UNIT-I

Introduction

There is an unabated quest for new materials which will satisfy the specific requirements
for various applications like structural, medical, house-hold, industrial, construction,
transportation, electrical; electronics, etc. Metals are the most commonly used materials in
these applications. In the yore of time, there have been specific requirements on the
properties of these materials. It is impossible of any material to fulfill all these properties.
Hence, newer materials are developed. In the course, we are going to learn more about
composite materials. First, we will deal with primary understanding of these materials and
then we will learn the mechanics of these materials.

In the following lectures, we will introduce the composite materials, their evolution;
constituents; fabrication; application; properties; forms, advantages-disadvantages etc. In
the present lecture we will introduce the composite materials with a formal definition, need
for these materials, their constituents and forms of constituents.

Definition of a Composite Material

A composite material is defined as a material which is composed of two or more materials

at a microscopic scale and has chemically distinct phases.

Thus, a composite material is heterogeneous at a microscopic scale but statistically

homogeneous at macroscopic scale. The materials which form the composite are also
called as constituents or constituent materials. The constituent materials of a composite
have significantly different properties. Further, it should be noted that the properties of the
composite formed may not be obtained from these constituents. However, a combination
of two or more materials with significant properties will not suffice to be called as a
composite material. In general, the following conditions must be satisfied to be called a
composite material:

1. The combination of materials should result in significant property changes. One can
see significant changes when one of the constituent material is in platelet or fibrous
from.
2. The content of the constituents is generally more than 10% (by volume).
3. In general, property of one constituent is much greater than the
corresponding property of the other constituent.

The composite materials can be natural or artificially made materials. In the following
section we will see the examples of these materials.

Why we need these materials?

There is unabated thirst for new materials with improved desired properties. All the desired
properties are difficult to find in a single material. For example, a material which needs
high fatigue life may not be cost effective. The list of the desired properties, depending
upon the requirement of the application, is given below.

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 1. Strength
2. Stiffness
3. Toughness
4. High corrosion resistance
5. High wear resistance
6. High chemical resistance
7. High environmental degradation resistance
8. Reduced weight
9. High fatigue life
10. Thermal insulation or conductivity
11. Electrical insulation or conductivity
12. Acoustic insulation
13. Radar transparency
14. Energy dissipation
15. Reduced cost
16. Attractiveness

The list of desired properties is in-exhaustive. It should be noted that the most important
characteristics of composite materials is that their properties are tailorable, that is, one can
design the required properties.

Figure 1.1 Types of reinforcement in a composite

History of Composites

The existence of composite is not new. The word “composite” has become very popular in
recent four-five decades due to the use of modern composite materials in various
applications. The composites have existed from 10000 BC. For example, one can see the
article by Ashby [1]. The evolution of materials and their relative importance over the years
have been depicted in Figure 1 of this article. The common composite was straw bricks, used
as construction material.

Then the next composite material can be seen from Egypt around 4000 BC where fibrous
composite materials were used for preparing the writing material. These were the laminated
writing materials fabricated from the papyrus plant. Further, Egyptians made containers from
coarse fibres that were drawn from heat softened glass.

One more important application of composites can be seen around 1200 BC from Mongols.
Mongols invented the so called “modern” composite bow. The history shows that the earliest
proof of existence of composite bows dates back to 3000 BC - as predicted by Angara
Dating. The bow used various materials like wood, horn, sinew (tendon), leather, bamboo
and antler. The horn and antler were used to make the main body of the bow as it is very

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flexible and resilient. Sinews were used to join and cover the horn and antler together. Glue
was prepared from the bladder of fish which is used to glue all the things in place. The string
of the bow was made from sinew, horse hair and silk. The composite bow so prepared used to
take almost a year for fabrication. The bows were so powerful that one could shoot the
arrows almost 1.5 km away. Until the discovery of gun-powder the composite bow used to be
a very lethal weapon as it was a short and handy weapon.

As said, “Need is the mother of all inventions”, the modern composites, that is, polymer
composites came into existence during the Second World War. During the Second World
War due to constraint impositions on various nations for crossing boundaries as well as
importing and exporting the materials, there was scarcity of materials, especially in the
military applications. During this period the fighter planes were the most advanced
instruments of war. The light weight yet strong materials were in high demand. Further,
applications like housing of electronic radar equipments require non-metallic materials.
Hence, the Glass Fibre Reinforced Plastics (GFRP) were first used in these applications.
Phenolic resins were used as the matrix material. The first use of composite laminates can be
seen in the Havilland Mosquito Bomber of the British Royal Air Force.

The composites exist in day to day life applications as well. The most common existence is in
the form of concrete. Concrete is a composite made from gravel, sand and cement. Further,
when it is used along with steel to form structural components in construction, it forms one
further form of composite. The other material is wood which is a composite made from
cellulose and lignin. The advanced forms of wood composites can be ply-woods. These can
be particle bonded composites or mixture of wooden planks/blocks with some binding agent.
Now days, these are widely used to make furniture and as construction materials.

