• Composites Research
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.29-39
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• 2015

Natural fibers reinforced polymer composites are being used in several low strength applications. More research is going on to improve their mechanical and interface properties for structural applications. However, these composites have serious issues regarding flammability, which are not being focused broadly. A limited amount of literature has been published on the flame retardant techniques and flammability factor of natural fibers based polymer matrix composites. Therefore, it is needed to address the flammability properties of natural fibers based polymer composites to expand their application area. This paper summarizes some of the recent literature published on the subject of flammability and flame retardant methods applied to natural fibers reinforced polymer matrix composites. Different factors affecting the flammability, flame retardant solutions, mechanisms and characterization techniques have been discussed in detail.

• Proceedings of the KIEE Conference
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• 1989.07a
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• pp.349-352
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• 1989

Poling piezoelectric ceramic-polymer composites with 0-3connectivity is difficult because of the high dielectric constant of most of the ferroelectric filler materials, and the high resistivity of the polymer matrix. To aid in poling this type of composite, conductivity of the polymer phase can be controlled by adding small amount of a semiconductor phase such as germanium, carbon or silicon. In this study, flexible piezoelectric composites of $PbTiO_3$ powder and Eccogel polymer were developed using small amounts of a semiconducting phase. These composites were poled rapidly at low voltages, resulting in properties superior to composites prepared without a conductive phase. The effect of addition of various conductive phase with different volume percentage on the dielectric and piezoelectric properties of the composite are discussed here.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.24 no.5
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• pp.413-422
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• 2019

In this study, 3D Meso-scale finite-element model is presented to study the mechanical behavior of steel microfiber-reinforced polymer concrete considering the random distribution of fibers in the matrix. The composite comprises two separate parts which are the polymer composite and steel microfibers. The polymer composite is assumed to be homogeneous, which its mechanical properties are measured by performing experimental tests. The steel microfiber-polymer bonding is simulated with the Cohesive Zone Model (CZM) to offer more-realistic assumptions. The CZM parameters are obtained by calibrating the numerical model using the results of the experimental pullout tests on an individual microfiber. The accuracy of the results is validated by comparing the obtained results with the corresponding values attained from testing the steel microfiber-reinforced polymer concrete incorporating 0, 1 and 2% by volume of microfibers, which indicates the excellent accuracy of the current proposed model. The results show that the microfiber aspect ratio has a considerable effect on the mechanical properties of the reinforced polymer concrete. Applying microfibers with a higher aspect ratio improves the mechanical properties of the composite considerably especially when the first crack appears in the polymer concrete specimens.

• Journal of the Korean Ceramic Society
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.617-624
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• 1989

Piezoelectric composites of O-3 connectivity were prepared by thermosetting barium titanate-phenolic resin composite under various cruing pressure. Among three kinds of pore in O-3 type ceramic-polymer composite, such as matrix pores, particle pores, and ceramic-polymer interface pores, the effect of interface porosity on the dielectric and piezoelectric constant was investigated. In pure barium titanate ceramics, the porosity factor of dielectric and piezoelectric constants were 5.7 and 5.0, respectively. However, in BaTiO3-polymer composite, the interface porosity factor of the piezoelectric constant was greater than that of the dielectric constant, interface porosity factor b in d33 was 9.8 and in r 4.6. On the other, piezoelectric voltage constant g33 was independent of the porosity of barium titanate ceramics. But in composite system, the piezoelectric voltage constant g33 was decreased with interface porosity.

• Composites Research
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.186-193
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• 2016

The development of electrospun nanofibers with improved mechanical properties is of great scientific and technological interest because of their wide-range of applications. Reinforcement of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) into the polymer matrix is considered as a promising strategy for substantially enhancing the mechanical properties of resulting CNTs/polymer composite mats on account of extraordinary mechanical properties of CNTs such as ultra-high Young's modulus and tensile strengths. This paper summarizes the recent developments on electrospun CNTs/polymer composite mats with an emphasis on their mechanical properties.

