Large deformation and ultimate properties of biopolymer gels: 2. Mixed gel systems

Biphasic, mixed gels of agarose and gelatin were prepared, and their mechanical behaviour in tensile tests was determined, up to failure, utilising four decades of (constant) strain rate. The behaviour of pure agarose and pure gelatin in such tests has been determined previously. Suitable ‘blending-laws’ relating the small deformation shear modulus of the composite to the moduli of the component phases have also been discussed elsewhere. This report extends the latter treatment to the more aggressive large deformation regime, deriving bounds for modulus and break stress which closely model observed behaviour.     

Tensile properties of hollow glass bead‐filled polypropylene composites

The tensile properties of polypropylene (PP) filled with hollow glass beads have been measured at room temperature to identify the effects of the particle contents, size and its distribution on them in the present article. The mean diameters of the fillers were 11, 35, and 70 μm, and they were named as TK10, TK35, and TK70 respectively. The surface of these particles was pretreated with silane coupling agent. The results showed that the yield stress (σ_y) decreased gently for PP/TK70 systems, whereas decreased relatively obviously for PP/TK35 systems with increasing the volume fraction (?_f) of the fillers. When ?_f was less than 5%, the tensile strength at break (σ_b) of the composites increased with the increase of ?_f. When ?_f was more than 5%, σ_b was almost a constant for PP/TK70 systems, while σ_b decreased linearly for PP/TK35 systems. The tensile fracture strain (ε_b) of the composites decreased suddenly when ?_f was less than 5%, and then decreased slightly with increasing ?_f. When ?_f was 10%, σ_y and σ_b increased while ε_b decreased with the increase of the bead diameter. Furthermore, the σ_y was predicted by means an equation proposed in the previous work, and good interfacial adhesion was shown between the hollow glass beads and the matrix. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 104: 1697–1701, 2007     

Fracture properties of epoxy/poly(styrene‐co‐allylalcohol) blends

The epoxy/polystyrene system is characterized by a poor adhesion between the constituent phases, which determines its mechanical properties. The adhesion can be improved via blends based on epoxy resin and random copolymers, poly(styrene‐co‐allylalcohol) (PS‐co‐PA). In this work, the influence of PS‐co‐PA content and the good adhesion between the phases on the tensile properties and the fracture toughness achieved through instrumented Charpy tests have been investigated. The tensile strength and the deformation at break showed an increase in the PS‐co‐PA content while the Young's modulus remained the same. The tensile fracture surfaces revealed that the improvement of these magnitudes was mainly due to a crack deflection mechanism. Also, the fracture toughness of the blends was superior to that of the pure epoxy resin. The main operating toughening mechanism was crack deflection. The fractographic analysis showed that ～ 80% of the particles were broken, and the crack tended to divert from its original path through the broken PS‐co‐PA particles. The remaining particles were detached from the epoxy resin, and the holes left suffered plastic deformation. Analytical models were used to predict successfully the toughness due to these mechanisms. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 2007     

Toughness Optimization of SBR Elastomers – Use of Fracture Mechanics Methods for Characterization

Elastomer materials are used in a wide application range and subjected to different loading from which failure of the material results. Because this failure is caused by initiation and propagation of cracks, the application of fracture mechanics methods for the assessment of the material is obvious. A short summary of the methods of technical fracture mechanics including possibilities of determination of crack resistance curves is given. Vulcanizates on the basis of SBR 1500 with various sulfur and carbon black contents were investigated. For describing the crack initiation and crack propagation behavior, several fracture mechanics examination methods were applied. Tear‐analyzer results were used to assess the crack propagation behavior under fatigue‐like loading conditions. Furthermore, for the characterization of the crack resistance of the materials under impact‐like loading conditions, instrumented tensile‐impact tests were performed. To obtain information about the initiation and propagation of a stable crack, quasi‐static fracture mechanics tests were applied. The results of the several tests are discussed in dependence on sulfur and carbon black contents. We found a non‐monotonous behavior of the toughness as a function of carbon black loading. An explanation is given in connection with a percolation‐like transition in filler morphology on larger length scales.

