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Fibre Reinforced Composites: Interfacial Modifications and Property

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A special issue of Molecules (ISSN 1420-3049). This special issue belongs to the section "Macromolecular Chemistry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (29 February 2020) | Viewed by 19982

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Prof. Dr. Youhong Tang

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Institute for NanoScale Science and Technology, Medical Device Research Institute, College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University, Adelaide, SA 5042, Australia
Interests: biomaterials; chemosensors/biosensors and their associated portable devices; especially with novel aggregation-induced emission features
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Dear Colleagues,

A growing demand exists for fibre-reinforced composites with enhanced properties, which are essential for applications in engineering fields. Although various fibre-reinforced composites exhibit excellent properties, poor interfacial interaction between matrix and fibres is an existing problem. Interfacial interactions between matrix and fibres play an important role in the mechanical, thermal, and corrosion resistance properties of the composites, to name but a few. In most cases, the failure of fibre-reinforced composites is strongly related to their poor interfacial interactions.

Numerous efforts have been made to improve the interfacial behaviours of fibre-reinforced composites and understand their enhancement mechanisms. Consequently, there is a need for a Special Issue to provide a broad overview and address the various aspects of this field. For readers, this Special Issue will provide an attractive opportunity to more easily access information concerning the different facets of the research into the interfaces of fibre-reinforced composites. For the authors, it will be an appropriate opportunity to increase the visibility of their results and analyses, in addition to reasserting their role as an active member of the scientific community in fibre-reinforced composites. This Special Issue will contain contributions discussing all of the aspects broadly indicated by the keywords. Reviews articles by experts in the field are also welcome.

Assoc. Prof. Youhong Tang
Guest Editor

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Keywords

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Fiber reinforced composites
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Interface modifications and characterizations

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Fiber surface modifications
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Interfacial interaction mechanism
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Damage detections
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Published Papers (7 papers)

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Research

16 pages, 4003 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Thermal Behavior of Green Cellulose-Filled Thermoplastic Elastomer Polymer Blends

by Stefan Cichosz and Anna Masek

Molecules 2020, 25(6), 1279; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules25061279 - 12 Mar 2020

Cited by 23 | Viewed by 3309

Abstract

A recently developed cellulose hybrid chemical treatment consists of two steps: solvent exchange (with ethanol or hexane) and chemical grafting of maleic anhydride (MA) on the surface of fibers. It induces a significant decrease in cellulose moisture content and causes some changes in the thermal resistance of analyzed blend samples, as well as surface properties. The thermal characteristics of ethylene-norbornene copolymer (TOPAS) blends filled with hybrid chemically modified cellulose fibers (UFC100) have been widely described on the basis of differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetric analysis. Higher thermal stability is observed for the materials filled with the fibers which were dried before any of the treatments carried out. Dried cellulose filled samples start to degrade at approximately 330 °C while undried UFC100 specimens begin to degrade around 320 °C. Interestingly, the most elevated thermal resistance was detected for samples filled with cellulose altered only with solvents (both ethanol and hexane). In order to support the supposed thermal resistance trends of prepared blend materials, apparent activation energies assigned to cellulose degradation (E_A1) and polymer matrix decomposition (E_A2) have been calculated and presented in the article. It may be evidenced that apparent activation energies assigned to the first decomposition step are higher in case of the systems filled with UFC100 dried prior to the modification process. Moreover, the results have been enriched using surface free energy analysis of the polymer blends. The surface free energy polar part (Ep) raises considering samples filled with not dried UFC100. On the other hand, when cellulose fibers are dried prior to the modification process, then the blend sample’s dispersive part of surface free energy is increased with respect to that containing unmodified fiber. As polymer blend Ep exhibits higher values reflecting enhanced material degradation potential, the cellulose fibers employment leads to more eco-friendly production and responsible waste management. This is in accordance with the rules of sustainable development. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fibre Reinforced Composites: Interfacial Modifications and Property)

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11 pages, 3334 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Enhanced Shielding Performance of Layered Carbon Fiber Composites Filled with Carbonyl Iron and Carbon Nanotubes in the Koch Curve Fractal Method

by Hetong Zhang, Yue Guo, Xiang Zhang, Xinqian Wang, Hang Wang, Chunsheng Shi and Fang He

Molecules 2020, 25(4), 969; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules25040969 - 21 Feb 2020