• Membrane Journal
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.30-37
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• 2020

Polymer/inorganic composites were used as a protective layer of lihitum metal electrode for effective suppression of lithium dendrite. PVDF-HFP was used as an polymer material and TiO₂ nanoparticle was used as an inorganic material. PVDF-HFP is a highly flexible polymer that acts as a matrix of inorganic materials while TiO₂ nanoparticle improves the mechanical strength and ion conductivity of the protective layer. The as-synthesized protective hybrid membrane exhibited good dispersion of TiO₂ in the PVDF-HFP matrix by SEM, AFM and XRD analyses. Furthermore, the electrochemical analysis showed that the polymer-inorganic composite retained high coulombic efficiency of 80% and low overpotential, less than 20 mV until the 100^th cycles due to the improved mechanical properties and ion conductivity in comparison to the control sample (untreated and PVDF-HFP polymers/Cu).

• Polymer(Korea)
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• v.31 no.5
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• pp.436-441
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• 2007

In this work, the multiwalled carbon nanotubes(MWNTs) were functionalized with sodium dodecylbenzene sulfonate(SDBS) and then MWNTs/Lyocell composite fibers were prepared. The properties of MWNTs, the functionlization on the surface of MWNTs and their dispersion in the cellulose matrix were characterized by TEM, SEM, WAXD and FT-IR. The results showed that SDBS has been coated successfully onto the surface of the MWNTs by functionlization. This can improve effectively the dispersion uniformity of MWNTs in NMMO aqueous solution and is helpful to prepare a spinnable spinning dope. Moreover, the resultant MWNTs/Lyocell composite fibers still have cellulose II crystal structure, and their tensile strength and initial modulus increased with the increasing draw ratio and reached the optimal value with adding 1 wt% MWNTs. The thermal stability of the composite fiber was also improved by the addition of the MWNTs.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.54 no.1
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• pp.283-292
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• 2022

Advanced radiation applications have been widely used and extended to many fields. As a result of this fact, choosing an appropriate shielding material based on the radiation application has become vital. In this regard, the integration of elements into polymer composites has been investigated and contributed to the quantity and quality of radiation shielding materials. This study reports photon attenuation parameters and electromagnetic shielding effectiveness of a novel polymer composite prepared with a matrix reinforced with three different proportions (5, 10, and 15 wt%) of niobium content. Addition of Nb dopant improves both photon attenuation and electromagnetic shielding effectiveness for the investigated composites. Therefore, Nb(15%) polymer composite with highest concentration has been found to be the best absorber for ionizing and non-ionizing radiations. Consequently, the performed analyzes provide evidences that the prepared Nb-reinforced polymer composite could be effectively used as photon radiation attenuator and electromagnetic shielding material.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society For Composite Materials Conference
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• 2005.11a
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• pp.87-90
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• 2005

This paper presents an evaluation of the effect of titanium dioxide nanoparticles in sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) (SPEEK) with sulfonation degree of 57%. A series of inorganic-organic hybrid membranes were prepared with a systematic variation of titanium dioxide nanoparticles content. Their water uptake, methanol permeability and proton conductivity as a function of temperature were investigated. The results obtained show that the inorganic oxide network decreases the proton conductivity and water swelling. It is also found that increase in inorganic oxide content leads to decrease of methanol permeability. In terms of morphology, membranes are homogeneous and exhibit a good adhesion between inorganic domains and the polymer matrix. The properties of the composite membranes are compared with standard nafion membrane.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society For Composite Materials Conference
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• 2002.05a
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• pp.109-113
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• 2002

Interfacial and electrical properties for the carbon fiber reinforced epoxy-amine terminated (AT) PEI composites were performed using microdroplet test and electrical resistance measurements. As AT PEI content increased, the fracture toughness of epoxy-AT PEI matrix increased, and IFSS was improved due to the improved toughness and energy absorption mechanisms of AT PEI. The microdroplet in the carbon fiber/neat epoxy composite showed brittle microfailure mode. At 15 wt% AT PEI content, ductile microfailure mode appeared because of improved fracture toughness. After curing, the changes of electrical resistance (ΔR) with increasing AT PEI content increased gradually because of thermal shrinkage. The matrix fracture toughness was correlated to IFSS, TEC and electrical resistance. In cyclic strain test, the maximum stress and their slope of the neat epoxy case were higher than those of 15 wt% AT PEI. The results obtained from electrical resistance measurements under curing process and reversible stress and strain were consistent well with matrix toughness properties.