Abstract:
Carbon fiber reinforced polymer composites (CFRPs) have been widely used in the fields of astronautics and aviation due to their superior strength, modulus as well as the potential of being tailored for various applications. As a two-component material, the interface between a fiber and matrix is very important for the properties of CFRPs. Therefore, the interfacial characterization is of specific interest in understanding and tailoring the performance of CFRPs, in which microscopic characterization is a research hotspot. Atomic force microscope (AFM) is an effective tool for characterizing the topography and properties of different types of materials. However, employing AFM to characterize the interfaces in CFRPs is very rare. Solvents are often used to clean the composites, but the potential effects of solvents on the composites have not been fully understood. In order to study the evolution of interfacial structure of CFRPs under the effect of ethanol, a characterization method on the CFRPs interface involving the
in situ observation of size of the resin and the fiber was proposed. The cross-section and laminate samples were prepared with carbon fibers and epoxy resin, and treated with ethanol. The morphology near the interface of the samples was measured by an environment control scanning probe microscopy (ECSPM) with
in situ heating, and the interlaminar shear properties of the samples were analyzed by short beam shear tests. The results showed that the resin around the interface expanded after the ethanol treatment. During the heating process, the resin shrinkage and the fiber expansion of CFRP
s treated with ethanol occurred remarkably. However, the interlaminar shear strength and the failure modes of CFRPs were not significantly affected by the ethanol treatment. In summary, short-term ethanol treatment may have a potential impact on the surface properties of CFRPs during its function, but not enough on its shear resistance.