Relationship Between the Process Parameters and Resin Content of a Glass/Epoxy Prepreg Produced by Dipping Method

The properties of prepregs are characterized in terms of their volatile content, resin content, the degree of pre-cure, void content, tack and flow ability. Resin content is one of the most important properties of prepregs so that its changing will result in altered properties such as, tack and resin flow. In order to monitor the resin content, a quantitative relation to the processing parameters such as line speed, viscosity and distance between the resin up taking rollers have to be determined. In this study, a tri-axial E-glass fabric with the areal weight of 1025 g/m2 and an epoxy resin (Epon 828) were used to produce the prepreg by the dipping method. In the theoretical part of this work, the free coating is studied and as a result the thickness layer of the coating resin through the resin bath is calculated by Landau-Levich model. In continuation, the achieved thickness was considered as a feed for the calendering process. Using the momentum equation for the passing impregnated fibres through the extra resin uptake rollers, the relation between the internal resin layer thickness and final coating resin layer thickness was achieved in an integral equation form. In order to solve this integral equation, MAPLE software was applied. The theoretical results were in good agreement with the experimental data and showed that the resin content increased linearly with increasing the distance between rollers, the radius and roller angular velocity. In contrast, the resin content decreased with increasing the line speed. According to our calculations, the effect of the resin viscosity variation on the resin content was negligibly small

Improving Fracture Toughness of Epoxy Nanocomposites by Silica Nanoparticles

An epoxy resin was modified by silica nanoparticles and cured with an anhydride. The particles with different batches of 12, 20, and 40 nm sizes were each distributed into the epoxy resin ultrasonically. Electron microscopy images showed that the silica particles were well dispersed throughout the resin. Tensile test results showed that Young’s modulus and tensile strength increased with the volume fraction and surface area of the silica particles. The simultaneous use of two average sizes of 20 and 40 nm diameter silica particles still increased these mechanical properties but other combinations of silica particles were unsuccessful. A three-point bending test on each pre-cracked specimen was performed to measure the mode I fracture toughness energy. The fracture energy increased from 283 J/m2 for the unmodified epoxy to about 740 J/m2 for the epoxy with 4.5 wt% of 12 nm diameter silica nanoparticles. The fracture energy of smaller particles was greater because of their higher surface to volume ratio. The fracture energy results showed also that the combined nanoparticles has a synergic effect on the fracture toughness of nanocomposites. Simultaneous use of 10 and 20 nm particles increased the fracture energy to about 770 J/m2. Finally, crack-opening displacement was calculated and found to be in the range of several micrometers which was much larger than the sizes of particles studied. Thus, the toughening mechanisms of crack pinning and crack deflection have a negligible effect on improvement of toughness, nevertheless, the plastic deformation and plastic void growth are dominant mechanisms in epoxy toughening by nanoparticles