Development,modeling and application of piezoelectric fiber composites

Piezoelectric materials are capable of actuation and sensing and have been used in a wide variety of smart devices and structures.Active fiber composite and macro fiber composite are newly developed types of piezoelectric composites,and show superior properties to monolithic piezoelectric wafer due to their distinctive structures.Numerous work has focused on the performance prediction of the composites by evaluation of structural parameters and properties of the constituent materials with analytical and numerical methods.Various applications have been explored for the piezoelectric fiber composites,including vibration and noise control,health monitoring,morphing of structures and energy harvesting,in which the composites play key role and demonstrate the necessity for further development.

Experimental and simulation research on thermal stamping of carbon fiber composite sheet

To improve the manufacture efficiency and promote the application of composites in the automobile industry, a new composite forming method, thermal stamping, was discussed to form composite parts directly. Experiments on two typical stamping processes, thermal bending and thermal deep drawing, were conducted to investigate the forming behavior of composite sheets and analyze the influence of forming temperature on the formed composite part. Experimental results show that the locking angle for woven composite is about 30°. The bending load is smaller than 5 N in the stamping process and decreases with the increase of temperature. The optimal temperature to form the carbon fiber composite is 170 ℃. The die temperature distribution and the deformation of composite sheet were simulated by FEA software ABAQUS. To investigate the fiber movement of carbon woven fabric during stamping, the two-node three-dimension linear Truss unit T2D3 was chosen as the fiber element. The simulation results have a good agreement to the experimental results.

Study of the Diffusion Behavior of Seawater Absorption in Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes/Halloysite Nanotubes Hybrid Nanofillers Modified Epoxy-Based Glass/Carbon Fiber Composites

In the maritime industry, cost-effective and lightweight Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP) composites offer excellent mechanical properties, design flexibility, and corrosion resistance. However, their reliability in harsh seawater conditions is a concern. Researchers address this by exploring three approaches: coating fiber surfaces, hybridizing fibers and matrices with or without nanofillers, and interply rearrangement. This study focuses on evaluating the synergistic effects of interply rearrangement of glass/carbon fibers and hybrid nanofillers, specifically Multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) and Halloysite nanotubes (HNT). The aim is to enhance impact properties by minimizing moisture absorption. Hybrid nanocomposites with equal-weight proportions of two nanofillers: 0 wt.%, 1 wt.%, and 2 wt.% were exposed to seawater for 90 days. Experimental data was subjected to modelling through the application of Predictive Fick’s Law. The study found that the hybrid composite containing 2 wt.% hybrid nanofillers exhibited a 22.10% increase in impact performance compared to non-modified counterparts. After 90 days of seawater aging, the material exhibited enhanced resistance to moisture absorption (15.74%) and minimal reduction in impact strength (8.52%) compared to its dry strength, with lower diffusion coefficients.

TENSILE STRENGTH OF RANDOM ORIENTED SHORT FIBER COMPOSITE

This paper shows a calculation model and a method for predicting the tensile strength of the random distributed short fiber composite.On the basis of Renjie Mao's model,the longitudinal tensile strength of the aligned short fiber composite is formulated.Considering the transverse tensile strength and in plane shear strength of the unidirectional fiber composite,and the stress transformation relations of two couples of axes,the stress of the unidirectional fiber composite when it is loaded at an arbitrary angle is obtained.With the aid of an equivalence relation,the calculation formulation of the tensile strength of the random short fiber reinforced composite is deduced.

EXPERIMENTAL STUDY ON PEK -C MODIFIED EPOXIES AND THE CARBON FIBER COMPOSITES FOR AEROSPACE APPLICATION

The morphological structure of various epoxies toughened with a special amorphous thermoplastic PEK-C and their carbon fiber composites were studied by using SEM. For both cases, phase separation and inversion took place to form fine epoxy-rich globules dispersing in the PEK-C matrix, in which the epoxy-rich phase had the absolutely higher volume fraction. The phase structure and the interfacial properties were also studied by means of FTIR, DSC, and DMTA as well. An accompanying mechanical determination revealed that an improved toughness was achieved both in the blend casts and in the carbon fiber composites. A composite structural model was hence suggested.