Cited by 14 | Viewed by 2137

Abstract

Layered carbon fiber composites (CFC) with enhanced shielding effectiveness (SE) were prepared with mixed fillers of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and carbonyl iron powders (CIPs) in the form of a Koch curve fractal. In the layered composite structure, glass fiber (GF) cloth was used in the wave–transmissive layer (WTL), and the carbon fiber (CF) cloth was used in the supporting layer (SL). Between WTL and SL, CNTs and CIPs were distributed in epoxy resin in the form of a Koch curve fractal to act as an absorbing layer (AL), and copper foil was used as a reflective layer (RL) and bonded at the bottom of the whole composites. The layered structure design and excellent interlayer interface integration obviously improved the SE performance of the CFC. The SE of different samples was investigated, and the results show that, with the increase in the number (n) of Koch curve fractals, the SE of the samples enhanced in the low frequency scope (1–5 GHz). The sample with n = 2 has the highest SE value of 73.8 dB at 2.3 GHz. The shielding performance of the fractal sample filled by CNTs and CIPs simultaneously has a comprehensive improvement in the whole scope of 1–18 GHz, especially for the sample with n = 2. The cumulative bandwidth value of the SE exceeding 55 dB is about 14.3 GHz, accounting for 85% of the whole frequency scope, indicating the composite fabricated in this paper is an electromagnetic shielding material with great prospect. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fibre Reinforced Composites: Interfacial Modifications and Property)

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24 pages, 9176 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Mechanical Respond and Failure Mode of Large Size Honeycomb Sandwiched Composites under In-Plane Shear Load

by Mo-Nan Wang, Baoqin Wang, Changxi Liu, Guangxin Zhang, Yumin Wan and Fa Zhang

Molecules 2019, 24(23), 4248; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules24234248 - 21 Nov 2019

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2900

Abstract

The present work focuses on the in-plane shear respond and failure mode of large size honeycomb sandwich composites which consist of plain weave carbon fabric laminate skins and aramid paper core. A special size specimen based on a typical element of aircraft fuselage was designed and manufactured. A modified in-plane shear test method and the corresponding fixture was developed. Three large size specimens were tested. The distributed strain gauges were used to monitor the mechanical response and ultimate bearing capacity. The results show that a linear respond of displacement and strain appears with the increase of the load. The average shear failure load reaches 205.68 kN with the shear failure occurring on the face sheet, and the maximum shear strain monitored on the composite plate is up to 16,115 με. A combination of theoretical analysis and finite element method (FEM) was conducted to predict the shear field distribution and the overall buckling load. The out-of-plane displacement field distribution and in-plane shear strain field distribution under the pure shear loading were revealed. The theoretical analysis method was deduced to obtain the variation rule of the shear buckling load. A good agreement was achieved among the experiment, theoretical analysis, and FEM results. It can be concluded that the theoretical analysis method is relatively conservative, and the FEM is more accurate in case of deformation and strain. The results predicted by h element and p element methods are very close. The results of the study could provide data support for the comprehensive promotion of the design and application of honeycomb sandwich composites. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fibre Reinforced Composites: Interfacial Modifications and Property)

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17 pages, 4087 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Study on the Mechanical Properties and Strengthening Mechanism of Interface-Modified Carbon Fiber Mesh Reinforced Cement-Based Composites with SCA&HMC

by Bo Wu, Xiaohai Xu, Shigang Luo, Dedao Yan, Kai Song, Xiang Zhang and Fang He

Molecules 2019, 24(21), 3989; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules24213989 - 05 Nov 2019

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2647

Abstract

Carbon fiber mesh reinforced cement-based composites (CMCCs) have received extensive attention in the field of engineering repair and structural reinforcement due to their outstanding properties such as two-way force, rust prevention, high specific strength, and low base surface requirements. However, the development of this material has been slowed down to some extent due to the poor interfacial bonding between the carbon fiber mesh and the cement matrix. In this paper, a novel fabrication strategy was proposed in which the carbon fiber mesh was modified with epoxy resin and silane coupling agent (SCA) to increase its surface chemical activity. Meanwhile, the hydroxymethyl cellulose (HMC) was also filled into the concrete matrix to improve the mechanical strength of the matrix as well as the load transfer behaviors between the mortar and carbon fiber (CF) mesh. The potential to employ SCA and HMC was evaluated for the making of CMCCs via the above methods. The results showed that the longitudinal shear strength of composites with SCA and SCA&HMC increased by 26.6% and 56.1% compared to those of CF with epoxy resin (EP) reinforced composites, respectively. The flexural strength of composite with SCA&HMC increases by 147.6% compared to I-(F) without CF. The novel II-HCM&CF/EP-SCA composites with excellent performance are promised to be applied in practical uses. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fibre Reinforced Composites: Interfacial Modifications and Property)

