The bigger picture:

ceramic (CMC)
metal (MMC)
natural
polymer (PMC)

John Summerscales
Upper continuous
operation temperature
Composite matrix Upper continuous
operation
temperature
polymer 400°C

metal (Al) 580°C

ceramic 1000°C

from Hancox & Phillips, ICME-2, 1985

Residual stresses
• CMC and MMC are often manufactured at
high-temperatures
• BEWARE: residual stresses
resulting from differences in
the coefficient of thermal expansion
Ceramic matrix composites (CMC)
• subscripts: f, p, w
o eg SiCf, SiCp, SiCw
o fibre, particle, whisker
• reinforcement toughens matrix
o minimal or negative effect on modulus
• applications in
o radomes
o armour
o cutting tools
o biomedical
Ceramic matrix composites (CMC)
• four principal groups
o complex glass forming oxides
 reinforcement by micro-crystalline phases, e.g. Pyrex
o engineering ceramics
 SiC, Si3N4, SiMON (esp. SiAlON), Al2O3, ZrO2
o cement and concrete
 (prestressed) reinforced concrete
 pultrusions instead of rebars

 fibre-reinforced cements

o carbon/carbon composites
Ceramic matrix composites (CMC)

• Carbon-carbon composites
o applications in
 aircraft and F1 braking
 rocket motor nozzle throats and exit cones

 nosetips/leading edges

 thermal protection systems

Carbon-carbon composites
• carbon fibre preform
• impregnate with organic liquid then pyrolysis
o phenolic or furfuryl resins
 yield ~55% carbon at 1000°C
o liquid pitch and high isostatic pressure (70 MPa)
 yield ~85% carbon
• chemical vapour deposition (CVD)
o hydrocarbon precursor gas
o isothermal, thermal gradient or
differential pressure conditions
Metal matrix composites
(MMC)
• three principal (alloy) matrix systems
o aluminium
o magnesium
o titanium
• mostly particulate reinforcement
o boron-fibre/aluminium used in aerospace
• little advantage to stiffness and strength
• gains in creep performance, toughness,
wear resistance, reduced thermal distortion
Metal matrix composites
(MMC)
• generally high-temperature processes
• interdiffusion of matrix/reinforcement
produces a (gradient) interphase
• beware galvanic corrosion
o C fibres in Al/Mg matrix
 opposite ends of electrochemical series
MMC Liquid State processes I
• Liquid pressure forming (LPF)
including the Cray process
o similar to RTM with molten metal
fed into an evacuated fibre-filled mould
from below by pressure.
o gases and volatiles vented from mould top.
o high pressures
 10-15 atm for Saffil preforms
 70 atm for 50 v/o carbon fibre

o high clamping loads,

o massive dies for heat retention
o long solidification times.
MMC Liquid State processes II
• Pressure infiltration casting (PIC),
including PCAST process
o as LPF, but mould is a cold thin walled vessel
located inside and clamped by pressure vessel
o low cost tooling.
• Squeeze casting: high-quality casting
o pressurise to 1000-2000 atm during solidification
o collapses porosity and
o increases thermal contact with unheated die wall
resulting in rapid solidification rate.
o high capital facility and tooling costs.
MMC Liquid State processes III

• Casting/semi-slurry technique
o two phase process for (continuous) casting
o limited to short-fibre/particulate reinforcement
o Phase 1: dispersal of reinforcement in melt
o Phase 2: shear dilution
o produces ingots for subsequent reprocessing
MMC Liquid State processes IV

• Osprey technique
o liquid Al alloy atomised in N2 atmosphere
o fed with 5μm (silicon carbide) particles
o sprayed onto collector surface.
MMC Solid State processes I
• Low temperature processes with diffusion
bonding.
• Foil techniques
Compaction of fibre with foil matrix
below the solidus temperature:
o foil plating by cold rolling
o explosion welding
o hot pressing (HP)
o hot isostatic pressing (HIP)
MMC Solid State processes II
• Powder techniques
Aluminium alloy matrix materials
canned and vacuum-degassed
prior to consolidation to minimise surface
oxidation and contamination
MMC secondary processing
• extrusion, forging, rolling, stamping
• superplastic forming
• machining
o superhard cutting and grinding tools
 AJM: abrasive waterjet cutting
 CHM: chemical milling
 EBM: electron beam machining
 EDM: electro-discharge machining
 LBM: laser beam machining
 PAM: plasma arc machining
 USM: ultrasonic machining
Natural composites
• Cellulose
o most abundant polysaccharide
o notably plant materials
• Chitin/chitosan
o second most abundant polysaccharide
o found in:
 crab and shrimp shells (the main commercial source)
 various marine organisms, insect cuticle

 fungi and yeast cells

• Proteins
o silk fibres
Natural composites
• wood
o timber .. plywood .. MDF .. chipboard

• reinforcements
o bast (plant stem) fibres: flax, hemp, jute
o leaf fibres: pineapple or sisal
o seed fibres: coir or cotton
• bio-based resin systems

• biomimetics
Nacre (abalone/mother-of-pearl)
• CaCO3 aragonite crystals
hexagonal platelets: 10-20 µm x 0.5 µm thick
arranged in a continuous parallel lamina.
• layers separated by sheets of organic matrix
composed of elastic biopolymers
(such as chitin, lustrin and silk-like proteins).
• brittle platelets and thin elastic biopolymers
makes the material strong and resilient
due to adhesion by the "brickwork“
arrangement of the platelets
which inhibits transverse crack propagation.
Nacre

• Micrograph from Tomsia et al http://www.physorg.com/news10408.html

• Schematic from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mother_of_pearl
Natural composites
• Arthur MacGregor book:
“Bone, antler, ivory, horn:
the technology of skeletal materials since
the Roman Period”
Barnes and Noble, London, 1985.
o the definitive work on bonework
from Roman to medieval times.
Polymer matrix composites (PMC)

• Thermosets
o AFRP, CFRP, GFRP
• Thermoplastics
o AFRTP, CFRTP, GFRTP
 sailcloths, tarpaulins, tensile structures (eg Frei Otto)
• Elastomers
o cord-reinforced rubber
 cotton, rayon, nylon, steel, aramid fibres
 tyres, hoses, conveyor belts