Mechanical properties of high strength and high toughness metallic filament composites with epoxy and poly(ether ether ketone) matrices

High strength and high toughness metallic filament was produced by glass-coated melt spinning. The mechanical properties of the composite consisting of the filaments uniaxially aligned in brittle epoxy resin, ductile epoxy resin with plasticizer and poly(ether ether ketone) matrices were investigated. It was found that the Young's modulus (E_c) and tensile strength (,_cu) of the composite consisting of uncoated filaments in brittle epoxy matrix were higher than those predicted by a linear function of the filament content (Vf), and the filaments fractured tightly in contact with the matrix. On the other hand, no improvement of the mechanical properties of the composite consisting of glass-coated filaments in brittle epoxy matrix was detected, due to the weak interfacial force between metallic filaments and the coating glass. The composite consisting of filaments in a ductile matrix was a high toughness material with a long range of plasticity deformation, and the experimental values ofE_c and _cu against V_f agreed with the simple law of mixtures.