Acoustic Response and Micro-Damage Mechanism of Fiber Composite Materials under Mode-Ⅱ Delamination

Realizing the accurate characterization for the dynamic damage process is a great challenge. Here we carry out testing simultaneously for dynamic monitoring and acoustic emission （AE） statistical analysis towards fiber composites under mode-Ⅱ delamination damage. The load curve, AE relative energy, amplitude distribution, and amplitude spectrum are obtained and the delamination damage mechanism of the composites is investigated by the microscopic observation of a fractured specimen. The results show that the micro-damage accumulation around the crack tip region has a great effect on the evolutionary process of delamination. AE characteristics and amplitude spectrum represent the damage and the physical mechanism originating from the hierarchical microstructure. Our finding provides a novel aud feasible strategy to simultaneously evaluate the dynamic response and micro-damage mechanism for fiber composites.

An investigation on anti-impact and penetration performance of basalt fiber composites with different weave and lay-up modes

The woven basalt fiber composites(WBFC) and the unidirectional [0°/90°/45°/-45°]s basalt fiber composites(UBFC) were prepared by hot-pressing.Three-point bending test,low velocity impact test,and ballistic test were performed to the prepared composites.After the tests,the specimens were recovered and analyzed for micromorphology.Three-point bending tests show that both the bending strength and stiffness of the WBFC surpass those of the UBFC.Low velocity impact test results show that the low velocity impact resistance to hemispherical impactor of the UBFC is higher than that of the WBFC,but the low velocity impact resistance to sharp impactor of the UBFC is lower than that of the WBFC.For the ballistic test,it can be found that the ballistic property of the UBFC is higher than that of the WBFC. After the tests,microscopic analysis of the specimens was applied,and their failure mechanism was discussed.The main failure modes of the UBFC are delamination and fibers breakage under the above loading conditions while the main failure mode of the WBFC is fibers breakage.Although delamination damage can be found in the WBFC under the above loading conditions,the degree of delamination is far less than that of the UBFC.

Compression-induced stiffness in the buckling of a one fiber composite

We study the buckling of a one fiber composite whose matrix stiffness is slightly dependent on the compressive force. We show that the equilibrium curves of the system exhibit a limit load when the induced stiffness parameter gets bigger than a threshold. This limit load increases when the stiffness parameter is increasing and it is related to a possible localized path in the post-buckling domain. Such a change in the maximum load may be very desirable from a structural stand point.

Sodium alginate-polyvinyl alcohol/polysulfone (SA-PVA/PSF) hollow fiber composite pervaporation membrane for dehydration of ethanol-water solution

Using polysulfone （PSF） hollow fiber ultrafiltration membranes as the substrate, sodium alginate （SA） and polyvinyl alcohol （PVA） blend solutions as the coating solution, and maleic anhydride （MAC） as the cross-linked agent, SAPVA/PSF hollow fiber composite membranes were prepared for the dehydration of ethanol-water. The effects of different sodium alginate concentration in the coating solutions and different operating temperatures on pervaporation performance were investigated. The experimental results showed that pervaporation performance of the SA-PVA/PSF composite membranes for ethanol-water solution exhibited a high separation factor although they had a relatively low permeation flux. As SA concentration in SA-PVA coating solution was 66.7% and the operating temperature was 40 ℃, SA-PVA/PSF hollow fiber composite membrane （PS4） had a separation factor of 886 and flux of 12.6 g/（m^2·h）. Besides, SA-PVA/PSF hollow fiber composite membranes （PS3 and PS4） were used for the investigation of the effect of ethanol concentration in the feed solution on pervaporation performance.

Single-phase earth fault current distribution between optical fiber composite overhead ground wire and ordinary ground wire in transmission system

It is important for the safety of transmission system to accurately calculate single-phase earth fault current distribution.Features of double sided elimination method were illustrated.Quantitative calculation of single-phase earth fault current distribution and case verification were accomplished by using the loop method.Influences of some factors,such as single-phase earth fault location and ground resistance of poles,on short-circuit current distribution were discussed.Results show that:1) results of the loop method conform to those of double sided elimination method;2) the fault location hardly influences macro-distribution of short-circuit current.However,current near fault location is evidently influenced;and 3) the short-circuit current distribution is not so sensitive to the ground resistance of poles.