An excellent example of natural composite is muscles of human body. The muscles are
present in a layered system consisting of fibers at different orientations and in different
concentrations. These result in a very strong, efficient, versatile and adaptable structure. The
muscles impart strength to bones and vice a versa. These two together form a structure that is
unique. The bone itself is a composite structure. The bone contains mineral matrix material
which binds the collagen fibres together.

The other examples include: wings of a bird, fins of a fish, trees and grass. A leaf of a tree is
also an excellent example of composite structure. The veins in the leaf not only transport food
and water, but also impart the strength to the leaf so that the leaf remains stretched with
maximum surface area. This helps the plant to extract more energy from sun during photo-
synthesis.

What are the constituents in a typical composite?

In a composite, typically, there are two constituents. One of the constituent acts as a
reinforcement and other acts as a matrix. Sometimes, the constituents are also referred as
phases.

What are the types of reinforcements?

The reinforcements in a composite material come in various forms. These are depicted
through Figure 1.1.

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 1. Fibre: Fibre is an individual filament of the material. A filament with length to
diameter ratio above 1000 is called a fibre. The fibrous form of the reinforcement is
widely used. The fibres can be in the following two forms:
a. Continuous fibres: If the fibres used in a composite are very long and
unbroken or cut then it forms a continuous fibre composite. A
composite, thus formed using continuous fibres is called as fibrous
composite. The fibrous composite is the most widely used form of
composite.

b. Short/chopped fibres: The fibres are chopped into small pieces when
used in fabricating a composite. A composite with short fibres as
reinforcements is called as short fibre composite.

In the fibre reinforced composites, the fibre is the major load carrying constituent.

2. Particulate: The reinforcement is in the form of particles which are of the order of a
few microns in diameter. The particles are generally added to increase the modulus
and decrease the ductility of the matrix materials. In this case, the load is shared by
both particles and matrix materials. However, the load shared by the particles is much
larger than the matrix material. For example, in an automobile application carbon
black (as a particulate reinforcement) is added in rubber (as matrix material). The
composite with reinforcement in particle form is called a particulate composite.

3. Flake: Flake is a small, flat, thin piece or layer (or a chip) that is broken from a larger
piece. Since these are two dimensional in geometry, they impart almost equal strength
in all directions of their planes. Thus, these are very effective reinforcement
components. The flakes can be packed more densely when they are laid parallel, even
denser than unidirectional fibres and spheres. For example, aluminum flakes are used
in paints. They align themselves parallel to the surface of the coating which imparts
the good properties.

4. Whiskers: These are nearly perfect single crystal fibres. These are short,
discontinuous and polygonal in cross-section.

The classification of composites based on the form of reinforcement is shown in Figure

1.2. The detailed classification further is given in Figure 1.3. The classification of
particulate composites is depicted further in Figure 1.4. Some of the terms used in these
classifications will be explained in the following paragraphs/lectures.

Figure 1.2: Classification of composites based on reinforcement type

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 Figure 1.3: Classification of fibre composite materials

Figure 1.4: Classification of particulate composites

Why are reinforcement made in thin fibre form?

There are various reasons because of which the reinforcement is made in thin fibre form.
These reasons are given below.
a) An important experimental study by Leonardo da Vinci on the tensile strength of iron
wires of various lengths (see references in [2, 3]) is well known to us. In this study it was
revealed that the wires of same diameter with shorter length showed higher tensile strength
than those with longer lengths. The reason for this is the fact that the number of flaws in a
shorter length of wire is small as compared longer length. Further, it is well known that the
strength of a bulk material is very less than the strength of the same material in wire form.

The same fact has been explored in the composites with reinforcement in fibre form. As
the fibres are made of thin diameter, the inherent flaws in the material decrease. Hence, the
strength of the fibre increases as the fibre diameter decreases. This kind of experimental

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 study has revealed the similar results [2, 3]. This has been shown in Figure 1.5
qualitatively.

Figure 1.5: Qualitative variation of fibre tensile strength with

fibre diameter

b) The quality of load transfer between fibre and matrix depends upon the surface area
between fibre and matrix. If the surface area between fibre and matrix is more, better is the
load transfer. It can be shown that for given volume of fibres in a composite, the surface
area between fibre and matrix increases if the fibre diameter decreases.

Let be the average diameter of the fibres, be the length of the fibres and be the
number of fibres for a given volume of fibres in a composite. Then the surface area
available for load transfer is
(1.1)
The volume of these fibres in a composite is
(1.2)

Now, let us replace the fibres with a smaller average diameter of such that the volume of
the fibres is unchanged. Then the number of fibres required to maintain the same fibre
volume is
(1.3)
The new surface area between fibre and matrix is

(1.4)

Thus, for a given volume of fibres in a composite, the area between fibre and matrix is
inversely proportional to the average diameter of the fibres.

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 c) The fibres should be flexible so that they can be bent easily without breaking. This
property of the fibres is very important for woven composites. In woven composites the
flexibility of fibres plays an important role. Ultra thin composites are used in deployable
structures.

