Journal ArticleDOI
Manufacturing carbon nanofibers toughened polyester/glass fiber composites using vacuum assisted resin transfer molding for enhancing the mode-I delamination resistance
TLDR
In this paper, a study of using carbon nanofibers (CNF) to improve the interlaminar fracture properties of polyester/glass fiber composites is presented.Abstract:
Polymer composite materials reinforced by continuous fibers have excellent in-plane strength but are usually weak against delamination. This paper presents an experimental study of using carbon nanofibers (CNF) to improve the interlaminar fracture properties of polyester/glass fiber composites. Surfactant-treated CNF were dispersed in polyester resin and then the CNF-resin suspension was infused to impregnate a glass fiber preform using vacuum assisted resin transfer molding (VARTM). The manufacturability of using VARTM for thick and large CNF toughened composite parts has been experimentally investigated. The influence of CNF concentration on the CNF filtration in the glass fiber preform, the resin viscosity, and the micro-void formation has been examined. By choosing appropriate manufacturing parameters, we were able to use VARTM process to infuse the surfactant-treated CNF/resin matrix into the glass fiber preform and successfully manufactured the CNF toughened polyester/glass fiber composite specimens for mode-I delamination tests. The critical energy release rates of mode-I delamination ( G IC ) were characterized for several composite specimens with 1 wt% CNF concentrations and for those with pure resin. Significant improvement in the G IC was consistently observed as 1 wt% CNF were added to toughen the polyester resin. Microscopy pictures showed that the fracture surfaces of the 1 wt% CNF toughened polyester/glass fiber composite samples were more complex than the fracture surfaces of regular polyester/glass fiber composites.read more
Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI
Carbon nanotube-based hierarchical composites: a review
TL;DR: In this article, two alternative strategies for forming CNT-based hierarchical composites are contrasted, the dispersion of CNTs into the composite matrix and their direct attachment onto the primary fibre surface.
Journal ArticleDOI
Recent advances in fiber/matrix interphase engineering for polymer composites
TL;DR: In this article, a review summarizes the recent advancements in the interphase tailoring of fiber-reinforced polymer composites and summarizes the future opportunities and challenges in the engineering of fiber/matrix interphase.
Journal ArticleDOI
Impact and after-impact properties of carbon fibre reinforced composites enhanced with multi-wall carbon nanotubes
Vassilis Kostopoulos,Athanasios Baltopoulos,P. Karapappas,Antonios Vavouliotis,Alkiviadis S. Paipetis +4 more
TL;DR: In this paper, the influence of multi-wall carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) on the impact and after impact behavior of carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) laminates was investigated.
Journal ArticleDOI
Carbon nanotube grafted carbon fibres: A study of wetting and fibre fragmentation
TL;DR: In this article, carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were grafted on IM7 carbon fibres using a chemical vapour deposition method, which resulted in a threefold increase of the surface area compared to the original CNT fibres.
Journal ArticleDOI
Multiscale fiber reinforced composites based on a carbon nanofiber/epoxy nanophased polymer matrix: Synthesis, mechanical, and thermomechanical behavior
TL;DR: In this paper, VARIM was used to produce multiscale fiber reinforced composites (M-FRCs) based on carbon nanofibers dispersed in an epoxy resin.
References
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Journal ArticleDOI
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Journal ArticleDOI
Carbon-nanofibre-reinforced poly(ether ether ketone) composites
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TL;DR: In this article, a poly(ether ether ketone) nanocomposites containing vapour-grown carbon nanofibres (CNF) were produced using standard polymer processing techniques.