Analysis on the Bonding Failure Mechanism of High Modulus Carbon Fiber Composites

In order to explore the bonding failure mechanism of high modulus carbon fiber composite materials,the tensile experiment and finite element numerical simulation for single-lap and bevel-lap joints of unidirectional laminates are carried out,and the stress distributions,the failure modes,and the damage contours are analyzed. The analysis shows that the main reason for the failure of the single-lap joint is that the stress concentration of the ply adjacent to the adhesive layer is serious owing to the modulus difference,and the stress cannot be effectively transmitted along the thickness direction of the laminate. When the tensile stress of the ply exceeds its ultimate strength in the loading process,the surface fiber will fail. Compared with the single-lap joint,the bevel-lap joint optimizes the stress transfer path along the thickness direction,allows each layer of the laminate to share the load,avoids the stress concentration of the surface layer,and improves the bearing capacity of the bevel-lap joint. The improved bearing capacity of the bevellap joint is twice as much as that of the single-lap joint. The research in this paper provides a new idea for the subsequent study of mechanical properties of adhesively bonded composite materials.

Analysis of vibration attenuation characteristics of large thickness carbon fiber composite laminates

The vibration attenuation and damping characteristics of carbon fiber reinforced composite laminates with different thicknesses were investigated by hammering experiments under free boundary constraints in different directions.The dynamic signal testing and analysis system is applied to collect and analyze the vibration signals of the composite specimens,and combine the self-spectrum analysis and logarithmic decay method to identify the fundamental frequencies of different specimens and calculate the damping ratios of different directions of the specimens.The results showed that the overall stiffness of the specimen increased with the increase of the specimen thickness,and when the thickness of the sample increases from 24mm to 32mm,the fundamental frequency increases by 35.1%,the vibration showed the same vibration attenuation and energy dissipation characteristics in the 0°and 90°directions of the specimen,compared with the specimen in the 45°direction,which was less likely to be excited and had poorer vibration attenuation ability,while the upper and lower surfaces of the same specimen showed slightly different attenuation characteristics to the vibration,the maximum difference of damping capacity between top and bottom surfaces of CFRP plates is about 70%.

High-Performance Recyclable Furan-based Epoxy Resin and Its Carbon Fiber Composites with Dense Hydrogen Bonding

The emerging biomass-based epoxy vitrimers hold great potential to fulfill the requirements for sustainable development of society.Since the existence of dynamic chemical bonds in vitrimers often reduces both the thermal and mechanical properties of epoxy resins, it is challenging to produce recyclable epoxy vitrimers with both excellent mechanical properties and good thermal stability. Herein, a monomer 4-(((5-(hydroxymethyl)furan-2-yl)methylene)amino)phenol(FCN) containing furan ring with potential to form high density of hydrogen bonding among repeating units is designed and copolymerized with glycerol triglycidyl ether to yield epoxy resin(FCN-GTE), which intrinsically has dual hydrogen bond networks, dynamic imine structure and resultant high performance. Importantly, as compared to the BPA-GTE, the FCN-GTE exhibits significantly improved mechanical properties owing to the increased density of hydrogen bond network and physical crosslinking interaction. Furthermore, density functional theory(DFT) calculation and in situ FTIR analysis is conducted to decipher the formation mechanism of hydrogen bond network. In addition, the FCN-GTE possesses superior UV shielding, chemical degradation, and recyclability because of the existence of abundant imine bonds. Notably, the FCN-GTE-based carbon fiber composites could be completely recycled in an amine solution.This study provides a facile strategy for synthesizing recyclable biomass-based high-performance epoxy vitrimers and carbon fiber composites.

