Enhancement of fracture toughness and reduced brittle characteristics of modified CFRP composites by incorporating synergism effect between PC/ABS blend with DGEBA resin systems

ABSTRACT

CFRP composites are considered to be the future of advanced polymer composites but, intrinsic brittleness of the CFRP limits its use in wide range of applications. In this study, Bisphenol A diglycidyl ether is modified using polycarbonate (PC)/acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) blend via melt-mixing. Critical analysis using Izod impact, FTIR, DSC, morphology and TGA helps determine the concentration of ABS in PC/ABS. Subsequently, fracture toughness and elongation at break is studied using Mode I and tensile test, respectively, and confirms that the blend 90/10 improves the interlaminar shear strength (ILSS) and reduces the brittle nature by 84.2% and 14.8%, respectively.

Graphical Abstract

KEYWORDS:

• Automotive applications
• CFRP composites
• mode I fracture toughness
• polymer blend
• synergism

Acknowledgments

It is to be mentioned that the facility helps provided by Cornell Center for Materials Research (CCMR), Cornell University, USA and FAN Services, Maharashtra, India, along with the funding from AICTE National Doctoral Fellowship (NDF) Scheme 2018 at the time of COVID-19 pandemic is the most essential element in the successful completion of this research work. The entire synthesis and fabrication of specimens were performed at Space Technology Laboratory, Department of Mechanical Engineering, TKMCE, Kollam, Kerala, India.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the All India Council for Technical Education [NDF Fellowship 2018].