Objectives:

 To gain knowledge about fiber reinforced polymer matrix composites.

 To understand about the manufacturing of these composites.
 To gain knowledge of the hand layup procedure.
 To learn about the hardener's impact.
 To learn about the impact of reinforcement % on composite hardness.

Introduction:

Composites, plastics, and ceramics have dominated the growing material landscape for the last
three decades. A steady rise in the use of composite materials has seen them penetrate and
conquer new markets at an ever-increasing rate. The engineered materials industry is dominated
by modern composite materials, which are used in everything from common items to specialized
niche applications. Composites have previously shown their value as lightweight materials; the
present problem is to make them economically viable. Several novel production processes are
now used in the composite industries as a consequence of attempts to develop economically
appealing composite components. Especially for composites, it is evident that technological
advancement alone is insufficient to overcome the cost barrier. For composites to be competitive
with metals, there must be an integrated effort in designing, material processing, tooling, quality
assurance, production, and even project management.

A typical composite material is a system of materials composing of two or more materials

(mixed and bonded) on a macroscopic scale. Typically, reinforcement (fibers, particles, flakes,
and/or fillers) is incorporated in a matrix to form a composite material (polymers, metals, or
ceramics). While the matrix retains the reinforcement to produce the required shape, the
reinforcement enhances the matrix's overall mechanical qualities. When developed correctly, the
new composite material has more strength than its constituent materials. Composite materials are
categorised in a variety of ways. It is useful to classify composites based on the geometry of a
sample unit of reinforcement since the geometry of the reinforcement is responsible for the
mechanical characteristics and high performance of the composites. Fiber reinforced polymer
matrix composite is one of them.

A fiber-reinforced polymer matrix composite is a composite material comprised of a polymer

matrix reinforced with fibers. The fibers are often glass, carbon, or aramid, while other fibers
such as paper, wood, natural, or asbestos have been employed in the past. A polymer matrix is
often composed of epoxy, vinylester or polyester thermosetting plastic, and phenol formaldehyde
resins. Fiber reinforced polymer matrix composites are used in almost every type of advanced
engineering structure, from aircraft, helicopters, and spacecraft to boats, ships, and offshore
platforms, as well as automobiles, sports goods, chemical processing equipment, and civil
infrastructure such as bridges and buildings.

Fig.1: fiber-reinforced polymer matrix composite

Hand layup is a manufacturing procedure that involves manually putting down individual layers
of reinforcement. It is often used to create the one-of-a-kind sandwich panel, in which resin is
hand applied on chopped or mat jute fiber reinforcement using standard paint rollers. Rollers are
often used to remove bubbles from the layer.
 Fig.2: Hand layup process

In this experiment, the manufacturing process was Hand layup process. As polymer matrix,
epoxy resin was used and for reinforcement, jute fiber mat was used.

Apparatus:

 Tray
 Paint brush
 Bowel
 Duster
 Hand gloves
 Nose mask
 Pipette
 Syringe
 Roller

Chemical Elements:

 Epoxy resin
 Jute mat
 Glass mat
 Wax etc.
Experimental Procedure:

1. The tray was cleaned and its dimension was measured carefully.

2. Then it was allowed to dry and tray was waxed thoroughly both sides and each edge of
the tray.

3. The volume of the specimen was measured if no reinforcement is used. The length,
width and thickness of the mat was measured and fabric had been supplied.

4. The weight of the fabric was measured per unit meter and the density of the jute is
1.3gm/cc.

5. The volume percentage and weight percentage of reinforcement was calculated in the
composites.

6. Resin and hardener were taken in proper ration by following 2:1The mixture was blended
thoroughly and one layer of resin was applied on the tray and spread it by brush. Next a
ply of 01 mat/fabric was applied and well spread with the roller. Rolling would be
homogenized the dispersion of resin and also the composite property. The entire process
was applied again and a final coat was made with resin.

Calculation:

Fig.3: Dog-Bone structure of fiber-reinforced polymer matrix composite

 Matrix Fiber Ratio in the fiber-reinforced polymer matrix composite:

Matrix (80%) + Reinforcement (20%) = 4:1

Weight calculation of Epoxy resin:

Weight of jute fiber = 3.46gm

So, weight of the total matrix would be = 13.84gm

Matrix consists of resin and hardener.

Ratio of resin and Hardener = 2:1

So, weight of the Hardener = 4.61gm and

Weight of the epoxy resin = 9.226gm

Results and Discussion:

Our final composite sample is shown in Fig 4.

Fig.4: Manufactured fiber-reinforced polymer matrix composite

As shown in fig.4, our final composite sample could not get the shape of dog bone structure
because of the weak bonding between the matrix and reinforcement. During the shaping of the
composite, the layers of the composite was getting damaged. So, we have kept our sample in
rectangle shape. Another problem with our composite was the weight mismatch of epoxy resin
between different layers. So, our sample may not be able to give the desired properties.