• Composites Research
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.25-31
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• 2023

Composite structures have been designed by stacking the laminae with different stacking angles to meet the required mechanical performance. Although the induced stresses on the composite structures under the external loads usually differ depending on the location, we determined the stacking sequence based on the maximum stress, which leads to low efficiency and generally is not the optimum design. Recently, piecewise integrated composites (PICs) were suggested for solving this inefficiency. PICs assume the perfect bonding between adjacent pieces, but this is ideal and hard to accomplish. Therefore, the overlap at the boundary is essential to prevent separation from each other. In this study, we investigated the effect of the overlap design on the impact failure mode of PIC plates. We fabricated the sample composite plates with different overlap designs using the fast curing carbon prepreg and conducted the impact tests according to ASTM D 7136. We found that PICs had different failure modes according to the overlap design, which lead the changes of absorbed impact energies as well as impact load curves.

• Composites Research
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• v.22 no.6
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• pp.13-17
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• 2009

This paper decided the 3D shape of sandwich composite for the cradle of CT instrument, suggested the stacking sequence with satisfaction on structural criteria using the Finite Element Analysis, and introduced the manufacturing method to meet the X-ray transmission performance uniformly. The design of Cradle was considered the space between other parts, fixing method, and assembly condition with headrest part. It is decided the stacking sequence to meet the criteria that the deflection at the end point is less than 20 mm when it is applied to 135 kg load at the specific locations. In site of manufacturing method, at first, it is used the hand lay-up for carbon UD and carbon fabric/polyester resin, but it had the ununiform X-ray transmission performance due to the void and excess resin. For solving this problem, it was replaced with the infusion method for the first layer of face material and the application of carbon UD or fabric/epoxy resin prepreg for other layers. Therefor, the property of X-ray transmission was improved.

• Composites Research
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.15-21
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• 2006

It is very difficult to make complex 3 dimensional curved-shape composite laminates using the advanced unidirectional composite prepregs. This study shows development process of subscale composite parabolic antenna reflector using unidirectional AS4/PEEK prepreg tapes. The AS4/PEEK thermoplastic composite materials are known to have good thermal and chemical stabilities in addition to their high specific strength and modulus. Various lamination methods were investigated through finite element analyses to make up the laminate design of the reflector. The automated fiber placement method was used to fabricate the reflector. The thermal expansion test using full-bridge strain gage circuits was done to verity the performance of the composite product.

• Tribology and Lubricants
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• v.39 no.6
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• pp.235-243
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• 2023

This paper presents the fabrication process of water-lubricated plastic bearings. Plastic bearings require good mechanical properties and tribological properties as well as elasticity and shock resistance, especially when lubricated in dirty water conditions. In this study, sleeve-type plastic bearings are produced by winding a prepreg sheet, which primary contains nitrile rubber (NBR)-modified epoxy, self-lubricating fillers, and various types of lattice-structured reinforcing fibers such as carbon, Aramid, and polyethylene terephthalate. A thermosetting epoxy is chemically modified with NBR to impart elasticity and low-friction characteristics in water conditions. Experimental investigations are conducted to examine the mechanical and tribological characteristics of the developed bearing materials, and the results are compared with the characteristics of a commercial plastic bearing (Thordon SXL), well known as a water-lubricated bearing. A Thordon bearing (mainly composed of polyurethane) exhibits an extremely low load-bearing capacity and is thus only suitable for medium loading (1~10MPa). The tribological characteristics of the test materials are evaluated through Falex block-on-ring (LFW-1) friction and wear tests. The results indicate that friction exhibited by the carbon-fiber-reinforced NBR-10wt.%-modified epoxy composite material, incorporated with the addition of 20wt.% UHMWPE and 6wt.% paraffin wax, is lower than that of the Thorden bearings, whereas its wear resistance surpass that of Thorden ones. Because of these features, the load carrying capacity of the fabricated composite (>10MPa) is higher than that of the Thorden bearings. These results confirm the applicability of water-lubricated plastic bearing materials developed in this study.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Nondestructive Testing
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.62-67
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• 2011

Nanoparticles-coated and impact-damaged carbon-fiber reinforced plastics(CFRP) laminates were tested under compression-after-impact(CAI) mode and the propagation of damage due to compressive loading has been monitored by acoustic emission(AE). The impact damage was induced not by mechanical loading but by a simulated lightning strike. CFRP laminates were made of carbon prepregs prepared by coating of conductive nano-particles directly on the fibers and the coupons were subjected to simulated lightning strikes with a high voltage/current impulse of 10~40 kA within a few microseconds. The effects of nano-particles coating and the degree of damage induced by the simulated lightning strikes on the AE activities were examined, and the relationship between the compressive residual strength and AE behavior has been evaluated in terms of AE event counts and the onset of AE activity with the compressive loading. The degree of impact damage was also measured in terms of damage area by using ultrasonic C-scan images. From the results assessed during the CAI tests of damaged CFRP showed that AE monitoring appeared to be very useful to differentiate the degree of damage hence the mechanical integrity of composite structures damaged by lightning strikes.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.8 no.3
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• pp.489-501
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• 1997

