• Composites Research
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.58-67
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• 2003

To perform the realtime strain and fracture monitoring of the smart composite structures, two optical fiber sensor systems are proposed. The two types of the coherent sources were used for fracture signal detection - EDFA with FBG and EDFA with Fabry-Perot filter. These sources were coupled to EFPI sensors imbedded in composite specimens. To understand the characteristics of matrix crack signals, at first, we performed tensile tests using surface attached PZT sensors by changing the thickness and width of the specimens. This paper describes the implementation of time-frequency analysis such as short time Fourier transform (STFT) and wavelet transform (WT) for the quantitative evaluation of fracture signals. The experimental result shows the distinctive signal features in frequency domain due to the different specimen shapes. And, from the test of tensile load monitoring using optical fiber sensor systems, measured strain agreed with the value of electric strain gage and the fracture detection system could detect the moment of damage with high sensitivity to recognize the onset of micro-crack fracture signal.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers A
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• v.41 no.3
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• pp.187-192
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• 2017

This paper presents an ongoing study to develop a novel pressure sensor by means of a Nano Carbon Piezoresistive Composite (NCPC). The sensor was fabricated using the 3D printing process. We designed a miniaturized cantilever-type sensor electrode to improve the pressure sensing performance and utilized a 3D printer to build a small-sized body. The sensor electrode was made of 2 wt％ MWCNT/epoxy piezoresistive nano-composite, and the sensor body was encapsulated with a pipe plug cap for easy installation to any pressure system. The piezoresistivity responses of the sensor were converted into stable voltage outputs by using a signal processing system, which is similar to a conventional foil strain gauge. We evaluated the pressure-sensing performances using a pressure calibrator in the lab environment. The 3D-printed cantilever electrode pressure sensor showed linear voltage outputs of up to 16,500 KPa, which is a 200％ improvement in the pressure sensing range when compared with the bulk-type electrode used in our previous work.

• Elastomers and Composites
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• v.47 no.4
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• pp.282-291
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• 2012

Control of shape/volume, mechanical, optical, electrical, and chemical switching of materials by external stimuli such as light, temperature, pH, electric field, and pressure has attracted great attention. Among these materials, photo-responsive materials containing photochromic compounds such as azobenzene, spiropyran, and cinnamic acid groups have been the subject of intense interest in recent years. In this review, we describe the recent progress in the area of azobenzene containing polymer materials that can convert light energy into mechanical energy directly. Especially we focus our attention on light-driven actuators such as artificial muscle, motor, and valve. We summarize the photomechanical effects in liquid crystal elastomer, amorphous polymer, monolayer, and supramolecules containing azobenzene, respectively.

• Composites Research
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.108-114
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• 2021

Graphene flakes are generally mass-produced by converting graphene oxide into reduced graphene oxide using chemical or thermal reduction. These graphene flakes can be stacked to form a free-standing graphene paper, which can be used for various applications. However, a graphene paper lacks stretchability, which hinders its application in stretchable devices. In this work, we introduced wrinkles in a graphene paper to make it stretchable. A graphene paper fabricated by vacuum-filtering a graphene dispersion was placed on a pre-stretched adhesive film. When the pre-stretched adhesive film returned to the original state, the graphene paper was wrinkled. The effect of the pre-stretching and wet condition of the graphene papers was experimentally investigated by using scanning electron microscopy. In addition, we observed the change of the period of the wrinkles in the graphene paper depending on the pre-stretching.

• Composites Research
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• v.35 no.4
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• pp.283-287
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• 2022

Stretchable strain sensors have been developed for potential future applications including wearable devices and health monitoring. For practical implementation of stretchable strain sensors, their stability and repeatability are one of the important aspects to be considered. In this work, we utilized 3D printed polymer structures having kirigami patterns to improve the stretchability and reduce the hysteresis. The polymer structures were coated with graphene/carbon nanofiber hybrids to make a robust electrical network. The stretchable strain sensors showed a high gauge of 36 at a strain of 32%. Because of the kirigami structures and the robust graphene/carbon nanofiber coating, the sensors also exhibited stable resistance responses at various strains ranging from 1% to 30%.

• Composites Research
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.37-42
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• 2007

Tensile residual stress is occurred by difference of coefficients of thermal expansion between fiber and matrix is one of the serious problems in metal matrix composite(MMC). TiNi alloy fiber was used to solve the problem of the tensile residual stress as the reinforced material. TiNi alloy fiber improves the tensile strength of composite with occurring of compressive residual stress in the matrix by its shape memory effect. A hot press method was used to create the optimal fabrication condition for a Shape Memory Alloy(SMA) composite. The bonding effect of the matrix and the reinforcement within the SMA composite by the hot press method was strengthened by cold rolling. In addition, acoustic emission technique was used to quantify the microscopic damage behavior of cold rolled TiNi/A16061 shape memory alloy composite at low temperature. The damage degree for the specimen that underwent thermal shock cycles was also discussed.

• Composites Research
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• v.36 no.5
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• pp.342-348
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• 2023

There has been increasing demand for real-time monitoring of body and ambient temperatures using wearable devices. Graphene-based thermistors have been developed for high-performance flexible temperature sensors. In this study, the temperature coefficient of resistance (TCR) of monolayer graphene was controlled by coating polyethylenimine (PEI) on graphene surfaces to enhance its temperature-sensing performances. Monolayer graphene grown by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) was wet-transferred onto a target substrate. To facilitate the interfacial doping by PEI, the hydrophobic graphene surface was altered to be hydrophilic by oxygen plasma treatments while minimizing defect generation. The effect of PEI doping on graphene was confirmed using a back-gated field-effect transistor (FET). The CVD-grown monolayer graphene coated with PEI exhibited an improved TCR of -0.49(±0.03) %/K in a temperature range of 30~50℃.