that embedded Ni-Ti SMA fibers can enhance the mechanical performance of composite laminates. However, the performance of Ni-Ti SMA fibers was restrained by the poor interface performance. After surface treatments, SMAHCs illustrate better mechanical performance owing to the enhanced interface performance. Among all the surface treatment methods, modification with silane coupling agent KH550 shows the best effect.