Percolation in Carbon Nanotube-Reinforced Polymers for Strain-Sensing Applications: Computational Investigation on Carbon Nanotube Distribution, Curvature, and Aggregation.

The present article investigates the possibility of simulating the electrical conductivity of carbon nanotube-reinforced polymer composites by numerical methods. Periodic representative volume elements are generated by randomly distributing perfectly conductive reinforcements in an insulating matrix and are used to assemble an electrical network representative of the nanocomposite, where the nanotube-nanotube contacts are considered equivalent resistors modeled by means of Simmons' equation. A comparison of the results with experimental data from the literature supports the conclusion that a random distribution of reinforcements is not suitable for simulating this class of materials since percolation thresholds and conductivity trends are different, with experimental percolation taking place before the expectations.

Recent Advances in the Analytical Stress Field Solutions for Radiused Notches in Orthotropic Solids.

The main aim of this work is to provide a brief overview of the analytical solutions available to describe the in-plane and out-of-plane stress fields in orthotropic solids with radiused notches. To this end, initially, a brief summary on the bases of complex potentials for orthotropic elasticity is presented, with reference to plane stress or strain and antiplane shear problems. Subsequently, the attention is moved to the relevant expressions for the notch stress fields, considering elliptical holes, symmetric hyperbolic notches, parabolic notches (blunt cracks), and radiused V-notches.

Three-Dimensional Stress Fields in Thick Orthotropic Plates with Sharply Curved Notches under In-Plane and Out-of-Plane Shear.

In this paper, an analytical solution for the stress fields in the close neighbourhoods of radiused notches in thick orthotropic plates under shear loading and twisting is provided. In the first step, the equations of the three-dimensional theory of elasticity are successfully reduced to two uncoupled equations in two-dimensional space. Later, the 3D stress field solution for orthotropic plates with radiused notches is presented and its degree of accuracy is discussed by comparing theoretical results and numerical data from 3D FE analyses.

Chemical and Mechanical Characterization of Unprecedented Transparent Epoxy-Nanomica Composites-New Model Insights for Mechanical Properties.

Two nanomicas of similar composition, containing muscovite and quartz, but with different particle size distributions, have been used to prepare transparent epoxy nanocomposites. Their homogeneous dispersion, due to the nano-size, was achieved even without being organically modified, and no aggregation of the nanoparticles was observed, thus maximizing the specific interface between matrix and nanofiller. No exfoliation or intercalation has been observed by XRD, despite the significant dispersion of the filler in the matrix which produced nanocomposites with a loss in transparency in the visible domain of less than 10% in the presence of 1% wt and 3% wt of mica fillers.

Improving the Antimicrobial and Mechanical Properties of Epoxy Resins via Nanomodification: An Overview.

The main purpose of this work is to provide a comprehensive overview on the preparation of multifunctional epoxies, with improved antimicrobial activity and enhanced mechanical properties through nanomodification. In the first section, we focus on the approaches to achieve antimicrobial activity, as well as on the methods used to evaluate their efficacy against bacteria and fungi. Relevant application examples are also discussed, with particular reference to antifouling and anticorrosion coatings for marine environments, dental applications, antimicrobial fibers and fabrics, and others.