Fiber-Matrix Interfacial Adhesion Improvement in Carbon Fiber-Bisphenol-A Polycarbonate Composites by Polymer Grafting

Fiber-matrix interfacial adhesion in thermoplastic composites is generally poor due to the lack of formation of strong covalent and/or ionic bonds between the generally inert thermoplastic resins and the surface of the reinforcing fiber. Adhesion can be improved by forming covalent linkages between the fiber and the matrix by grafting a polymer of appropriate compatibility, molecular weight, and sufficient density onto the surface of the fiber. We have grafted low molecular weight polycarbonate and polymethyl methacrylates onto the surface of carbon fibers and measured an improvement in the level of adhesion ranging from 25% to100% over the ungrafted composites. It was also observed that the level of improvement in adhesion appears to be independent of the molecular weight of the grafted polymer. Examination of the fracture surface of these composites reveals that the failure is cohesive in the matrix for the polymer grafted fiber composites, while it is adhesive for the ungrafted composites.