Enhanced fracture toughness of hierarchical carbon nanotube reinforced carbon fibre epoxy composites with engineered matrix microstructure
File(s)
Accepted version
Author(s)
Zainol Abidin, M Shukur
Herceg, Tomi
Greenhalgh, Emile S
Shaffer, Milo
Bismarck, Alexander
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Fibre reinforced hierarchical composites further reinforced with up to 25 wt.% of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were manufactured using a wet powder impregnation route. Microstructural heterogeneity in the matrix of these laminates was engineered during wet powder impregnation to produce CNTs rich regions with spatial separation. The Mode I fracture toughness of these heterogeneous hierarchical composites increased by 41% and 26% compared to that of baseline carbon fibre epoxy composites and hierarchical composites with homogeneously distributed CNTs throughout the matrix with similar CNT content, respectively. Increased crack path tortuosity was observed to contribute to this increase in fracture toughness. The interlaminar shear strength was unaffected by the matrix microstructural heterogeneity.
Date Issued
2019-01-20
Date Acceptance
2018-11-06
Citation
Composites Science and Technology, 2019, 170, pp.85-92
ISSN
0266-3538
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Start Page
85
End Page
92
Journal / Book Title
Composites Science and Technology
Volume
170
Copyright Statement
© 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. This manuscript is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Licence http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
Sponsor
QinetiQ Limited
Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL)
Grant Number
AT/FRN/12750/IMP/08
DSTLX-100006041
Subjects
09 Engineering
Materials
Publication Status
Published
Date Publish Online
2018-11-12