• Carbon letters
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• v.19
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• pp.47-56
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• 2016

In this study, the fracture behavior of a thermoplastic-modified epoxy resin reinforced with continuous carbon fibers for two levels of fiber-matrix adhesion was performed. A carbon fiber with commercial sizing was used and also treated with a known silane, (3-glycidoxy propyl trimethoxysilane) coupling agent. Toughness was determined using the double cantilever test, together with surface analysis after failure using scanning electron microscope. The presence of polysulfone particles improved the fracture behavior of the composite, but fiber-matrix adhesion seemed to play a very important role in the performance of the composite material. There appeared to be a synergy between the matrix modifier and the fiber-matrix adhesion coupling agent.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.17 no.5
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• pp.80-85
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• 2016

Carbon fiber-reinforced composite materials have been widely used in various industrial fields, but there are limits to increasing their strength and stiffness, because of the short-length fibers that are impregnated in them. In this study, a lab-scale small extruder system was developed with the capability to perform the carbon fiber impregnation and extrusion process in order to evaluate the properties of long-length carbon fiber reinforced thermoplastic composite materials molded by the LFT-D method. Specimens were made with the small extruder to press-mold long-length carbon fiber composite materials and evaluate their material properties. As a result, it was found that the carbon fiber length, press load and carbon fiber contents have a considerable influence on the strength and stiffness. Additional studies on such factors as the mixing screw design and coating of the carbon fiber are needed in order to improve the mechanical properties of carbon fiber composite materials.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Manufacturing Process Engineers
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• v.16 no.5
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• pp.25-30
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• 2017

Carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic (CFRP) composite materials have been widely used in various industrial fields because the design variables can be adjusted according to the application of the required structure. Thermosetting and thermoplastic resins are used as the base materials of CFRP composites for the lightweight construction of automotive components. Thermoplastics have several advantages such as no curing and recyclability compared to thermosetting resin. In this study, CFRP composites were made using the Long-Fiber Thermoplastic-Direct (LFT-D) process. The LFT-D process includes an in-line production system that directly impregnates a thermoplastic resin, extrudes the composite material, and molds it. This process increases the strength and decreases the molding time. The tensile strength characteristics on the mechanical properties of CFRP were analyzed according to the parameters of LFT-D based on thermoplastics. To analyze the properties of CFRP, the specimens were prepared based on the tensile test standard ASTM 3039 of composite materials.

• Composites Research
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.168-175
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• 2015

Recently, the applications of carbon fiber reinforced plastics (CFRPs) have become broader than ever when it comes to such industries as automotive, ships, aerospace and military because of their lightweight-ness and high mechanical properties. Thermosetting plastics like epoxy are frequently used as the binding matrix in CFRPs due to their high hardness, wetting characteristics and low viscosity. However, they cannot melted and remolded. For this reason, thermosetting plastic wastes have caused serious environmental problems with the production of fiber reinforced plastics. Thus, many studies have focused on the carbon fiber reinforced thermoplastics (CFRTPs) and recycling carbon fiber. In this study, recycled carbon fiber (RCF) was prepared from CFRPs using a pyrolysis method, which was employed to separate resin and carbon fiber. The degree of decomposition for epoxy resin was confirmed from thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA) and scanning electron microscope (SEM). The RCF was cut and ground to prepare a carbon fiber composite sheet (CFCS). CFCS was manufactured by applying recycled carbon fibers and various thermoplastic fibers. Various characterizations were performed, including morphological analyses of surface and cross-section, mechanical properties, and crystallization enthalpy of CFCS at different cooling conditions.

• Composites Research
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• v.30 no.6
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• pp.365-370
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• 2017

Mechanical properties of carbon fiber reinforced thermoplastic composites (CFRTPs) are affected by various factors. One of the them are poor compatibility of the epoxy sizing layer on the carbon fiber surface with thermoplastic matrix, which causes the inferior interfacial strength between fibers and matrix. In addition, the high molten-viscosity of thermoplastics attributes to the poor impregnation state. Consequently, many voids in the composite materials were generated, which leads to poor mechanical properties of the thermoplastic composites. In this study, the epoxy sizing on the carbon fiber surface was removed and the polyamide 6,6 solution was coated on the de-sized carbon fiber surface to improve the impregnation state and mechanical properties. Interlaminar shear strength (ILSS) of CFRPTs was estimated by implementing short beam shear tests. In addition, flexural strength was measured and the impregnation state of the composites was evaluated by calculating void content.