The flexibility is simply the inverse of the bending stiffness. From mechanics of solids
study the bending stiffness is EI, where is Young’s modulus of the material and is the
second moment of area of the cross section of the fibre. For a cylindrical fibre, the second
moment of area is
(1.5)
Thus,

Flexibility (1.6)
Thus, from the above equation it is clear that if a fibre is thin, i.e. small in diameter, it is
more flexible.

Reinforcement: Materials and Forms

Introduction

In the previous lecture we have introduced the composite. Then we have seen the constituents
of a typical composite material. Further, based on the reinforcement, the classification of the
composite was presented.

In the present lecture we will introduce natural fibres and some advanced fibres. We will see,
in brief, the key features of these advanced fibres.

What are the functions of a reinforcing agent?

The functions of a reinforcing agent are:

1. These are the main load carrying constituents.

2. The reinforcing materials, in general, have significantly higher desired properties.

Hence, they contribute the desired properties to the composite.

3. It transfers the strength and stiffness to the matrix material.

What are the functions of a matrix material?

The matrix performs various functions. These functions are listed below:

1. The matrix material holds the fibres together.

2. The matrix plays an important role to keep the fibres at desired positions. The desired
distribution of the fibres is very important from micromechanical point of view.

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 3. The matrix keeps the fibres separate from each other so that the mechanical abrasion
between them does not occur.

4. It transfers the load uniformly between fibers. Further, in case a fibre is broken or
fibre is discontinuous, then it helps to redistribute the load in the vicinity of the break
site.

5. It provides protection to fibers from environmental effects.

6. It provides better finish to the final product.

7. The matrix material enhances some of the properties of the resulting material and
structural component (that fibre alone is not able to impart). For example, such
properties are: transverse strength of a lamina, impact resistance

What are the types of fibres?

The fibres that are used in the fabrication of a composite can be divided into two broad
categories as follows:

A. Natural fibres and

B. Advanced fibres

A. Natural fibres

The natural fibres are divided into following three sub categories.

o Animal fibers: silk, wool, spider silk, sinew, camel hair, etc.
o Plant/vegetable fibers: cotton (seed), jute (stem), hemp (stem), sisal (leaf),
ramie, bamboo, maze, sugarcane, banana, kapok, coir, abaca, kenaf, flax,
raffia palm, etc.
o Mineral fibers: asbestos, basalt, mineral wool, glass wool.

A. Natural fibresAdvanced fibers:

An advanced fibre is defined as a fibre which has a high specific stiffness (that is, ratio of
Young’s modulus to the density of the material, ) and a high specific strength (that is the
ratio of ultimate strength to the density of the material, ).

What are the advanced fibres?

The fibres made from following materials are the advanced fibres.

1. Carbon and/or Graphite

2. Glass fibers
3. Alumina

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 4. Aramid
5. Silicon carbide
6. Sapphire

What are the matrix materials used in composites?

The matrix materials used in composites can be broadly categorized as: Polymers, Metals,
Ceramics and Carbon and Graphite.

The polymeric matrix materials are further divided into:

1. Thermoplastic – which soften upon heating and can be reshaped with heat and
pressure.
2. Thermoset – which become cross linked during fabrication and does not soften upon
reheating.

The metal matrix materials are: Aluminum, Copper and Titanium.

The ceramic materials are: Carbon, Silicon carbide, Silicon nitride.

The classification of matrix materials is shown in Figure 1.11.

Figure 1.11: Matrix materials

What are the thermoplastic matrix materials? What are their key features?

The following are the thermoplastic materials:

1. polypropylene,
2. polyvinyl chloride,
3. nylon,
4. polyurethane,
5. poly-ether-ether ketone (PEEK),
6. polyphenylene sulfide (PPS),

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 7. polysulpone.

The key features of the thermoplastic matrix materials are:

1. higher toughness
2. high volume
3. low cost processing
4. The use temperature range is upto 225 .

What are the thermoset matrix materials? What are their key features?

The thermoset matrix materials are:

1. polyesters,
2. epoxies,
3. polyimides

The key features of these materials are given for individual material in the following.

Polyesters

1. Used extensively with glass fibers

2. Inexpensive
3. Light weight
4. Temperature range upto 100 .
5. Resistant to environmental exposures

Epoxy

1. Expensive
2. Better moisture resistance
3. Lower shrinkage on curing
4. Use temperature is about 175

Polyimide

1. Higher use temperature about 300

2. Difficult to fabricate

What are the problems with the use of polymer matrix materials?

1. Limited temperature range.

2. Susceptibility to environmental degradation due to moisture, radiation, atomic oxygen
(in space)
3. Low transverse strength.
4. High residual stress due to large mismatch in coefficients of thermal expansion
between fiber and matrix.

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 5. Polymer matrix cannot be used near or above the glass transition temperature.

Comparison between Thermoplastics and Thermosets:

The comparison between the thermoplastic and thermoset matrix materials is given in
Table 1 below:

Table 1.1: Comparison between thermoplastics and thermosets.

