Carbon nanotube reinforced titanium composites: An experimental and molecular dynamics study

Abstract

In this study, the mechanical properties of carbon nanotube reinforced titanium (CNT–Ti) composites have been predicted using molecular dynamics approach. An experimental study was also conducted in which spark plasma sintering was used for preparing the composites. The effect of variation in carbon nanotube volume fraction ( V f), temperature, and strain on the elastic moduli ( E11, E22, and E33) and the shear modulus ( G Reuss) of CNT–Ti composites was studied. The elastic and shear moduli were all found to increase significantly because of the increasing carbon nanotube V f. Even at temperatures approaching 1 K, the CNT–Ti composites show high values of elastic and shear moduli. The elastic moduli tend to attain a constant value at high levels of strain. The results obtained from experiments corroborated the molecular dynamics results.