Introduction to Polymer Composite

Polymer Composite:

A composite material can be defined as a combination of two or more

materials that results in better properties than those of the individual
components used alone.
In contrast to metallic alloys, each materials retains its separate chemical,
physical, and mechanical properties. The main advantages of composite
materials are their high strength and stiffness, combined with low density,
when compared with bulk materials, allowing for a weight reduction in the
finished part.
 Classification of Polymer Composite Materials
Classification of Composite Materials can be done in three ways:
1). Classification in accordance with the type of Matrix material:
a) Metal Matrix Composites (MMC)
b) Inorganic non-metallic matrix composites
c) Polymer Matrix Composites (PMC)
2). Classification in accordance with the from of dispersed phase
a) Continues fiber-reinforced composite materials
b) Fibrous fabric, braid reinforced composite materials
c) Sheet reinforced composite materials
d) Short fiber or whisker reinforced composite materials
e) Plastic reinforced composite materials and
f) Nano particle reinforced composite materials
3). Classification in accordance with the type of reinforcing fibres
a) Carbon fiber composite materilas
b) Glass fiber composite materials
c) Organic fibre composite materials
d) Boron fiber or silicon carbide fiber composite materials and
e) Hybrid fiber composite materials.
 Constituents or Composition of Composite Materials:
The main constituents of composite materials are –
the Matrix and the Reinforcement materials
Matrix: The matrix forms the volume of the composite materials within which the
reinforcing agent is imbedded. The matrix fit together all parts of the composite, while the
reinforcements usually serve to strengthen the composite.
Function of Matrix:
a) To hold the fibers together at a particular arrangement
b) To protect the surface of the fibers from damage.
c) To transmit applied stress to the fibers and
d) To provide good finish to the product.
Reinforcement:
The continuous reinforcement fibers of advanced composites are responsible for their high
strength and stiffness. The most important fibers in current use are glass, graphite and
aramid. Other organic fibers, such as, oriented polyethylene are also becoming important.
Function of Reinforcement materials:
a) To provide strength , b) To provide stiffness and c) To inhibit crack propagation.
 Fiber reinforcement Composite:
The Fiber reinforced composites are the most important composite
materials in which fibers as the discontinuous or dispersed phase, the
matrix as the continuous phase, and the fine interphase region, also known
as the interface.
The fiber reinforced composites often include high strength and/ or
stiffness on the weight basis.
 Advantages of Composite Materials:

 Light weight: Composites are light in weight, compared to most woods

and metals. Their lightness is important in automobiles and aircraft.
 High Strength: Composites can be designed to be far stronger than
aluminum or steel. Metals are equally strong in all directions. But
composites can be engineered and designed to be strong in a specific
direction.
 Strength related to weight: Strength to weight ratio is a materials
strength is relation to how much it weights. Some materials are very
strong and heavy, such as steel. Other materials can be strong and light,
such bamboo poles. Composite materials can be designed to be both
strong and light.
 Advantages of Composite Materials:

 Corrosion Resistance: Composites resists damage from the weather

and from harsh chemicals. Composites are good choices where
chemicals are handled or stored. Outdoors, they stand up severe
weather and wide changes in temperature.
 High Impact Strength: Composites can be made to absorb impacts –
the sudden force of a bullet, for instance, or the blast from an
explosion. Because of this property, composites are used in bulletproof
vests and panels, and to shield airplanes, buildings, and military
vehicles from explosions.
 Design Flexibility: Composites can be molded into complicated shapes
more easily than most other materials. This gives designers the
freedom to create almost any shape or form.
 Advantages of Composite Materials:
 Dimensional Stability: Composites retain their shape and size when they
are hot or cool, wet or dry. Wood, on the other hand, swells and shrink as
the humidity changes. Composites can be a better choice in situations
demanding tight fits that do not vary.
 Nonconductive: Composites are nonconductive. This property makes them
suitable for such items as electrical utility poles and the circuit boards in
electronics. If electrical conductivity is needed, it is possible to make some
composites conductive.
 Low thermal conductivity: Composites are good insulators—they do not
easily conduct heat or cold. They are used in buildings for doors, panels,
and windows where extra protection is needed from severe weather.
 Durability: Structures made of composites have a long life and need little
maintenance.
 Application of Composite Materials:
Applications include aerospace, transportation, construction, marine goods,
sporting goods, and more recently infrastructure, with construction and
transportation being the largest. In general, high-performance but more costly
continuous carbon-fiber composites are used.
In Aerospace: Approximately 50% component of the airspace is made from
composites. The primary benefits that composite components are reduced
weight and assembly simplification. The large scale use of composites in
current program of development o helicopters, military fighter aircraft, small
and big civil transport aircraft, satellites, launch vehicles and missiles.
In Automotive: Composites are being considered to make low weight, safer and
more fuel-efficient vehicles. A composite is composed of a high strength fiber
(carbon or glass) in a matrix material (epoxy polymer) that when combined
provides magnify properties compared with the individual materials by
themselves.
 Application of Composite Materials:
In Medical: A composite is a nonviable material used in a medical device and intended to
interact with biological system. Over the centuries, advancement in synthetic materials,
Surgical technique and sterilization methods have permitted the use of composite material
in many ways. Medical practice today utilizes a large number of devices and implants.
In Electrical field: Composite materials have strength, high modulus; electronic composites
emphasize high thermal conductivity, low thermal expansion, low dielectric constant and
high/low electrical conductivity depending on the particular electronic applications.
In Sports: Composite materials are used in sports equipment because they offer ease of
transport, resistance, low weight, low maintenance and durability. Initially, natural
materials, like wood, were used due to its good shock absorption, but these materials had
some drawbacks.
In Chemical Industry: Advantages of composites of fire resistance properties, Light weight,
mold ability, and resistance to chemicals has made the material used in the chemical
industry. Composites are extensively used in industrial gratings, scrubbers, ducting, piping,
exhaust stacks, pumps & blowers, structural supports storage tanks, columns, reactors etc.
THE END