• Design & Manufacturing
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.39-44
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• 2021

In molding of continuous fiber-reinforced thermoplastic composites, it is very difficult to impregnate between the reinforcements and the matrix since the matrix has a high melting temperature and high viscosity. Therefore, most of composite molding processes are divided in the manufacturing processes of intermediate materials called prepreg and the forming of products from intermediate materials. The divided process requires additional facilities and thermoforming, and they increase the cycle time and cost of composite products. These problems can be resolved by combining the continuous fiber-reinforced composite molding process with injection molding. However, when a composite material is manufactured by inserting woven fabric into the injection mold, poor impregnation occurs on the surface of the molded product. It affects the properties of the composites. In this paper, through an impregnation experiment using cores with different heat transfer rates and pore densities, the reason for the poor impregnation was confirmed, and molding experiments were conducted to produce composite with improved surface impregnation by inserting the mesh. And also, the surface impregnation and deformation of composites molded using different types of mesh were compared with each other.

• Composites Research
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.136-142
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• 2021

3D printing technology has the advantage of easy to make various shapes of products without a mold. However, it has a problem such as mechanical properties vary greatly depending on materials and manufacturing conditions. Thus, the need for research of 3D printing technology on ways to reduce manufacturing cost compared to physical properties is increasing. In this study, a 3D printing thermoplastic structure was fabricated using short fiber carbon fiber reinforced nylon filaments. And a method of improving mechanical properties was proposed by reinforcing the outer surface using pultruded continuous fiber-type carbon fiber or glass fiber-reinforced thermosetting composite material. It was confirmed that the bending properties were improved according to the reinforcing position of the stiffener and the type of fiber in the stiffener.

• Proceedings of the KSR Conference
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• 2008.11b
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• pp.406-415
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• 2008

Recently, the amount of thermosetting plastic wastes have increased with the production of reinforced plastic composites and causes serious environmental problems. The epoxy composites, one of the versatile thermosetting plastics with excellent properties, cannot be melted down and remolded as what is done in the thermoplastic industry. In this research, a series of experiments that recovers carbon fibers from carbon fiber reinforced epoxy composites for train body was performed. We experimentally examined various decomposition processes and compared their decomposition efficiencies and mechanical property of recovered carbon fibers. For the prevention of tangle of recovered carbon fibers, each composites specimen was fixed with a Teflon supporter and no mechanical mixing was applied. Decomposition products were analyzed by scanning electron microscope (SEM), gas chromatography mass spectrometer (GC-MS), and universal testing machine (UTM). Carbon fibers could be completely recovered from decomposition process using nitric acid aqueous solution, liquid-phase thermal cracking and pyrolysis. The tensile strength losses of the recovered carbon fibers were less than 4%.

• Advances in aircraft and spacecraft science
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• v.7 no.6
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• pp.475-493
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• 2020

This paper is focused on the characterization of the thermomechanical properties of semicrystalline poly-ether-ether-ketone (PEKK) and of carbon fiberreinforced thermoplastic based laminated composites (C/PEKK) below and above the glass transition temperature (T_g). Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC), Dynamic Mechanical Analysis (DMA) and tensile tests are carried out on both pure PEKK polymer and [(±45)₂, +45]_s C/PEKK composite samples, showing a significant similarity in behavior. The employment of a simple micromechanical model confirms that the mechanical and physical behavior of the polymer and that of the matrix in the composite are similar.

• Composites Research
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• v.34 no.5
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• pp.290-295
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• 2021

The application of lightweight structural composites to automobiles as a solution in line with global fuel economy regulations to curb global warming is recognized as a megatrend. This study was conducted to provide a technical approach that can respond to the issue of replacing parts that require conductive properties to maximize the application of thermoplastic carbon fiber reinforced plastics (CFRPs), which are advantageous in terms of repair, disposal and recycling. By utilizing the properties of the low-viscosity polymerizable oligomer matrix, it was possible to prepare a thermoplastic CFRP exhibiting excellent impregnation properties while uniformly mixing the conductive filler. Various carbon-based conductive fillers such as carbon black, carbon nanotubes, graphene nanoplatelets, graphite, and pitch-based carbon fibers were filled up to the maximum content, and electrical and thermal conductive properties of the fabricated composites were compared and studied. It was confirmed that the maximum incorporation of filler was the most important factor to control the conductive properties of the composites rather than the type or shape of the conductive carbon filler. Experimental results were observed in which it might be advantageous to apply a one-dimensional conductive carbon filler to improve electrical conductivity, whereas it might be advantageous to apply a two-dimensional conductive carbon filler to improve thermal conductivity. The results of this study can provide potential insight into the optimization of structural design for controlling the conductive properties of thermoplastic CFRPs.