Sources of Nanoparticle Improvement to Fabric Composite Properties: Shear-Thickening Fluids and Particle Hardness

摘要

Concentrated particle suspensions can exhibit a phenomenon where the fluid viscosity increases with increasing applied shear rate or stress, termed shear-thickening. This behavior can have varying severity going up to a nearly liquid-solid transition. This liquid-solid transition has previously been applied to improve protective properties of Kevlar fabric. Previous work has also examined improving the ballistic and stab properties of ballistic fabrics by dry particle addition. Prior observations of these materials have reported particle gouging of the fabric filaments by the hard particles, which may be necessary for improved performance. In this study, we explore the role of particle hardness by silica particles, which are harder than Kevlar, to softer poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) particles. It was found that the silica-based composites generally performed better than comparable PMMA-based composites, due to decreased yarn mobility.