Schematic crack propagation curve for characterizing the fatigue behavior of the vulcanizates recorded in a TFA test.     

短纤维/橡胶发泡复合材料的微观结构及拉伸破坏机理

对锦纶短纤维增强的NR发泡材料的微观结构及拉伸破坏行为进行了研究，并分析了其破坏机理。采用未处理短纤维增强的NR发泡材料中短纤维成为泡孔的成核点，并大部分悬空在泡孔中，拉伸破坏时泡壁与短纤维结合处容易出现应力集中，成为裂纹的起始点，失效时短纤维大部分被抽出；预处理短纤维能与橡胶基体之间产生良好的粘合，从而处于橡胶基体中。其短纤维增强的NR发泡体拉伸产生的裂纹扩展时遇到纤维，纤维能起到承载应力、使应力转向、阻止裂纹扩展的作用，一定程度上改善了复合材料的拉伸强度等物理性。     

Toughened electrospun nanofibers from crosslinked elastomer‐thermoplastic blends

A crosslink‐able elastomeric polyester urethane (PEU) was blended with a thermoplastic, polyacrylonitrile (PAN), and electrospun into nanofibers. The effects of the PEU/PAN ratio and the crosslinking reaction on the morphology and the tensile properties of the as‐spun fiber mats were investigated. With the same overall polymer concentration (9 wt %), the nanofiber containing higher composition of PEU shows a slight decrease in the average fiber diameter, but the tensile strength, the elongation at break and tensile modulus of the nanofiber mats are all improved. These tensile properties are further enhanced by slight crosslinking of the PEU component within the nanofibers. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 2007     

Drying-induced stresses in elastic and viscoelastic saturated materials

The paper presents a theoretical analysis of stresses generated during convective drying of kaolin, based on elastic and viscoelastic models. The equations of these models were solved analytically for a cylindrically shaped sample; the distribution and evolution of the radial and circumferential stresses are illustrated in diagrams. The acoustic emission method was used in experimental tests for identification on line of the time period during which the stresses reach their maximal values. A better correlation has been found between the experimental tests and the theoretical predictions obtained on the basis of the viscoelastic model.     

Measurement of residual stresses in injection‐molded polymer parts by time‐resolved fluorescence

Time‐resolved fluorescence properties of 9‐methylanthracene (9MAn) dispersed in film of polyvinylchloride (PVC) containing carbon black were studied under tensile loadings. The fluorescence lifetime of 9MAn decreased from 5.70 to 5.55 ns, whereas the stresses acting on the films increased from 0 to 3 MPa. The change in fluorescence lifetimes of 9MAn during the stress relaxation process showed that the fluorescence lifetimes were correlated with the stresses, not with the strains. The results suggest that 9MAn is a useful probe for monitoring stresses acting on the matrix. With the use of the fluorescence properties of 9MAn, the residual tensile stresses on the skin‐layer of PVC injection‐molded test pieces were estimated. The estimated residual stresses were about ～ 1 MPa. The residual stresses were relaxed to 0 MPa with annealing at 100°C. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 83: 2600–2603, 2002     

Mechanical and morphological properties of carbon fiber reinforced–modified epoxy composites

Epoxy, prepared through aminomethyl 3,5,5‐trimethylcyclohexylamine hardening of diglycidylether of bisphenol‐A (DGEBA) prepolymer, toughened with polycarbonate (PC) in different proportions, and reinforced with carbon fiber, was investigated by differential scanning calorimetry, tensile and interlaminar shear strength testing, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). A single glass transition temperature was found in all compositions of the epoxy/PC blend system. The tensile properties of the blend were found to be better than that of the pure epoxy matrix. They increased with PC content up to 10%, beyond which they decreased. The influence of carbon fiber orientation on the mechanical properties of the composites was studied, where the fiber content was kept constant at 68 wt %. Composites with 45° fiber orientation were found to have very weak mechanical properties, and the mechanical properties of the blend matrix composites were found to be better than those of the pure epoxy matrix composites. The fracture and surface morphologies of the composite samples were characterized by SEM. Good bonding was observed between the fiber and matrix for the blend matrix composites. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 101: 3529–3536, 2006