Electropolymerization of 2-vinylnaphthalene (2-VN) and methylmethacrylate (MMA) with high radiation resistance property was conducted on the surfaces of carbon fibers by using a nonaqueous solution of comonomers dissolved in N,N-dimethylformamide containing sodium nitrate as a supporting electrolyte. The fabrication of carbon fiber/2-VN/MMA prepreg was performed electrochemically in 1:1 comonomer solution. Electropolymerization was conduced by changing the current density, initial comonomer concentration, and reaction time. The weight gain on the surface of the carbon fibers was measured by thermogravimetric analyser (TGA). The highest weight gain of 50 wt% was obtained at 600mA/g~800mA/g current density range, but the weight gain was rapidly decreased above 800mA/g current density. The weight gain was increased with the concentration of comonomer, while the concentration of electrolyte had almost no effect on the weight gain. At 300mA/g current density, weight gain rate was increased abruptly to the initial 30 minutes of reaction time. After that the rate was decreased due to the generation of gas bubbles. In order to check the effect of coated polymers on the radiation resistance, morphology changes before and after $\gamma$-ray irradiation was investigated for the composites.

• Journal of Adhesion and Interface
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.101-106
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• 2020

In this study, epoxy-modified acrylate was synthesized. The synthesized acrylate was added to the composition for sheet molding compound (SMC) in the range of 5 phr to 15 phr. The prepared SMC prepreg was molded at high temperature and pressure to produce a glass fiber reinforced composite. Physical properties such as tensile and impact strength of the composite were measured, respectively. Experimental data show that the composite with 5 phr of synthesized acrylate has 20% improved tensile strength and 12% improved impact strength than that of the reference sample.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers A
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• v.41 no.10
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• pp.983-989
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• 2017

This paper presents the bearing strength for laminates in advanced composite materials in bolted joints. Bolted single lap joint tests were experimentally investigated with respect to stabilized and unstabilized lap joints. Stabilized bolted single lap joints refer to joints with out-of-plane rotational constraints. Unstabilized bolted single lap joints refer to joints with absence of out-of-plane deflection constraints. The bearing strength values of laminates in the bolted joint showed that the percentages of ply angle for 0, 45, -45, and 90 degrees were not affected. The bearing strength value in the unstabilized bolted joint was smaller than the bearing strength value in the stabilized bolted joint because of the influence of the out-of-plane behavior. The composite material studied in this paper is a carbon/epoxy unidirectional (UD) tape prepreg cured at $177^{\circ}C(350^{\circ}F)$. In the laminate reference system, the standard angles of 0, 45, -45, and 90 degrees were used for ply orientation within the laminate. A total of 112 bolted single lap joint tests were conducted on specimens from eight distinct laminates. The ASTM-D-5961M standards were adhered to for the stabilized and unstabilized bolted single lap joint tests.

• Composites Research
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.30-36
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• 2018

The curing behavior of glass fiber reinforced epoxy prepregs based on Bisphenol-A (BPA) was studied by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The total heat of reaction(${\Delta}H_{total}=280.3J/g$) was determined based on the results of the dynamic heating scanning experiments. Isothermal experiments were carried out at $110{\sim}130^{\circ}C$, and it was observed that the maximum conversion and the maximum reaction rate were increased as temperature increased. Also Kamal equation was applied to analyze autocatalytic reaction of epoxy prepregs. The higher temperatures, the greater reaction rate constants ($k_1$, $k_2$). Theoretical values were calculated by these reaction rate constants and compared with experimental values. And it was confirmed that they were in reasonable agreement. At the beginning of the reaction, the experimental data and theoretical prediction were shown the same tendency, but at the end of reaction, the experimental data were smaller than theoretical predicted values due to reaction rates controlled by diffusion.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.194-205
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• 1994

In this research, we attempt to fabricate an excellent CFRC(Carbon Fiber Reinforced Carbon), which has good thermal and mechanical properties, with 8H/satin woven fabric prepreg, high modulus and high strength type continuous carbon fiber and raw coal tar pitch(RCTP) matrix or THF soluble fraction(THFSP) matrix which has good graphitizability. Green bodies were fabricated with hot press molding technique and CFRC samples were made after carbonization, impregnation, recarbonization and graphitization steps. For the purpose of characterization of the physical properties, SEM, polarized light microscope, TGA were observed, and tested flexural strength, modulus and ILSS. After heat treating the THFSP matrix up to $2300^{\circ}C$, the value of $C_0$/2 was 3.380$\AA$, which is analogous to the structure of natural graphite and the value of 2$\theta$ is $26.276^{\circ}$ approached to the Bragg's angle of natural graphite. As a result of TGA to test the high temperature air oxidation, the THFSP matrix, graphitized up to $2300^{\circ}C$, exhibited the best air oxidation resistance. And mechanical properties were increased up to 65~70% as fiber volume fraction increased. Because of the good orientation graphitizability, the fracture surface of THFSP matrix CFRC is very good.