Numerical Simulation and Comparison of the Mechanical Behavior of Toughened Epoxy Resin by Different Nanoparticles.

Adding nanoparticles as the second phase to epoxy can achieve a good toughening effect. The aim of this paper is to simulate the toughening behavior of epoxy resin by different nanoparticles using a convenient and effective finite element method. The mechanical behaviors of epoxy resins toughened by nano core-shell polymers, liquid rubber, and nanosilica were compared by numerical simulations using the representative volume element (RVE).

Dynamic Mechanical Analysis on Delaminated Flax Fiber Reinforced Composites.

It is well-known that the presence of the delamination in a plant fiber-reinforced composite is difficult to detect. However, the delamination introduces a local flexibility, which changes the dynamic characteristics of the composite structure. This paper presents a new methodology for composite laminate delamination detection, which is based on dynamic mechanical analysis.

Scale Effect on Impact Performance of Unidirectional Glass Fiber Reinforced Epoxy Composite Laminates.

As a result of the increasing use of glass fiber reinforced plastic (GFRP) composites in engineering fields, the investigation of scale effect on impact performance for this kind of composite is essential for large scale structure design. The effects of scaling on the impact response of simply supported unidirectional GFRP were investigated through drop weight impact (DWI) tests in this study. Impact tests were undertaken over a wide range of energies to generate damages between barely visible and initiated penetration on four scale size GFRP laminates.

Effect of Temperature and Water Absorption on Low-Velocity Impact Damage of Composites with Multi-Layer Structured Flax Fiber.

Temperature and moisture can cause degradation to the impact properties of plant fiber-based composites owing to their complex chemical composition and multi-layer microstructure. This study focused on experimental characterization of the effect of important influencing factors, including manufacturing process temperature, exposure temperature, and water absorption, on the impact damage threshold and damage mechanisms of flax fiber reinforced composites. Firstly, serious reduction on the impact damage threshold and damage resistance was observed, this indicated excessive temperature can cause chemical decomposition and structural damage to flax fiber.