Thermoplastics Thermosets
Soften upon heat and pressure Decompose upon heating
Hence, can be repaired Difficult to repair
Low strains are required for
High strains are required for failure
failure
Can be re-processed Can not be re-processed
Indefinite shelf life Limited shelf life
Short curing cycles Long curing cycles
Tacky and therefore, difficult
Non tacky and easy to handle
to handle
Excellent resistance to solvents Fair resistance to solvents
Higher processing temperature is required.
Lower processing
Hence, viscosities make the processing
temperature is required.
difficult.

What are the common metals used as matrix materials? What are their advantages and
disadvantages?

The common metals used as matrix materials are aluminum, titanium and copper.

Advantages:

1. Higher transfer strength,

2. High toughness (in contrast with brittle behavior of polymers and ceramics)
3. The absence of moisture and
4. High thermal conductivity (copper and aluminum).

Dis-advantages:

1. Heavier

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 2. More susceptible to interface degradation at the fiber/matrix interface and
3. Corrosion is a major problem for the metals

The attractive feature of the metal matrix composites is the higher temperature use.
The aluminum matrix composite can be used in the temperature range upward of 300ºC while
the titanium matrix composites can be used above 800 .

What are the ceramic matrix materials? What are their advantages and disadvantages?

The carbon, silicon carbide and silicon nitride are ceramics and used as matrix materials.

Ceramic:

The advantages of the ceramic matrix materials are:

1. The ceramic composites have very high temperature range of above 2000 .
2. High elastic modulus
3. Low density

The disadvantages of the ceramic matrix materials are:

1. The ceramics are very brittle in nature.

2. Hence, they are susceptible to flows.

Carbon

The advantages of the carbon matrix materials are:

1. High temperature at 2200 .

2. Carbon/carbon bond is stronger at elevated temperature than room temperature.

The disadvantages of the carbon matrix materials are:

1. The fabrication is expensive.

2. The multistage processing results in complexity and higher additional cost.

It should be noted that a composite with carbon fibres as reinforcement as well as matrix
material is known as carbon-carbon composite. The application of carbon-carbon composite
is seen in leading edge of the space shuttle where the high temperature resistance is required.
The carbon-carbon composites can resist the temperatures upto 3000 .

The advantages of these composites are:

1. Very strong and light as compared to graphite fibre alone.

2. Low density.
3. Excellent tensile and compressive strength.
4. Low thermal conductivity.
5. High fatigue resistance.
6. High coefficient of friction.

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The disadvantages include:

1. Susceptible to oxidation at elevated temperatures.

2. High material and production cost.
3. Low shear strength.

Figure 1.12 depicts the range of use temperature for matrix material in composites. It should
be noted that for the structural applications the maximum use temperature is a critical
parameter. This maximum temperature depends upon the maximum use temperature of the
matrix materials.

Figure 1.12: Range of use temperature for matrix materials in composites

What are the different forms of composites?

1. Unidirectional lamina:
o It is basic form of continuous fiber composites.
o A lamina is also called by ply or layer.
o Fibers are in same direction.
o Orthotropic in nature with different properties in principal material
directions.
o For sufficient number of filaments (or layers) in the thickness direction, the
effective properties in the transverse plane (perpendicular to the fibers) may
be isotropic. Such a composite is called as transversely isotropic.
2. Woven fabrics:
o Examples of woven fabric are clothes, baskets, hats, etc.
o Flexible fibers such as glass, carbon, aramid can be woven in to cloth fabric,
can be impregnated with a matrix material.
o Different patterns of weaving are shown in Figure 1.13.

Typical weaving patterns are shown in Figure 1.13.

Figure 1.13: Types of weave

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 3. Laminate:
o Stacking of unidirectional or woven fabric layers at different fiber
orientations.
o Effective properties vary with:
0. orientation
1. thickness
2. stacking sequence

A symmetric laminate is shown in Figure 1.14.

Figure 1.14: A symmetric laminate

4. Hybrid composites:

The hybrid composite are composites in which two or more types of fibres are used.
Collectively, these are called as hybrids. The use of two or more fibres allows the
combination of desired properties from the fibres. For example, combination of
aramid and carbon fibres gives excellent tensile properties of aramid and
compressive properties of carbon fibers. Further, the aramid fibres are less
expensive as compared to carbon fibres.

What are the factors that affect the composite properties?

There are various factors upon which the properties of the composite depend. Following are
the various factors:

1. Properties of the constituent materials. Apart from this, the properties of other phases
present, like additives, fillers and other reaction phases also affect the properties of
the composite.
2. Length of the fibre.
3. Orientation of the fibres (with respect to the loading direction).
4. Cross sectional shape of the fibre.
5. Distribution and arrangement of the fibres in the matrix material.

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 6. Proportions of the fibre and matrix material, that is, volume fractions of the
constituent materials.

What are the advantages of the composite materials?

The following are the advantages of composites:

1. Specific stiffness and specific strength:

The composite materials have high specific stiffness and strengths. Thus, these
material offer better properties at lesser weight as compared to conventional materials.
Due to this, one gets improved performance at reduced energy consumption.

