Fabrication and finite element simulation of aluminum/carbon nanotubes sheet reinforced with Thermal Chemical Vapor Deposition (TCVD)

Abstract

This study aims to grow the carbon nanotubes (CNTs) on the aluminum substrate (sheet) using Thermal Chemical Vapor Deposition (TCVD) so that the aluminum sheets can be clad together. Besides, finite element simulation (FEM) was used to evaluate the damage progression, and fracture initiation in AL-CNT composites. AL-CNT Representative Volume Element (RVE) was studied to numerically get an appropriate micro-scale Al-CNT composite simulation. To forecast the statistical connection between material microstructure and effective constitutive properties, the RVE approach was developed. AL/CNT RVE models were studied to determine the most effective carbon nanotube weight percentage as a contender to reinforce the aluminum matrix. The experimental technique was then used to investigate the results found in the RVE models. According to the experimental procedure, AL/CNT shows the maximum mechanical strength and material behavior in the CNT weight percentage reported by the RVE model analysis. Furthermore, regarding the importance of continuum mechanical simulation of microstructural damage processes in the ductile fracture mechanics research, the effect of stress triaxiality ratios, such as the ratio of mean stress to equivalent stress, on the damage growth rate was studied. The experimental results show that the composite mechanical behavior is appropriate at each CNT weight percentage simulations were conducted, and the results were compared to the numerical and experimental approaches in the literature, yielding satisfactory agreements. Based on the experimental findings, ultimate strength and young modulus of AL-5 wt.% CNT are 239 MPa and 73 GPa respectively. By adding more CNT concentration, CNT agglomerations are appeared inside the samples based on SEM. Therefore AL-5 wt.% CNT is the final candidate with the best physical properties.