Elevating mechanical and biotribological properties of carbon fiber composites by constructing graphene-silicon nitride nanowires interlocking interfacial enhancement

Carbon fiber reinforced dual-matrix composites(CHM)including carbon fiber reinforced hydroxyapatite-polymer matrix composites(CHMP)and carbon fiber reinforced hydroxyapatite-pyrolytic carbon matrix composites(CHMC)have great potential application in the field of artificial hip joints,where a combination of high mechanical strength and excellent biotribological property are required.In this work,the graphene-silicon nitride nanowires(Graphene-Si_(3)N_(4)nws)interlocking interfacial enhancement were designed and constructed into CHM for boosting the mechanical and biotribological properties.The graphene and Si_(3)N_(4)nws interact with each other and construct interlocking interfacial enhancement.Benefiting from the Graphene-Si_(3)N_(4)nws synergistic effect and interlocking enhancement mechanism,the mechanical and biotribological properties of CHM were promoted.Compared with CHMP,the shear and compressive strengths of Graphene-Si_(3)N_(4)nws reinforced CHMP were increased by 80.0% and 61.5%,respectively.The friction coefficient and wear rate were reduced by 52.8% and 52.9%,respectively.Compared with CHMC,the shear and compressive strengths of Graphene-Si_(3)N_(4)nws reinforced CHMC were increased by 145.4% and 64.2%.The friction coefficient and wear rate were decreased by 52.3% and 73.6%.Our work provides a promising methodology for preparing Graphene-Si_(3)N_(4)nws reinforced CHM with more reliable mechanical and biotribological properties for use in artificial hip joints.

INTERFACE DAMAGE ANALYSIS OF FIBER REINFORCED COMPOSITES WITH DUCTILE MATRIX

A cohesive zone model is employed to simulate the fiber/matrix interface damage of composites with ductile matrix. The study is carried out to investigate the dependence of the interface damage and the composite tensile strength on the micro parameters of the composite. These parameters contain fiber packing pattern, fiber volume fraction, and the modulus ratio of the fiber to the matrix. The investigation reveals that though the high fiber vo lume fraction, the high fiber′s modulus and the square fiber packing can supply strong reinforcement to the composite, the interface damage is susceptible in these cases. The tensile strength of the composite is dominated by the interface strength when the interface debonding occurs.

Ballistic impact simulation of Kevlar-129 fiber reinforced composite material

The penetration resistance of Kevlar-129 fiber reinforced composite materials was investigated with AUTODYN software.The ballistic limits of the fragment that pierced 6kinds of target plates were obtained by finite element simulation when the 10 g fragment simulation projectile（FSP）impacting to the target plates of different thickness values of 8,10,12,14,16 and 18mm with appropriate velocity,respectively,and the influences of thickness on the ballistic limits and the specific energy absorption were analyzed.The results show that the ballistic limit of Kevlar-129 fiber reinforced composite plates presents linear growth with the increase of the target thickness in the range from 8to 18 mm.The specific energy absorption of plates presents approximately linear growth,but there is slightly slow growth in the range from 10 to 16mm of the target thickness.It also can be found that the influences of plate thickness and surface density on the varying pattern of specific energy absorption are almost the same.Therefore,both of them can be used to characterize the variation of specific energy absorption under the impact of the FSP fragment.

SYNTHESIS OF NATURAL RUBBER-g-MALEIC ANHYDRIDE AND ITS USE AS A COMPATIBILIZER IN NATURAL RUBBER/SHORT NYLON FIBER COMPOSITES

