Efficiency of Bio-Sourced Composites in Confining Recycled Aggregates Concrete

This research investigates the efficiency of using Flax Fibers reinforced bio-sourced polymer by comparison to traditional system based on Carbone Fiber Reinforced Epoxy Polymer in order to confine recycled aggregates concrete. Four concrete formulations have been formulated by incorporating recycled aggregates from demolition waste (0%, 30%, 50% and 100%). An air-entraining agent was added to the formulations to achieve the level of 4% occluded air. The main objective is to discuss and to evaluate the effectiveness of confining them using bio-sourced composite by comparison to traditional ones. To hit this target, the developed approaches are both experimental and analytical. The first part is experimental and aimed to characterize the mechanical behavior of the materials: the composites used in the confining process the unconfined concrete (effect of incorporating recycled aggregates on the overall mechanical characteristics). We establish that bio-sourced composites are efficient in strengthening recycled aggregates concrete especially if they are air-entrained. The second part of this work is dedicated to analytical modeling of mechanical behavior of confined concrete with composite under compression based on Mander’s model. The input parameters of the model were modified to consider the rate of recycled aggregates incorporation. Comparison between experimental results and the modified Mandel’s Model is satisfactory.

Plasma Surface Modification of Epoxy Polymer in Air DBD and Gliding Arc

We studied the epoxy polymer surface modification using air plasma treatment in a Gliding Arc (GA) plasma reactor and a pulsed Dielectric Barrier Discharge (DBD). We employed optical emission spectroscopy (OES) measurements to approximate the vibrational and rotational temperatures for both plasma sources, as well as surface temperature measurements with fiber optics and IR thermography to corelate with the corresponding hydrophilization of the epoxy material. Water contact angle measurements revealed a rapid hydrophilization for both plasma sources, with a slightly more pronounced effect for the air DBD treatment. Ageing studies revealed stable hydrophilicity, with water contact angle saturating at values lower than 50°, corresponding to a >50% decrease compared to the untreated epoxy polymer. ATR-FTIR spectroscopy studies showed an additional absorption band assigned to carbonyl group, with its peak intensity being higher for the DBD treated surfaces. The spectra were also correlated with the surface functionalization via the relative peak area ratio of carbonyl to oxirane and benzene related bands. According to SEM imaging, GA plasma treatment led to no apparent morphological change, contrary to DBD treatment, which resulted in nano-roughness formation. The enhanced surface oxidation as well as the nano-roughness formation on epoxy surface with the air DBD treatment were found to be responsible for the stable hydrophilization.

Molecular Dynamics Investigation of the Thermo-Mechanical Properties of the Moisture Invaded and Cross-Linked Epoxy System

In spite of a high market share of plastic IC packaging, there are still reliability issues, especially for the effects of moisture. The mechanism between moisture and epoxy polymer is still obscure. A multi-step cross-linking approach was used to mimic the cross-linking process between the DGEBA resin and JEFFAMINE®-D230 agent. Based on the molecular dynamics method, the thermo-mechanical properties and microstructure of epoxy polymer were analyzed. In this paper, the degree of cross-linking ranged from 0% to 85.4% and the moisture concentration ranged from 0 wt.% to 12 wt.%. The hydrogen bonds were investigated in the moisture invaded epoxy polymer. Although most of the hydrogen bonds were related to water molecules, the hydrogen bonds between the inside of epoxy polymer were reduced only a little as the concentration of moisture increased. The diffusion coefficient of the water molecules was found to increase with the increase of moisture concentration. When the moisture concentration was larger than 12 wt.% or smaller than 1.6 wt.%, the diffusion coefficient was less affected by the epoxy polymer. In addition, the free volume and the thermal conductivity of the epoxy polymer were considered. It was found that the moisture could increase the thermal conductivity from 0.24 to 0.31 W/m/K, identifying a coupling relationship between moisture and thermal properties. Finally, the mechanical properties of epoxy polymer were analyzed by uniaxial tensile simulation. The COMPASS and DREIDING force fields were used during the uniaxial tensile simulation. A better result was achieved from the DREIDING force field compared with the experiment. The degree of cross-linking was positively correlated with mechanical properties. For the system with the largest degree of cross-linking of 85.4%, the Young’s modulus was 2.134 ± 0.522 GPa and the yield strength was 0.081 ± 0.01 GPa. There were both plasticizing and anti-plasticizing effects when the water molecules entered the epoxy polymer. Both the Young’s moduli and yield strength varied in a large range from 1.38 to 2.344 GPa and from 0.062 to 0.128 GPa, respectively.

Influence of the Self-Heating Temperature on the Cyclic Durability of Composite Materials

Постановка задачи. Для определения выносливости полимерных композиционных материалов используют различные методы ускоренных испытаний. Одним из таких методов является температурный, который имеет свои ограничения применения. Это подразумевает необходимость установления возможности его применения для эпоксидных полимерных материалов. Результаты. Предложена формула для определения величины усталостной долговечности эпоксидного композиционного материала, опытным путем установлена достоверность величин, рассчитываемых по данной формуле. Доказано, что интенсивность роста температуры зависит от скорости загружения. Выводы. Достоверность расчетов по предложенной формуле для расчета показателей усталостной долговечности подтверждена сравнением результатов с опытными данными, значения достаточно близко коррелируют, что позволяет применять эту формулу при расчете выносливости для образцов из эпоксидного композита. Statement of the problem. Various methods of accelerated testing are used to determine the endurance of polymer composite materials. One of these methods is the temperature method which has its own limitations of application. Thus the possibility of its application for epoxy polymer materials should be established. Results. The article proposes a formula for identifying the value of the fatigue life of an epoxy composite material. The reliability of the values calculated using this formula is experimentally established. It is proved that the intensity of the temperature increase depends on the loading speed. Conclusions. The reliability of the calculations according to the proposed formula for calculating the fatigue life indicators is confirmed by comparing the results with experimental data, the values are quite closely correlated, which allows us to use this formula when calculating the endurance for samples made of epoxy composite.

Improving Fracture Toughness of Tetrafunctional Epoxy with Functionalized 2D Molybdenum Disulfide Nanosheets

In this work, improved fracture toughness of tetra-functional epoxy polymer was obtained using two-dimensional (2H polytype) molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) nano-platelets as a filler. Simultaneous in-situ exfoliation and functionalization of MoS2 were achieved in the presence of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) via sonication. The aim was to improve the dispersion of MoS2 nanoplatelets in epoxy and enhance the interfacial interaction between nanoplatelets and epoxy matrix. Epoxy nanocomposites with CTAB functionalized MoS2 (f-MoS2) nanoplatelets, ranging in content from 0.1 wt% up to 1 wt%, were fabricated. Modified MoS2 improved the fracture properties (81%) of tetrafunctional epoxy nanocomposites. The flexural strength and compressive strength improved by 64% and 47%, respectively, with 0.25 wt% loading of f-MoS2 nanoplatelets compared to neat epoxy. The addition of f-MoS2 nanoplatelets enhanced the thermomechanical properties of epoxy. This work demonstrated the potential of organically modified MoS2 nanoplatelets for improving the fracture and thermal behavior of tetrafunctional epoxy nanocomposites.