Study of the Interfacial Properties of Carbon Fibre Composites using Dynamic Mechanical Analysis and Quantitative Nanomechanical Mapping

摘要

Surface chemistry and physical characteristics created during fibre manufacture are contributing factors to the bonding strength between carbon fibre surface and matrix. Applying sizing to the fibre can reduce the overall strength of a composite due to local stoichiometric imbalance of curing agent and resin close to the fibre surface and form an interphase. The interphase can provide higher or lower stiffness than the matrix, depending on the combination of materials, which affects the performance of the composite structure [1]. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) allows the determination of interphase stiffness, which may be linked to bulk mechanical properties [2, 3]. In this study, the effect of electrolytic oxidation and epoxy sizing on the composite mechanical (ILSS) and thermo- dynamical properties (DMA) were investigated. Quantitative nanomechanical mapping (QNM) was performed using atomic force microscopy to examine whether the formation of interphase in the studied composites can be observed.