Epoxy/Glass-Fabric/Silica Hybrid Composites: Mechanical Properties and Wear Behavior

Abstract

Hybrid composites of bi-directionally woven E-glass cloth/epoxy containing different amounts of silica were fabricated by compression molding. Composites were characterized as per ASTM standards for their tensile and flexural behaviours, inter laminar shear strength (ILSS), impact strength, surface hardness and density. The effect of silica content on wear loss and specific wear rate of the composites was investigated by three body abrasive wear testing under different loads and abrading distances. The lowest wear rate was observed for 3 wt.% silica-filled hybrid composite at an abrading distance of 300 m. 6 and 9 wt.% silica filled composites exhibits lower wear rates at 600 m and 900 m abrading distances compared with 3 wt.% silica filled composite. It is also observed that the specific wear rate strongly depends on the applied load at lower abrading distances in all composites. We have also correlated the mechanical property with specific wear rate and wear loss.