Broughton, W R; Lodeiro, M J (1999) Cyclic fatigue of continuous unidirectional polymer matrix composites: an interim report. NPL Report. CMMT(A)186

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Abstract

This report provides an interim assessment of test methods developed within the Composites Performance and Design (CPD) Project “Life Assessment and Prediction” for characterising the tensile properties of fibre bundles and impregnated strands under static and cyclic loading conditions. Tests have been carried out on both glass-fibre and carbon-fibre reinforced systems to evaluate the suitability of the test methods for accelerating testing and for generating cyclic fatigue data. A comparative study has been carried out on narrow (i.e. 3 mm wide) and standard (i.e. 15 mm wide) unidirectional laminates to assess scaling effects. Strain rate and gauge-length effects on the measured tensile properties from fibre tow specimens have also been considered.
The principal conclusions that can be drawn from the results to-date are: (i) glass-fibre and carbon-fibre bundles, and continuous aligned carbon fibre-reinforced laminates have excellent fatigue resistance at loads approaching the tensile strengths for these materials; (ii) fatigue performance of small diameter glass fibre-reinforced rods and narrow unidirectional laminates is poor in comparison with the standard test specimen geometry; and (iii) current standard for preparation and testing of composite rods requires revision to accommodate the determination of tensile strength. The report includes recommendations on preparation and testing of fibre bundles and composite rods, and concludes with comments relating to future work.

Item Type:	Report/Guide (NPL Report)
NPL Report No.:	CMMT(A)186
Subjects:	Advanced Materials Advanced Materials > Composites Advanced Materials > Polymers
Last Modified:	02 Feb 2018 13:18
URI:	http://eprintspublications.npl.co.uk/id/eprint/1156

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