PERFORMANCE CHARACTERISTICS OF GFRP BASED ON FIBER ORIENTATION OF SECONDARY STRUCTURE

Author

Bhavyashree M, Itika Sharma, Muskaan Banu, Gopinath B

Abstract

 Woven E-glass/epoxy laminates are used in secondary aircraft structures, where the stacking sequence and any additive in the matrix can change strength. This paper reports how stacking symmetry and aluminium powder filler affect four 12-ply laminates made by hand lay-up from 350 GSM woven E-glass fabric, Araldite LY556 epoxy and HY951 hardener. Symmetric and unsymmetric stacking sequences were each made with and without 15 g of aluminium powder and tested in tension and three-point bending (one specimen per laminate). Tensile strength was 124.0 MPa (symmetric, filled), 121.2 MPa (symmetric, unfilled), 112.0 MPa (unsymmetric, unfilled) and 104.4 MPa (unsymmetric, filled). The symmetric laminates were stronger than the unsymmetric ones by 8.2 % (unfilled) and 18.8 % (filled) in tension, and by 4.3 % and 17.2 % in bending. Aluminium powder changed tensile strength by +2.3 % in the symmetric pair and by −6.8 % in the unsymmetric pair, so no consistent benefit was found. A separate linear static ANSYS model gave lower deformation for the symmetric stacking, in the same direction as the tests. In these laminates, stacking symmetry mattered more than the filler.

Keywords

GFRP; woven E-glass/epoxy; fibre orientation; symmetric and unsymmetric laminates; aluminium powder; hand lay-up; tensile test; three-point bending; ANSYS

Full Text:

Download Paper PDF

References

[1]Mallick, P. K. (2007). Fiber-Reinforced Composites: Materials, Manufacturing, and Design (3rd ed.). CRC Press, Boca Raton.
[2]Jones, R. M. (1999). Mechanics of Composite Materials (2nd ed.). Taylor & Francis, Philadelphia.
[3]Kaw, A. K. (2006). Mechanics of Composite Materials (2nd ed.). CRC Press, Boca Raton.

[4]Aveen, K. P., Bhajantri, V., D’Souza, R., Londe, N. V., & Jambagi, S. (2019). Experimental analysis on effect of various fillers on mechanical properties of glass fiber reinforced polymer composites. AIP Conference Proceedings, 2057.
[5]Kazim, T. R., Al-Basam, F. A. H. M., & Al-Zubaydi, A. B. A. H. (2016). Effect of micro powder on mechanical and physical properties of glass fiber reinforced epoxy composite. Engineering and Technology Journal, 34(7A), 1402–1414.
[6]Asi, O. (2009). Mechanical properties of glass-fiber reinforced epoxy composites filled with Al₂O₃ particles. Journal of Reinforced Plastics and Composites, 28(23), 2861–2867.
[7]Megahed, M., Fathy, A., Morsy, D., & Shehata, F. (2021). Mechanical performance of glass/epoxy composites enhanced by micro- and nanosized aluminum particles. Journal of Industrial Textiles, 51(1), 68–92.
[8]Hasan, I. S., Ali, M., & Hussein, E. Q. (2026). Impact of high-velocity on the mechanical properties of aluminum powder and glass fiber composite materials. Revue des Composites et des Matériaux Avancés, 36(2), 133–144. https://doi.org/10.18280/rcma.360113
[9]Murugan, R., Lakshmi Narasimhan, R., & Harish, A. (2018). Effect of fiber orientation on effective stacking sequence of glass/carbon hybrid composite laminates for structural applications. Proceedings of PECTEAM 2018, Atlantis Press.
[10]Singh, S., & Gupta, P. K. (2022). Effect of fiber orientation on mechanical properties of jute/carbon/glass hybrid composite. Materials Today: Proceedings, 68, 2574–2580.
[11]Daniel, I. M., & Ishai, O. (2006). Engineering Mechanics of Composite Materials (2nd ed.). Oxford University Press, New York.
[12]ASTM International (2014). ASTM D638-14, Standard Test Method for Tensile Properties of Plastics. West Conshohocken, PA.
[13]ASTM International (2017). ASTM D790-17, Standard Test Methods for Flexural Properties of Unreinforced and Reinforced Plastics and Electrical Insulating Materials. West Conshohocken, PA.
[14]Federal Aviation Administration (2009). Advisory Circular AC 20-107B: Composite Aircraft Structure.

Share your valuable work from Social Media Buttons