Experimental Studies on Carbon Nanotube Composites for Vibration Damping

摘要

It has been found that the composites of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and epoxy resin could greatly enhance damping ability while the stiffness is kept at a very high level. In this research, carbon nanotube enhanced epoxy resin is fabricated. The dynamic properties of the nanotube composites are experimentally studied. A testing apparatus for obtaining material properties is set up and measurement procedures are given. Multiple groups of specimens are made for investigations. In particular, the material loss factors together with dynamic stiffness are measured for the specimens with different CNT weight ratio. Experimental results show that CNT additive can provide the composite with significant damping without easily undergoing large strain as compared to traditional damping materials, and the dynamic stiffness of the nanotube composite could be even higher than the pure epoxy. It is promising that the nanotube composites could be used in the structural vibration applications when both damping and stiffness are important.