• Composites Research
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.21-26
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• 2005

Nondestructive damage sensing and load transfer mechanisms of carbon nanotube (CNT) and nanofiber (CNF)/epoxy composites have been investigated by using electro-micromechanical technique. The electrospun PVDF nanofibers were also prepared as a piezoelectric sensor. The electro-micromechanical techniques were applied to evaluate sensing response of carbon nanocomposites by measuring electrical resistance under an uniform cyclic loading. Composites with higher volume content of CNT showed significantly higher tensile properties than neat and low volume$\%$ CNT composites. CNT composites showed humidity sensing within limited temperature range. CNT composites with smaller aspect ratio showed higher apparent modulus due to high volume content in case of shorter aspect ratio. Thermal treated electrospun PVDF nanofiber showed higher mechanical properties than the untreated case due to crystallinity increase, whereas load sensing decreased in heat treated case. Electrospun PVDF nanofiber web also showed sensing effect on humidity and temperature as well as stress transferring. Nanocomposites and electrospun PVDF nanofiber web can be applicable for sensing application.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.81 no.5
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• pp.575-589
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• 2022

In order to enhance the greenness in the strain-hardening composites and to reduce the high cost of typical polyvinyl alcohol fiber reinforced engineered cementitious composite (PVA-ECC), an affordable strain-hardening composite with green binder content has been proposed. For optimizing the strain-hardening behavior of cementitious composites, this paper investigates the effects of polypropylene fibers on the first cracking strength, fracture properties, and micromechanical parameters of cementitious composites. For this purpose, digital image correlation (DIC) technique was utilized to monitor crack propagation. In addition, to have an in-depth understanding of fiber/matrix interaction, scanning electron microscope (SEM) analysis was used. To understand the effect of fibers on the strain hardening behavior of cementitious composites, ten mixes were designed with the variables of fiber length and volume. To investigate the micromechanical parameters from fracture tests on notched beam specimens, a novel technique has been suggested. In this regard, mechanical and fracture tests were carried out, and the results have been discussed utilizing both fracture and micromechanical concepts. This study shows that the fiber length and volume have optimal values; therefore, using fibers without considering the optimal values has negative effects on the strain-hardening behavior of cementitious composites.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society For Composite Materials Conference
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• 2005.04a
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• pp.269-272
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• 2005

Nondestructive damage sensing and load transferring mechanism of Ni nanowire strands and multi-wall carbon nanotube (MWCNT)/epoxy composites were investigated using electro-micromechanical techniques. MWCNT composite was especially prepared for high volume contents, 50 vol % of reinforcement. Electro-micromechanical techniques were applied to measure apparent modulus and contact resistance of Ni nanocomposites with their alignment and different diameters, and adding contents. Applied cyclic load affected on apparent modulus and electrical properties on nanocomposites due to various inherent properties of each CNMs. Contact resistivity on humidity sensing was a good indicator for monitoring as for multifunctional applications. Further study on actuation as well as sensing will be investigated for the following work continuously.

• Polymer(Korea)
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.189-194
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• 2003

Interfacial evaluation, damage sensing and cure monitoring of single carbon fiber/thermo setting composite with different curing processes were investigated using electro-micromechanical test. After curing, the residual stress was monitored by measurement of electrical resistance and then compared to various curing processes. In thermal curing case, matrix tensile strength, modulus and interfacial shear strength were higher than those of ultraviolet curing case. The shrinkage measured during thermal curing occurred significantly by matrix shrinkage and residual stress due to the difference in thermal expansion coefficient. The apparent modulus measured in the thermal curing indicated that mechanical and interfacial properties were highly improved. The reaching time to the same stress of thermal curing was faster than that of UV curing case.

• Composites Research
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.15-26
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• 2001

Interfacial properties and microfailure degradation mechanisms of the bioabsorbable composites fur implant materials were investigated using micromechanical technique and nondestructive acoustic emission (AE). As hydrolysis time increased, the tensile strength, the modulus and the elongation of poly(ester-amide) (PEA) and bioactive glass fibers decreased, whereas these of chitosan fiber almost did not change. Interfacial shear strength (IFSS) between bioactive glass fiber and poly-L-lactide (PLLA) was much higher than PEA or chitosan fiber/PLLA systems using dual matrix composite (DMC) specimen. The decreasing rate of IFSS was the fastest in bioactive glass fiber/PLLA composites whereas that of chitosan fiber/PLLA composites was the slowest. AE amplitude and AE energy of PEA fiber decreased gradually, and their distributions became narrower than those in the initial state with hydrolysis time. In case of bioactive glass fiber, AE amplitude and AE energy in tensile failure were much higher than in compression. In addition, AE parameters at the initial state were much higher than those after degradation under both tensile and compressive tests. In this work, interfacial properties and microfailure degradation mechanisms can be important factors to control bioabsorbable composite performance.