2. Tailorable design:

A large set of design parameters are available to choose from. Thus, making the
design procedure more versatile. The available design parameters are:

0. Choice of materials (fiber/matrix), volume fraction of fiber and matrix,

fabrication method, layer orientation, no. of layer/laminae in a given direction,
thickness of individual layers, type of layers (fabric/unidirectional) stacking
sequence.
1. A component can be designed to have desired properties in specific directions.

3. Fatigue Life:

The composites can with stand more number of fatigue cycles than that of
aluminum. The critical structural components in aircraft require high fatigue life. The
use of composites in fabrication of such structural components is thus justified.

4. Dimensional Stability:

Strain due to temperature can change shape, size, increase friction, wear and thermal
stresses. The dimensional stability is very important in application like space antenna.
For composites, with proper design it is possible to achieve almost zero coefficient of
thermal expansion.

5. Corrosion Resistance:

Polymer and ceramic matrix material used to make composites have high resistance to
corrosion from moisture, chemicals.

6. Cost Effective Fabrication:

The components fabricated from composite are cost effective with automated methods
like filament winding, pultrusion and tape laying. There is a lesser wastage of the raw
materials as the product is fabricated to the final product size unlike in metals.

7. Conductivity:

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 The conductivity of the composites can be achieved to make it a insulator or a highly
conducting material. For example, Glass/polyesters are non conducting materials.
These materials can be used in space ladders, booms etc. where one needs higher
dimensional stability, whereas copper matrix material gives a high thermal
conductivity.

The list of advantages of composite is quite long. One can find more on advantages of
composite in reference books and open literature.

What are the disadvantages of Composites?

1. Some fabrics are very hard on tooling.

2. Hidden defects are difficult to locate.
3. Inspection may require special tools and processes.
4. Filament-wound parts may not be repairable. Repairing may introduce new problems.
5. High cost of raw materials.
6. High initial cost of tooling, production set-up, etc.
7. Labour intensive.
8. Health and safety concerns.
9. Training of the labour is essential.
10. Environmental issues like disposal and waste management.
11. Reuse of the materials is difficult.
12. Storage of frozen pre-pregs demands for additional equipments and adds to the cost of
production.
13. Extreme cleanliness required.
14. The composites, in general, are brittle in nature and hence easily damageable.
15. The matrix material is weak and hence the composite has low toughness.
16. The transverse properties of lamina or laminate are, in general, weak.
17. The analysis of the composites is difficult due to heterogeneity and orthotropy.

What are the applications of the composite materials?

The applications of the composites are given in the following as per the area of application.

Aerospace:

• Aircraft, spacecraft, satellites, space telescopes, space shuttle, space station, missiles,
boosters rockets, helicopters (due to high specific strength and stiffness) fatigue life,
dimensional stability.
• All composite voyager aircraft flew nonstop around the world with refueling.
• Carbon/carbon composite is used on the leading edges nose cone of the shuttle.
• B2 bomber - both fiber glass and graphite fibers are used with epoxy matrix and
polyimide matrix.
• The indigenous Light Combat Aircraft (LCA - Tejas) has Kevlar composite in nose
cone, Glass composites in tail fin and carbon composites form almost all part of the
fuselage and wings, except the control surfaces of the wing.
• Further, the indigenous Light Combat Helicopter (LCH – Dhruvh) has carbon
composites for its main rotor blades. The other composites are used in tail rotor,
vertical fin, stabilizer, cowling, radome, doors, cockpit, side shells, etc.

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Missile:

• Rocket motor cases

• Nozzles
• Igniter
• Inter stage structure
• Equipment section
• Aerodynamic fairings

Launch Vehicle:

• Rocket motor case

• Interstage structure
• Payload fairings and dispensers
• High temperature Nozzle
• Nose cone
• Control surfaces

Composite Railway Carrier:

• Composite railway auto carrier

• Bodies of Railway Bogeys
• Seats
• Driver’s Cabin
• Stabilization of Ballasted Rail Tracks
• Doors
• Sleepers for Railway Girder Bridges
• Gear Case
• Pantographs

Sports Equipments

• Tennis rockets, golf clubs, base-ball bats, helmets, skis, hockey sticks, fishing rods,
boat hulls, wind surfing boards, water skis, sails, canoes and racing shells, paddles,
yachting rope, speed boat, scuba diving tanks, race cars reduced weight, maintenance,
corrosion resistance.

Automotive

• Lower weight and greater durability, corrosion resistance, fatigue life, wear and
impact resistance.
• Drive shafts, fan blades and shrouds, springs, bumpers, interior panels, tires, brake
shoes, clutch plates, gaskets, hoses, belts and engine parts.
• Carbon and glass fiber composites pultruted over on aluminum cylinder to create
drive shaft.
• Fuel saving –braking energy can be stored in to a carbon fiber super flywheels.
• Other applications include: mirror housings, radiator end caps, air filter housing,
accelerating pedals, rear view mirrors, head-lamp housings, and intake manifolds, fuel
tanks.

