Effect of Multiwalled Carbon Nanotubes on

Mechanical and Electrical Properties of Carbon Fiber

Reinforced Polymer Composites in Aircraft Structures

Dr. P.K. Sahoo

Raman Research Fellow
Principal Scientist
Structural Technologies Division
CSIR-National Aerospace Laboratories
Bangalore-560017, India
Tel.: +91 80 2508 6342, 9900523444 (Mob)
Email: pks@nal.res.in, sahoopradeepk1@gmail.com

23 September 2019
 INTRODUCTION
 Carbon fibre reinforced polymer (CFRP) composites are
extensively used in the aerospace industries for both civilian
and military aircraft structural applications
 Literature shows that the addition of MWCNTs (which have
exceptional mechanical properties and electrical conductivity) in
epoxy resins improves its mechanical properties and electrical
conductivity.
 it is intended to investigate the possible improvement in
mechanical properties and electrical conductivity of CFRP
composite by adding MWCNTs in conventional aerospace
grade T300/914C CFRP composites.
#2
 LITERATURE SURVEY
Researchers Key points
Seidel and Lagoudas evaluated the effective elastic constants of straight CNT-based polymer composite by various
micromechanical techniques such as Mori-Tanaka, composite cylinders and self-consistent
approaches.

Tsai et al. applied the Mori-Tanaka model to quantify the transverse and longitudinal elastic moduli of
straight CNT-based polyimide composites.
Ansari and used the unit cell concept in the micromechanical model to evaluate the elastic constants of
Hassanzadeh straight CNT-based polymer composite.
Feli et al. calculated effective elastic response properties of nanocomposites embedded with carbon
nanotubes consisting of different orientations of CNTs using Mori-Tanka model.
Pan et al. proposed a new model to evaluate the effective mechanical elastic constants of polymer
nanocomposites embedded with wavy CNTs.
Basso et al. carried out multiscale modelling and analysis of Boehmite/polypropylene nanocomposite
using DIGIMAT-MF and DIGIMAT – FE. The effective elastic modulus of nanocomposite was
found to be 1599.2 MPa and 1600 MPa respectively, in comparison with experimentally
determined Young’s modulus of 1720 MPa.

#3
 LITERATURE SURVEY
Researchers Key points
Deng and Zheng proposed a simple micromechanical model to determine the effective electrical conductivity
for CNT- based polymer composites by involving various parameters such as percolation,
anisotropy and conductive networks.

Takeda et al. considered electron hopping mechanism among CNTs and modified the Deng and Zheng
model by taking CNTs as effective nanofibers to evaluate the overall electrical conductivity of
the polymer nanocomposite.
Gary Don Seidel and used the Mori-Tanaka micromechanics approach to investigated the effect of electron
Lagoudas hopping and the formation of conductive networks on the effective conductivity of CNT-
based polymer composites.

Feng et al. developed a mixed micromechanics model by considering electron hopping, conductive
networks, interface layer properties and aspect ratio to predict the effective electrical
conductivity of CNT- based polymer nanocomposites.

Basso et al. carried out multistage modelling and analysis using DIGIMAT software to predict the
percolation threshold of MWCNT/Epoxy composite with MWCNT having an aspect ratio of
100 and electrical conductivity of S/m

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 RESEARCH GAP
 The extensive research has been carried to model and
simulate the CNT-based polymer nanocomposites to find
mechanical and electrical conductive properties, these findings
narrow down only for the two-phase system with random
orientation of CNTs.
 Further, there exist very less literature available pertaining to
the studies of three-phase MWCNT modified T300/914C CFRP
composites.
 The polymer nanocomposites, i.e. T300/914C CFRP with
MWCNTs, used in present work, is still under development
phase and lack the understanding in terms of multiscale
material modelling. #5
 PROBLEM STATEMENT
 The research work aims in investigating the effect of MWCNTs
addition in CFRP as nanofillers, by assessing the properties such
as mechanical and electrical conductivity
 Therefore carry out parametric studies of these properties with
varying weight percentage (wt. %) of MWCNTs and its Orientation
in CFRP matrix.
Material Properties Araldite Epoxy T300 Carbon Fiber MWCNT (Isotropy)
Resin (Isotropy) (Transversely Isotropy)
Young’s Modulus (Gpa) E=3450 E1=230, E2=E3=13.8 550
Poisson's Ratio ν=0.35 ν12=ν13=0.2, ν23=0.25 0.34
Shear Modulus (Gpa) - G12=G13=8.97, G23=4.83 -
Electrical Conductivity, S/m 2e-8 58823.53 800
Density, g/cc 1.17 1.76 1.89
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 Problem Formulation
Multi-scale Micromechanics Approach for Evaluating Effective Properties of
CF/CNT/epoxy nanocomposite:
CNTs Epoxy Resin Carbon Fiber

MWCNT Orientation through

Transformation angle ‘a’

Aligned MWCNT Randomly

in Epoxy Resin Matrix

Determination of Mechanical &

Electrical Properties of CNT/Epoxy
composite by Eshelby Mori-Tanka’s
Model

Determination of Mechanical &

Electrical Properties of
CF/CNT/Epoxy nanocomposite by
Eshelby Mori-Tanka’s Model
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 Problem Formulation (Contd.)
Analytical (Mori-Tanaka) Method (Stiffness):
The elastic stiffness tensor C∝ can be obtained by the transformation of
elastic stiffness tensor CCNT and can be expressed as

Where T is the transformation matrix

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 Problem Formulation (Contd.)
Analytical (Mori-Tanaka) Method for Electrical Conductivity:
The electrical conductivity tensor S∝ can be obtained by a particular
transformation of electrical conductivity tensor SCNT and can be expressed as

Where Q is the transformation matrix

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 Problem Formulation (Contd.)
FEM Method:
The elastic stiffness tensor C_∝ can be obtained by the transformation of
elastic stiffness tensor C_CNT and can be expressed as

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 RESULTS & DISCUSSION
Young's Modulus E1 = E2 MPa Young's Modulus E3 MPa
Wt% of Wt% of
MWCNT  Analytical FEM
MWCNT  Analytical FEM

0% 0%
1% 1%
2% 2%
3% 3%

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