Enhancing fracture toughness of carbon fiber/epoxy composites using polyphenylene ether as a modifier

Naveen Veeramani; Machar Devine; James a. Quinn; Arun kumar Alapati; Alp Bolluk; Dipa Ray

doi:10.1002/app.55388

Enhancing fracture toughness of carbon fiber/epoxy composites using polyphenylene ether as a modifier

Naveen Veeramani, Machar Devine, James a. Quinn, Arun kumar Alapati, Alp Bolluk, Dipa Ray

School of Engineering

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

In this study, carbon fiber/epoxy composites (CFRP) were fabricated by vacuum-assisted resin infusion molding (VARIM) with polyphenylene ether (PPE) as a toughening agent. The PPE contained hydroxyl end groups that facilitated chemical bonding with epoxy during curing. PPE was incorporated into the epoxy matrix by dissolution, and spreading in the interlaminar regions. The presence of PPE as a toughener exhibited significant improvement in the Mode-I fracture toughness of the composites. The CFRP samples, which were toughened with 5 wt.% and 10 wt.% PPE, showed about 191% to 380% enhancement, respectively, in the critical energy release rate (GIC) compared to the unmodified sample. Dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) showed about a 6°C increase in the glass transition temperature of the toughened composites, which is an interesting aspect of this work. These results indicate the potential of using PPE as a toughening agent in CFRP composites.

Original language	English
Article number	e55388
Journal	Journal of Applied Polymer Science
Volume	141
Issue number	20
Early online date	7 Mar 2024
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1002/app.55388
Publication status	Published - 20 May 2024

Keywords / Materials (for Non-textual outputs)

composites
fibers
mechanical properties
resins
thermosets

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title = "Enhancing fracture toughness of carbon fiber/epoxy composites using polyphenylene ether as a modifier",

abstract = "In this study, carbon fiber/epoxy composites (CFRP) were fabricated by vacuum-assisted resin infusion molding (VARIM) with polyphenylene ether (PPE) as a toughening agent. The PPE contained hydroxyl end groups that facilitated chemical bonding with epoxy during curing. PPE was incorporated into the epoxy matrix by dissolution, and spreading in the interlaminar regions. The presence of PPE as a toughener exhibited significant improvement in the Mode-I fracture toughness of the composites. The CFRP samples, which were toughened with 5 wt.% and 10 wt.% PPE, showed about 191% to 380% enhancement, respectively, in the critical energy release rate (GIC) compared to the unmodified sample. Dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) showed about a 6°C increase in the glass transition temperature of the toughened composites, which is an interesting aspect of this work. These results indicate the potential of using PPE as a toughening agent in CFRP composites.",

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author = "Naveen Veeramani and Machar Devine and Quinn, {James a.} and Alapati, {Arun kumar} and Alp Bolluk and Dipa Ray",

note = "Funding Information: This research work was done at the School of Engineering, Institute for Materials and Processes, University of Edinburgh—UK, as a part of the Raman Research Fellowship awarded to Dr. V. Naveen by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR‐India). The authors would like to thank the University of Edinburgh—UK, for providing the research facility and CSIR Headquarters, the Ministry of Science and Technology, Government of India, and the Director, CSIR‐NAL, for awarding the fellowship. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2024 Wiley Periodicals LLC.",

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AU - Veeramani, Naveen

AU - Devine, Machar

AU - Quinn, James a.

AU - Alapati, Arun kumar

AU - Bolluk, Alp

AU - Ray, Dipa

N1 - Funding Information: This research work was done at the School of Engineering, Institute for Materials and Processes, University of Edinburgh—UK, as a part of the Raman Research Fellowship awarded to Dr. V. Naveen by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR‐India). The authors would like to thank the University of Edinburgh—UK, for providing the research facility and CSIR Headquarters, the Ministry of Science and Technology, Government of India, and the Director, CSIR‐NAL, for awarding the fellowship. Publisher Copyright: © 2024 Wiley Periodicals LLC.

PY - 2024/5/20

Y1 - 2024/5/20

N2 - In this study, carbon fiber/epoxy composites (CFRP) were fabricated by vacuum-assisted resin infusion molding (VARIM) with polyphenylene ether (PPE) as a toughening agent. The PPE contained hydroxyl end groups that facilitated chemical bonding with epoxy during curing. PPE was incorporated into the epoxy matrix by dissolution, and spreading in the interlaminar regions. The presence of PPE as a toughener exhibited significant improvement in the Mode-I fracture toughness of the composites. The CFRP samples, which were toughened with 5 wt.% and 10 wt.% PPE, showed about 191% to 380% enhancement, respectively, in the critical energy release rate (GIC) compared to the unmodified sample. Dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) showed about a 6°C increase in the glass transition temperature of the toughened composites, which is an interesting aspect of this work. These results indicate the potential of using PPE as a toughening agent in CFRP composites.

AB - In this study, carbon fiber/epoxy composites (CFRP) were fabricated by vacuum-assisted resin infusion molding (VARIM) with polyphenylene ether (PPE) as a toughening agent. The PPE contained hydroxyl end groups that facilitated chemical bonding with epoxy during curing. PPE was incorporated into the epoxy matrix by dissolution, and spreading in the interlaminar regions. The presence of PPE as a toughener exhibited significant improvement in the Mode-I fracture toughness of the composites. The CFRP samples, which were toughened with 5 wt.% and 10 wt.% PPE, showed about 191% to 380% enhancement, respectively, in the critical energy release rate (GIC) compared to the unmodified sample. Dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) showed about a 6°C increase in the glass transition temperature of the toughened composites, which is an interesting aspect of this work. These results indicate the potential of using PPE as a toughening agent in CFRP composites.

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KW - resins

KW - thermosets

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Enhancing fracture toughness of carbon fiber/epoxy composites using polyphenylene ether as a modifier

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