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Infrastructure Structures:

• Corrosion is a major design consideration such as in the chemical and on off- shore
oil plate forms
• Skeletal Structures
• Walls and Panels
• Doors, Windows, Ladders, Staircases
• Chemical and Water Tanks
• Cooling Towers
• Bridge Decks
• Antenna Dishes
• Bridge enclosures
• Aerodynamic fairings

Industrial:

• Drive,
• conveyer belts,
• hoses,
• tear and puncture resistant fabrics,
• rotor vanes,
• mandrels,
• ropes,
• cables.

Medical:

• Wheelchairs,
• Crutches,
• Hip joints,
• Heat valves,
• Dentistry,
• Surgical equipments

Electronic:

• Chips in electronic computing devices are laminated hybrid systems composed of a

number of layers (materials) which serve different functions.
• Chip must have good heat transfer properties and must be able to withstand induced
thermal stresses without delaminating.
• The composite finds a vast usage in electronic packaging materials. The Styrofoam,
particle bonded materials formed from paper pulp, air-bubble cushioned plastic
sheets, etc. are some of the popular materials used in the packing.

Military:

• Helmets,

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 • bullet proof vests,
• impact resistant vehicles,
• lighter and less detectable ships,
• portable bridges.

Marine:

The Glass reinforced fibre plastics are used in:

• Ship and Boat Hulls

• Masts
• Instrument Panels
• Hydrofoils
• Hovercrafts
• Propellers
• Propulsion shafts
• Rudders
• Heat exchangers
• Flywheel
• Piping
• Ventilation ducts
• Engine and equipment foundations

Wind Power Engineering:

• Rotor blades including blade shell, integral webs, spars or box structure.
• Mast
• Generator housing

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Effective Elastic Constants:

The unidirectional lamina is interest of this course. The unidirectional lamina is orthotropic in
nature. We know from the 3D constitutive equations that an orthotropic material has 9
independent constants. Further, for a transversely isotropic material there are 5 independent
constants. The average or effective constitutive equation for transversely isotropic material is
given as below. The transverse isotropy is in plane 2-3.

where , are the effective elastic constants of the equivalent

homogeneous material.
In this chapter, we are going to see the micromechanical methods to obtain the effective
engineering constants that define the above effective elastic constants of the equivalent
homogeneous material.

Volume and Mass Fractions, Density and Void Content:

In the present section we are going to introduce some important concept of relative fraction
of fibres and matrix by volume and mass. This is very important from the point that the
most of the micromechanics based approaches use these fractions, along with the properties
of individual phases, to express the properties of the equivalent homogeneous
material.

In the present case, the effective properties of a composite are obtained with the assumption
that the fibre is orthotropic or transversely isotropic and matrix is isotropic in behaviour.
However, with appropriate changes, fibre can also be considered to be isotropic. In the
following, the subscripts or superscripts and will denote fibre and matrix,
respectively.

Volume Fractions:

As stated earlier, the fibre volume fraction is defined as the ratio of fibre volume to
composite volume and matrix volume fraction is defined as the ratio of matrix volume

Composite Materials and Structures-AE 16082

fraction to composite volume. Let, be the volume occupied by fibres and matrix,
respectively. Let, be the composite volume. We know that,

(7.1)

Thus, from these two definitions of volume fractions, we can write

(7.2)

Thus, in notations

(7.3)

where, denotes the fibre volume fraction and denotes the matrix volume fraction.
Note that “total volume” and “composite volume” are used interchangeably.

Note: If the interphase is also present as a third phase then, Equation (7.2) is modified as

or

(7.4)

where, denotes the interphase volume fraction and denotes the interphase
volume.

In case, there are voids present in composite, then the above equation becomes as

or

(7.5)

Composite Materials and Structures-AE 16082

where, denotes the void volume fraction and denotes the void volume. In the
remaining, we will consider that there are only two phases and Equation (7.3) is used.

Mass Fractions:

Let and be the mass of fibres, matrix and composite, respectively. We know
that

(7.6)

The mass fractions, similar to volume fractions, are defined as the ratio of mass of
respective phase to the mass of composite. Thus, we can write,

(7.7)

where, is fibre mass fraction and is matrix mass fraction. Now, let us write the
mass of each phase in terms of density and volume of respective phase as

(7.8)

where, and are the densities of fibre, matrix and composite, respectively. Now,
mass fractions can be written in terms of density and volume fractions as

(7.9)

This relation between mass and volume fractions is given in terms of individual constituent
properties (using Equations (7.6) and (7.8)) as

Composite Materials and Structures-AE 16082

 (7.10)

Thus, it is clear from the above equation that the volume and mass fractions are not the
same. One should always state the basis for calculating the fibre content in a composite.