Natural rubber grafted maleic anhydride （NR-g-MAH） was synthesized by mixing maleic anhydride （MAH） and natural rubber （NR） in solid state in a torque rheometer using dicurnyl peroxide （DCP） as initiator. Then the self-prepared NR-g-MAH was used as a compatibilizer in the natural rubber/short nylon fiber composites. Both the fimctionalization of NR with MAH and the reaction between the modified rubber and the nylon fiber were confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy （FTIR）. Composites with different nylon short fiber loadings （0, 5, 10, 15 and 20 phr） were compounded on a two-roll mill, and the effects of the NR-g-MAH on the tensile and thermal properties, fiber-rubber interaction, as well as the morphology of the natural rubber/short nylon fiber composites were investigated. At equal fiber loading, the NR-g-MAH compatibilized NR/short nylon fiber composites showed improved tensile properties, especially the tensile modulus at 100% strain which was about 1.5 times that of the corresponding un-compatibilized ones. The equilibrium swelling tests proved that the incorporation of NR-g-MAH increased the interaction between the nylon fibers and the NR matrix. The crosslink density measured with NMR techniques showed that the NR-g-MAH compatiblized composites had lower total crosslink density. The glass transition temperatures of the compatibilized composites were about 1 K higher than that of the corresponding un-compabilized ones. Morphology analysis of the NR/short nylon fiber composites confirmed NR-g-MAH improved interfacial bonding between the NR matrix and the nylon fibers. All these results signified that the NR-g-MAH could act as a good compatilizer of NR/short nylon fiber composites and had a potential for wide use considering its easy to be prepared and compounded with the composites.

A Review of Recent Advances in Hybrid Natural Fiber Reinforced Polymer Composites

Natural fiber reinforced polymer composites(NFRCs)have demonstrated great potential for many different applications in various industries due to their advantages compared to synthetic fiber-reinforced composites,such as low environmental impact and low cost.However,one of the drawbacks is that the NFRCs present relatively low mechanical properties and the absorption of humidity due to the hydrophilic characteristic of the natural fibre.One method to increase their performance is hybridization.Therefore,understanding the properties and potential of using multiple reinforcement’s materials to develop hybrid composites is of great interest.This paper provides an overview of the recent advances in hybrid natural fiber reinforced polymer composites.First,the main factors that affect the performance of hybrid fiber-reinforced composites were briefly discussed.The effect of hybridization on the mechanical and thermal properties of hybrid composites reinforced with several types of natural fibers(i.e.,sisal,jute,curauá,ramie,banana,etc.)or natural fibers combined with synthetic fibers is pre-sented.Finally,the water absorption behaviour of hybrid fiber-reinforced composites is also discussed.It was con-cluded that the main challenges that need to be addressed in order to increase the use of natural-natural or natural-synthetic hybrid composites in industry are the poor adhesion between natural fibers and matrix,thermal stability and moisture absorption of natural fibers.Some of these challenges were addressed by recent develop-ment in fibers treatment and modification,and product innovation(hybridization).

Synchronously constructing networked Si_(3)N_(4) nanowires and interconnected graphene inside carbon fiber composites for enhancing mechanical, friction and anti-ablation properties

Carbon fiber(C_(f))reinforced pyrolytic carbon(PyC)composites simultaneously possessing robust mechanical strength,excellent friction performances and outstanding anti-ablation properties are demanded for advanced aerospace applications.Efficient architecture design and optimization of composites are promi-nent yet remain high challenging for realizing the above requirements.Herein,binary reinforcements of networked silicon nitride nanowires(Si_(3)N_(4) nws)and interconnected graphene(GE)have been successfully constructed into C f/PyC by precursor impregnation-pyrolysis and chemical vapor deposition.Notably,net-worked Si_(3)N_(4) nws are uniformly distributed among the carbon fibers,while interconnected GE is firmly rooted on the surface of both networked Si_(3)N_(4) nws and carbon fibers.In the networked Si_(3)N_(4) nws and interconnected GE reinforced C_(f)/PyC,networked Si_(3)N_(4) nws significantly boost the cohesion strength of PyC,while GE markedly improves the interface bonding of both Si_(3)N_(4) nws/PyC and fiber/PyC.Benefiting from the synergistic reinforcement effect of networked Si_(3)N_(4) nws and interconnected GE,the C_(f)/PyC have a prominent enhancement in mechanical(shear and compressive strengths increased by 119.9% and 52.84%,respectively)and friction(friction coefficient and wear rate reduced by 25.40% and 60.10%,respectively)as well as anti-ablation(mass ablation rate and linear ablation rate decreased by 71.25% and 63.01%,respectively).This present strategy for networked Si_(3)N_(4) nws and interconnected GE reinforced C_(f)/PyC provides a dominant route to produce mechanically robust,frictionally resisting and ablatively resistant materials for use in advanced aerospace applications.