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17 pages, 5230 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effects of Temperature on Bending Properties of Three-Dimensional and Five-Directional Braided Composite

by Peng Li, Na Jia, Xiaoyuan Pei, Zhenkai Wan, Jialu Li, Zhenrong Zheng and Hailiang Wu

Molecules 2019, 24(21), 3977; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules24213977 - 03 Nov 2019

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2069

Abstract

The bending properties of three-dimensional (3Dim) and five-directional (5Dir) braided/epoxy resin composites at room temperature, 90 °C, 110 °C, and 150 °C and heating for 0.25 h, 10 h, and 30 h, respectively, were studied. The effect of different temperatures and heating times on the bending property of these composites was discussed. The results showed that the bending strength of these composites at 90 °C, 110 °C, and 150 °C and heating time of 0.25 h is 33.86%, 46.27%, and 83.94% lower, respectively, than that at room temperature. In addition, 3Dim–5Dir braided composites exhibit different damage modes at different temperatures, revealing different failure mechanisms. Heating temperature has greater influence on the bending properties of these composites than heating time. The results provided a basis for the application of resin-based 3Dim–5Dir braided/epoxy resin composites at different temperatures. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fibre Reinforced Composites: Interfacial Modifications and Property)

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17 pages, 2546 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Location of Tensile Damage Source of Carbon Fiber Braided Composites Based on Two-Step Method

by Gang Ding, Chunbo Xiu, Zhenkai Wan, Jialu Li, Xiaoyuan Pei and Zhenrong Zheng

Molecules 2019, 24(19), 3524; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules24193524 - 28 Sep 2019

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2246

Abstract

Acoustic emission (AE) source localization is one of the important purposes of nondestructive testing. The localization accuracy reflects the degree of coincidence between the identified location and the actual damage location. However, the anisotropy of carbon fiber three-dimensional braided composites will have a great impact on the accuracy of AE source location. In order to solve this problem, the time-frequency domain characteristics of AE signals in a carbon fiber braided composite tensile test were analyzed by Hilbert–Huang transform (HHT), and the corresponding relationship between damage modes and AE signals was established. Then, according to the time-frequency characteristics of HHT of tensile acoustic emission signals, the two-step method was used to locate the damage source. In the first step, the sound velocity was compensated by combining the time-frequency analysis results with the anisotropy of the experimental specimens, and the four-point circular arc method was used to locate the initial position. In the second step, there is an improvement of the Drosophila optimization algorithm, using the ergodicity of the chaotic algorithm and congestion adjustment mechanism in the fish swarm algorithm. The smoothing parameters and function construction in the probabilistic neural network were optimized, the number of iterations was reduced, the location accuracy was improved, and the damage mode of composite materials was obtained. Then, the damage location was obtained to achieve the purpose of locating the damage source. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fibre Reinforced Composites: Interfacial Modifications and Property)

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13 pages, 5874 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Improving Interlaminar Fracture Toughness and Impact Performance of Carbon Fiber/Epoxy Laminated Composite by Using Thermoplastic Fibers

by Ling Chen, Li-Wei Wu, Qian Jiang, Da Tian, Zhili Zhong, Yan Wang and Hong-Jun Fu

Molecules 2019, 24(18), 3367; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules24183367 - 16 Sep 2019

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 4228

Abstract

The effects of thermoplastic polyimide (PI) and polypropylene (PP) fibers and areal density of toughened layer on interlaminar fracture toughness and impact performance of carbon fiber/epoxy (CF/EP) laminated composites were studied. Mode I interlaminar fracture toughness (G_IC) was analyzed via double cantilever beam (DCB) tests. When comparing for the toughener type, PI played a positive role in enhancing the mode-I fracture toughness, while PP was not effective due to the less fiber bridge formed during composite curing. The toughening effects of areal density of PI were further investigated by end notched flexure (ENF) testing and low velocity impact testing to better understand the toughening mechanisms. The results revealed that the toughening effect reached its best effectiveness when the areal density of toughened layer was 30 g/m². Compared with the control group, G_IC and G_IIC of CF/EP laminated composite were increased by 98.49% and 84.07%, and F_max and E_e were enhanced by 92.38% and 299.08% under low velocity impact. There is no obvious delamination phenomenon on the surface of laminates after low velocity impact, indicating the improved interlaminar and impact performance of laminated composite. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fibre Reinforced Composites: Interfacial Modifications and Property)

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