• Composites Research
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.68-73
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• 2003

Interfacial properties and electrical sensing fer fiber fracture in carbon and SiC fibers/epoxy composites were investigated by the electrical resistance measurement and fragmentation test. As fiber-embedded angle increased, the interfacial shear strength (IFSS) of two-type fiber composites decreased, and the elapsed time takes long until the infinity in electrical resistivity. The initial slope of electrical resistivity increased rapidly to the infinity at higher angle, whereas electrical resistivity increased gradually at small angle. Furthermore, both fiber composites with small embedded angle showed a fully-developed stress whitening pattern, whereas both composites with higher embedded angle exhibited a less developed stress whitening pattern. As embedded angle decreased, the gap between the fragments increased and the debonded length was wider for both fiber composites. Electro-micromechanical technique could be a feasible nondestructive evaluation to measure interfacial sensing properties depending on the fiber-embedded angle in conductive fiber reinforced composites.

• Journal of Adhesion and Interface
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.18-27
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• 2003

Interfacial properties and microfailure degradation mechanisms of the oxygen-plasma treated biodegradable poly(p-dioxanone) (PPDO) fiber/poly(L-lactide) (PLLA)composites were investigated for the orthopedic applications as implant materials using micromechanical technique and surface wettability measurement. PPDO fiber reinforced PLLA composite can provide good mechanical performance for long hydrolysis time. The degree of degradation for PPDO fiber and PLLA matrix was measured by thermal analysis and optical observation. IFSS and work of adhesion, $W_a$ between PPDO fiber and PLLA matrix showed the maximum at the plasma treatment time, at 60 seconds. Work of adhesion was lineally proportional to the IFSS. PPDO fiber showed ductile microfailure modes at We initial state, whereas brittle microfailure modes appeared with elapsing hydrolysis time. Interfacial properties and microfailure degradation mechanisms can be important factors to control bioabsorbable composites performance because IFSS changes with hydrolytic degradation.

• Composites Research
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.61-67
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• 2004

Nondestructive damage sensitivity on single-basalt fiber/epoxy composites was evaluated by micromechanical technique and acoustic emission (AE). Piezoelectric lead-zirconate-titanate (PZT), polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) and poly(vinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene) (P(VDF-TrFE)) copolymer were used as AE sensor, respectively. In single-fiber composite, the damage sensing with different sensor types were compared to each other. Piezoelectric PVDF polymer sensor was embedded in and attached on the composite, whereas PZT sensor was only attached on the surface of specimen. In case of embedded polymer sensors, responding sensitivity was higher than that of the attached case. It can be due to full constraint inside specimen to transfer elastic wave coming from micro-deformation. For both the attached and the embedded cases, the sensitivity of P(VDF-TrFE) sensor was almost same as that of conventional PVDF sensor.

• Composites Research
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• v.22 no.5
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• pp.8-14
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• 2009

Interfacial evaluation of glass fiber reinforced carbon nanotube (CNT)-epoxy nanocomposite was investigated by micromechanical technique in combination with wettability test. The contact resistance of the CNT-epoxy nanocomposite was measured using a gradient specimen, containing electrical contacts with gradually-increasing spacing. The contact resistance of CNT-epoxy nanocomposites was evaluated by using the two-point method rather than the four-point method. Due to the presence of hydrophobic domains on the heterogeneous surface, the static contact angle of CNT-epoxy nanocomposite was about $120^{\circ}$, which was rather lower than that for super-hydrophobicity. For surface treated-glass fibers, the tensile strength decreased dramatically, whereas the tensile modulus exhibited little change despite the presence of flaws on the etched fiber surface. The interfacial shear strength (IFSS) between the etched glass fiber and the CNT-epoxy nanocomposites increased due to the enhanced surface energy and roughness. As the thermodynamic work of adhesion, $W_a$ increased, both the mechanical IFSS and the apparent modulus increased, which indicated the consistency with each other.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society For Composite Materials Conference
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• 2003.04a
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• pp.117-120
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• 2003

Electro-micromechanical techniques were applied using four-probe method for carbon nanotube (CNT) or nanofiber (CNF)/epoxy composites with their content. Carbon black (CB) was used to compare with CNT and CNF. The fracture of carbon fiber was detected by nondestructive acoustic emission (AE) relating to electrical resistivity for double-matrix composites test. Sensing for fiber tension was performed by electro-pullout test under uniform cyclic strain. The sensitivity for fiber damage such as fiber fracture and fiber tension was the highest for CNT/epoxy composites, and in CB case they were the lowest compared with CNT and CNF. Reinforcing effect of CNT obtained from apparent modulus measurement was the highest in the same content. The results obtained from sensing fiber damage were correlated with the morphological observation of nano-scale structure using FE-SEM. The information on fiber damage and matrix deformation and reinforcing effect of carbon nanocomposites could be obtained from electrical resistivity measurement as a new concept of nondestructive evaluation.