Density:

The density of composite is derived in terms of densities and volume fractions of the
individual phases as follows. The mass of composite is given by Equation (7.6). We can
write this in terms of respective volume fractions and densities (with rearrangement) as

(7.11)

This is written using the definition of volume fraction for fibre and matrix as

(7.12)

We will write the density of composite in terms of mass fraction from Equation (7.9) as

7.13

Strength of Material Approximations:

In general, the laminates made are thin. Hence, for such laminates the analysis done using
Kirchhoff and plane stress assumptions is reasonably good. For such analysis, one needs
the engineering constants that occur in defining planar constitutive equations. These
engineering constants are:

Composite Materials and Structures-AE 16082

 1. - the axial modulus
2. = - transverse modulus
3. - axial Poisson’s ratio (for loading in - direction)
4. - axial shear modulus (shear stress parallel to the fibers)

Further, it is seen that for transversely isotropic composite, four out of five (the fifth one is
) properties can be developed from this approach. For the planar hygro-thermal
analysis of such laminates, one can also obtain the in-plane coefficients of thermal
expansions and and hygroscopic expansion and as well.

It is important to note that this approach involves assumptions which do not necessarily
satisfy the requirements of an exact elasticity solution. In this approach the effective
properties will be expressed in terms of the elastic properties and volume fractions of the
fiber and matrix. The lamina is considered to be an alternate arrangement of fibres and
matrix. The RVE chosen in these derivations is shown in Figure 7.2. The RVE here does
not take into account the cross sectional arrangement of fibres and matrix, rather it
represents volume of the material through the cross sectional area of fibre and matrix.

Figure 7.2: (a) Unidirectional lamina, (b) RVE for unidirectional composite
for prediction of elastic properties
Let, and represent fibre area and matrix area, respectively. and represent
fibre and matrix widths, respectively. be the length of the RVE.

Effective Axial Modulus :

The unit cell as shown in Figure 7.2 is used to compute the effective axial modulus . It
should be noted that the thickness of the unit cell is not important in this computation.
Further, the cross sectional shapes are not considered in this calculation. However, the cross
Composite Materials and Structures-AE 16082
sectional areas are important in this calculation. The thicknesses of the fibre and matrix
constituents are same in the unit cell. Hence, the areas of the constituents represent the
volume fractions of the constituents.

In the calculation of effective axial modulus, it is assumed that the axial strain in the
composite is uniform such that the axial strains in the fibers and matrix are identical. This
assumption is justified by the fact that the fibre and the matrix in the unit cell are perfectly
bonded. Hence, the elongation in the axial direction of the fibre and matrix will also be
identical. Thus, the strains in the fibre and matrix can be given as

(7.14)

where, is the axial strain in the composite and and are the axial strains in fibre
and matrix, respectively. Now, let and be the axial Young’s moduli of the fibre
and matrix, respectively. We can give the axial stress in the fibre, and matrix, as

(7.15)

Using the above equation and the cross section areas of the respective constituent in the unit
cell, we can calculate the forces in them as

(7.16)

The total axial force in the composite is sum of the axial forces in fibre and matrix. Thus,
the total axial force in the composite substituting the expressions for axial strains in fibre
and matrix from Equation (7.14) in above equation, can be given as

(7.17)

Now be the average axial stress in composite. The total cross sectional area of the
composite is . Thus, using the average axial stress and cross sectional area of
the composite, the axial force is

(7.18)

Thus, combining Equation (7.17) and Equation (7.18) and rearranging, we get

Composite Materials and Structures-AE 16082

 (7.19)

Figure 7.3: (a) Undeformed unit cell under (b) and (c) deformed
individual constituents of the unit cell

Let us define

(7.20)

Further, noting that the ratios and for same length of fibre and matrix represent the
fibre and matrix volume fractions, respectively. Thus, combining Equations (7.19) and
(7.20), we get

(7.21)

Composite Materials and Structures-AE 16082

 The above equation relates the axial modulus of the composite to the axial moduli of the
fibre and matrix through their volume fractions. Thus, the effective axial modulus is a
linear function of the fiber volume fraction. This equation is known as rule of mixtures
equation. It should be noted that the effective properties are functions of the fiber volume
fractions; hence it should always be quoted in reporting the effective properties of a
composite.

Effective Axial (Major) Poison’s Ratio :

To determine the effective axial Poisson’s ratio we consider the loading as in the case applied
for determining the effective axial modulus. Here, for this loading we have and other
stresses are zero. We define the effective axial Poisson’s ratio as

(7.22)

The effective strain in direction 2 from Figure 7.3(b) and (c) can be given as

(7.23)

Now, the changes in and can be obtained using the Poisson’s ratio of individual
constituents. The axial Poisson’s ratios for fibre and matrix are given as

(7.24)

Thus, the changes in and are given as

(7.25)

The total change in is given as

(7.26)

The strain in direction 2 for the composite can be given using Equation (7.25) and Equation
(7.26) as

Composite Materials and Structures-AE 16082

 (7.27)

Here, and denote the fibre and matrix volume fractions for same length of fibre

and matrix. Note that denotes the effective axial strain . Thus, from Eq. (7.27) the
effective axial Poisson’s ratio is written as

(7.28)

The above equation is the rule of mixtures expression for composite axial Poisson’s ratio.

