Measuring the Mechanical Properties of Glass Fiber Reinforcement Polymer Composite Laminates Obtained by Different Fabrication Processes.

Abstract

The traditional wet hand lay-up process (WL) has been widely applied in the manufacturing of fiber composite laminates. However, due insufficiency in the forming pressure, the mass fraction of fiber is reduced and lots of air bubbles are trapped inside, resulting in low-quality laminates (low stiffness and strength). The wet hand lay-up/vacuum bag (WLVB) process for the fabrication of composite laminates is based on the traditional wet hand lay-up process, using a vacuum bag to remove air bubbles and provide pressure, and then carrying out the heating and curing process. Compared with the traditional hand lay-up process, laminates manufactured by the WLVB process show superior mechanical properties, including better strength and stiffness, higher fiber volume fraction, and lower void volume fraction, which are all benefits for composite laminates. This process is completely manual, and it is greatly influenced by the skills of the preparation personnel. Therefore, the products are prone to defects such as voids and uneven thickness, leading to unstable qualities and mechanical properties of the laminate. Hence, it is necessary to finely describe the WLVB process, finely control steps, and quantify material ratios, in order to ensure the mechanical properties of laminates. This paper describes the meticulous process of the WLVB process for preparing woven plain patterned glass fiber reinforcement composite laminates (GFRPs). The fiber volume content of laminates was calculated using the formula method, and the calculated results showed that the fiber volume content of WL laminates was 42.04%, while that of WLVB laminates was 57.82%, increasing by 15.78%. The mechanical properties of the laminates were characterized using tensile and impact tests. The experimental results revealed that with the WLVB process, the strength and modulus of the laminates were enhanced by 17.4% and 16.35%, respectively, and the specific absorbed energy was increased by 19.48%.