Matrix

• The role of the matrix in fiber reinforced composite are:

• i)To transfer stresses between the fibers

• Ii) To provide a barrier against an adverse environment.
• iii)To protect the surface of the fibers from mechanical
abrasion.

• Thermoplastic and Thermosetting polymers are the

predominate in PMC.

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 Thermoplastic Matrixes
• Nylone
• Polypropylene
• ABS

• Usually with short chopped fibers

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 Thermosetting Matrixes

• Polyester resin
• Epoxy resin
• Vinyl ester resin
• Phenolic resin
• Cyanate Ester resin
• Polyurethanes
• Bismaleimides (BMI)
• Poyimides resin

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 Curing and Gelation
• Cure is defined as a process for changing the
properties of a resin via chemical reaction.

Occur during cure

• Chemical reaction
• Heat evolution (heat of reaction)
• Evolution of any volatiles
• Increase in viscosity
• Gelation
• Vitrification
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 Curing and Gelation
• Viscosity of the system rises until gelation
occurs. (materials will no longer flow). WHY?
• Two phases exist (gel phase & sol phase).
• The sol phase can be extracted with solvents.
• The amount of sol phase decreases as the
reaction progresses further.
• Finally, vitrification (hardening) occurs.

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 The Time Temperature transformation
diagram (TTT)
• TTT diagram can be use to visualize and compare
cure of thermosetting systems.
• TTT diagrams mark the times four main events
occur during isothermal cure at various
temperature.
• Gelation
• Vitrification
• Full cure
• Devitrification

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 TTT

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 TTT
• Gelation: The incipient formation of an infinite
molecular network and the system will no
longer flow.
• Vitrification: The Tg of the forming polymer
rises above the temperature of cure, and the
polymer become more and more cross-linked.
• Full cure: highest attainable degree of cure.
• Devitrification: The Tg decreases through the
isothermal temperature, (degradation).
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 Manufacturing Technique
• Hand lay-up / wet lay up
• Spray lay up
• Filament winding
• Pultrusion
• Vacuum Bagging/ aoutoclave molding
• Resin Transfer molding
• Compression molding

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 Interface in Composite Materials
• To say that composites consists of matrix and
fiber is only partially correct.

• In order for composite to be form fiber and

matrix have to be in some way connected.

• The quality of the connection determines

many properties such as strength, toughness.
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 Theories of adhesion
• Adhesion can be attributed to five main
mechanisms, which can occur at the interface
either in isolation or in combination to form
bond.

• Adsorption and wetting

• Interdiffusion
• Electrostatic attraction
• Chemical bonding
• Mechanical adhesion

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 1- Adsorption and wetting
• If two electrically neutral surfaces are brought
sufficiently close together, there will be
physical attraction, by considering the wetting
of the solid surface via liquids.

• If two solids brought together, the roughness

of the surface on an atomic scale prevent the
surface coming into contact except at some
points.

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 Two solid surfaces

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 Adsorption and wetting
• Wetting can be understood in terms of two simple Eqs.
1- Dupre Eq. for thermodynamic work of adhesion.
•

• Where γ1 is the surface free energy of the solid, γ2 is

the surface tension of a liquid and γ12 is the interfacial
tension between solid and the liquid.

• This eq. can be related to physical situation of liquid

drop on solid surface using Young eq.
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 2- Young’s equation

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 Contact Angle

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 Work of Adhesion
• A value for work of adhesion can be obtained
be combining eq 1 and 2.

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 Critical surface tension
• The critical surface tension is the highest liquid surface
tension that can completely wet a specific solid surface.

• Therefore, the best wetting occurs with a solid with high

surface energy and liquid with a low surface energy.

• Thus, glass and graphite with theoretically calculated

surface energy of 560 mj/m2 and 70 mj/m2 respectively will
be readily wetted by polyester and epoxy resins with
surface energy of 35 mj/m2 and 43 mj/m2 respectively.

• It will be difficult to wet polyethylene, which has a critical

surface energy of 31 mj/m2 with these resins.

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 Affecting Factors
• Surface contamination.
• Presence of entrapped air and other
gases at the solid surface.
• The occurrence of large shrinkage
stress during the curing process
leading to displacement at the
surface.
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 2- Interdiffusion
• It is to form a bond between two polymer
surfaces by the diffusion of the polymer
molecules on one into other surface of
molecular network.

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 2- Interdiffusion
• The strength of the bond depend on:

• 1- number of molecules involved

• 2- the amount of molecular entanglement
• 3- presence of solvents and plasticizing agents
• 4- fiber precoated with polymer before
incorporating into the polymer matrix.

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 3- Electrostatic Attraction
• Attraction forces occur between two surface
when one surface carries a net positive charge
and the other surface curries a net negative
charge.
• The strength of the interface is depend on the
density of the charge.
• In most cases electrostatic attraction is
unlikely to make major contribution to the
final bond strength of fiber-matrix.

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 3- Electrostatic Attraction
• Electrostatic forces could have an important
role in the way coupling agents working.
• Some time the surface of glass fiber may
exhibit anionic or cationic properties
depending on the oxides of the glass.

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 4- Chemical Bonding
• Chemical bonding offers the main explanation
for the use of coupling agents on glass, and
carbon fibers in polymer matrix.
• The strength of the bond depends on number
and type of bonds.
• The processes of chemical bonding and
breakage might need form of energy in some
cases.

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 5- Mechanical Adhesion
• Some bonding may occur purely be
mechanical interlocking of two surfaces.
•

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 5- Mechanical Adhesion
• The strength of this interface is unlikely to be high
unless there are a large number of re-entrant
angles on the fiber surface.
• Roughness of the surface might has a significant
effect on the mechanical adhesion strength.
• Resin shrinkage during curing of thermosetting
polymers, different thermal expansion of the
fiber and matrix can have a negative effect on the
final adhesion characteristics.

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 Thank U

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