Effective Transverse Modulus :

Here, we are going to derive the effective transverse modulus by loading the RVE in
direction 2 as shown in Figure 7.4(a). There are two considerations while deriving this
effective modulus. The first approach considers that the deformation of the each
constituent is independent of each other as shown in Figure 7.4(b) and (c) and the
deformation in direction 1 is not considered. The second approach considers that
deformations of the fibre and matrix in direction 1 are identical as they are perfectly
bonded.
To calculate the effective modulus in direction 2, a stress is applied to the RVE as
shown in Figure 7.4(a).

First Approach:

As mentioned, the fibre and matrix deform independently of each other. The resulting
deformation in direction 1 is not considered here. This assumption is simplistic and was
used by early researchers.
The fibre and matrix are subjected to same state of stress. The state of stress is
unidirectional, that is, . Now, using the individual moduli and
deformations in direction 2, these stresses can be given as

(7.29)

Composite Materials and Structures-AE 16082

 From this equation we can write the individual deformations, which give the total
deformation in direction 2 as

(7.30)

Now, the composite strain in direction 2 can be calculated from the definition as

(7.31)

Figure 7.4: (a) Undeformed unit cell under uniform stress (b) and (c)
deformed individual constituents of the unit cell

Introducing the volume fractions in the above equation,

(7.32)

Composite Materials and Structures-AE 16082

 Noting that , from the above equation, we get

(7.33)

This equation is the rule of mixtures equation for effective modulus .

ffective Transverse Modulus :

In the earlier lecture we have seen the first approach, where the deformation of
individual constituent is independent of each other and the deformation in direction 1 is not
considered. In this lecture we are going to derive an expression for effective transverse
modulus using second approach as follows.

Second Approach:

In this approach, we consider the resulting deformation in direction 1. It should be noted that
when the stress is applied in direction 2, the deformations of fibre and matrix in direction 1
are identical. The deformation in direction 1 is calculated from two dimensional state of
stress in fibre and matrix. The deformations are shown in Figure 7.5.
The axial and transverse stresses in fibre and matrix can be given using planar constitutive
relations as

(7.34)

where,

(7.35)

To compute the effective transverse modulus we need to find the total deformation
as a function of the applied transverse stress . It should be noted that the net force in
the direction 1 is zero. Thus,

(7.36)

Composite Materials and Structures-AE 16082

 Figure 7.5: (a) Undeformed unit cell under uniform stress (b) and (c)
deformed individual constituents of the unit cell

Generally, the stresses are uniform in the fibre and matrix. Thus above equation reduces to

(7.37)

Further, for equilibrium in transverse direction, we have

(7.38)

The axial and transverse strains in fibre and matrix are

Composite Materials and Structures-AE 16082

 (7.39)

Using Equations (7.34) and (7.39) in (7.37), we get

(7.40)

Further, using Equation (7.34) in Equation (7.38), we get

(7.41)

We solve Equations (7.40) and (7.41) for , and . The transverse

composite strain then is obtained as

(7.42)

Finally, putting the values of and in the above equation, we get an expression
for as

(7.43)

where,

(7.44)

Composite Materials and Structures-AE 16082

Equation (7.43) is an alternate equation for effective transverse m odulus . This is
also a rule of mixtures equations. It should be noted that the factors and are the
nondimensional factors.

Effective Axial Shear Modulus :

To derive the effective axial shear modulus of the composite the RVE is loaded in shear as
shown in Figure 7.6(a). The fibre and matrix are assumed to deform independently. Figure
7.6(b) shows the overall deformation of the RVE. The overall axial deformation is denoted by
. It is important to note that for equilibrium considerations the shear stresses acting on
fibre and matrix are assumed to be identical.
Under the pure shear loading, that is, and other stress components are zero, the
effective axial shear modulus is defined as

(7.45)

Figure 7.6: (a) Undeformed unit cell under uniform stress (b) overall
deformation of unit cell (c) and (d) deformed individual constituents of the unit
cell

where, and are the effective applied shear stress and the resulting effective shear
strain in the composite, respectively. The effective shear strain in composite is obtained from

Composite Materials and Structures-AE 16082

the deformations of the fibre and matrix in RVE. The fibre and matrix undergo deformations
and , respectively. These deformations are shown in Figure 7.6(c) and (d),
respectively.

The shear strains in the fiber and matrix are given as

(7.46)

where, is the inplane shear modulus of the fibre and is the shear modulus of the
matrix material. From Figure 7.6(c) and (d), we can write the individual deformations in fibre
and matrix as

(7.47)

Using Equation (7.46) in above equation, the total axial deformation is given as

(7.48)

Now, we can give the overall shear strain of the RVE as

(7.49)

Finally, the effective axial shear modulus of the composite can be given from above equation
as

(7.50)

This is the rule of mixtures equation for the effective axial shear modulus. This equation is
analogous to Equation (7.33) for the effective transverse modulus of the composite.

Composite Materials and Structures-AE 16082