ENHANCEMENT OF INTERLAMINAR TENSILE STRENGTH OF A LAMINATED COMPOSITE

摘要

The orthotropic nature of composites provides an excellent performance in the fiber direction,rnbut it is susceptible to failure in the orthogonal direction. Failure due to the delamination isrnlimited to composites, and has adverse consequence on its mechanical properties. This study hasrnbeen conducted to determine the interlaminar tensile (ILT) failure modes of the laminatedrncomposites. A curved beam test specimen was used to determine the ILT strength of a laminatedrncomposite. A carbon/epoxy prepreg tape material was used to manufacture the composite panels,rnand then a four-point bend test was conducted to determine the ILT strength. The test couponsrnwere fitted with metal clamps on both sides of the curved sections. The clamps werernmanufactured using Aluminum 7075-O alloy without any heat treatment to fit the tight radiusrnand thickness of the test coupons. These clamps were attached to the curved sections of the beamrnusing a Hysol EA 9394 adhesive. It was observed that the ILT failure of the test coupons withrnmetal clamps was significantly delayed as compared to baseline results.