Structural Materials Commons^™

Modular Composite Sandwich Structures For Thermal And Structural Retrofitting Of Existing Buildings, Marc Al Ghazal

Masters Theses

Around 40% of global energy consumption and 30% of worldwide carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions are attributed to buildings. Most of this consumption is dedicated to ensuring thermal comfort. The goal of this research was to develop and field validate retrofit solutions to improve the energy efficiency of buildings. Exterior cladding panels were designed and tested to ensure adequate thermal and structural performance. Sandwich panels (glass fibers reinforced polymer (GFRP) skins and polymeric foam cores) were fabricated using the vacuum assisted resin transfer molding (VARTM) process. Extruded polystyrene (XPS) and polyurethane (PU) foams were compared as core materials through a series …

Cfrp Delamination Density Propagation Analysis By Magnetostriction Theory, Brandon Eugene Williams

All Dissertations

While Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymers (CFRPs) have exceptional mechanical properties concerning their overall weight, their failure profile in demanding high-stress environments raises reliability concerns in structural applications. Two crucial limiting factors in CFRP reliability are low-strain material degradation and low fracture toughness. Due to CFRP’s low strain degradation characteristics, a wide variety of interlaminar damage can be sustained without any appreciable change to the physical structure itself. This damage suffered by the energy transfer from high- stress levels appears in the form of microporosity, crazes, microcracks, and delamination in the matrix material before any severe laminate damage is observed. This …

Mechanical Characterization Of Automated Fiber Placement And Additive Manufacturing Hybrid Composites, Lucan Haviland

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis presents the optimization of processing parameters based on the mechanical properties of Continuous Fiber-Reinforced Thermoplastic (CFRTP) Unidirectional (UD) consolidated tapes. The UD tapes were consolidated using an AFP head and a thermoforming press for comparison. The adhesive strength of hybrid parts consisting of CFRTP UD tape bonded to a 3D-printed substrate with the same matrix system were investigated. Large Area Additive Manufacturing (LAAM) was utilized for the 3D-printed parts. Different types of thermoplastic composite materials were explored, including Glass Fiber reinforced Polyethylene Terephthalate Glycol (GF/PETG), Carbon Fiber reinforced Polyethylene Terephthalate Glycol (CF/PETG), Carbon Fiber reinforced Polycarbonate (CF/PC), and …

Interlaminar Tensile Properties Of Unidirectional And Woven Carbon Fiber Reinforced Toughened Epoxy Laminates, Eric Timothy Casey, Sean Mckalip Thompson

Materials Engineering

This project aims to develop a dataset on interlaminar tensile strength comparing unidirectional and woven thermoset matrix carbon fiber composites keeping ply count, matrix material, and fiber diameter constant. The interlaminar tensile strength is an important property relating to the delamination failure mode. Interlaminar tensile strength is determined using the ASTM D6415 testing standard. This test is a modified four-point bend test using a 90° curved beam test specimen. Laminates were produced by laying up pre-impregnated carbon fiber sheets onto a curved beam tooling. The unidirectional laminate was produced with 20 plies in a [0,0,90,0,0]₄ layup pattern. The woven …

Comparative Analysis On Low Cost Continuous Carbon Fiber Polypropylene Composite Using Compression Molding And Automated Tape Placement, Benjamin U. Schwartz

Masters Theses

Carbon fiber reinforced plastics (CFRP) are widely used throughout the aerospace industry where a weight reduction remains the highest priority with less emphasis on cost. Textile grade carbon fiber (TCF) and other low cost carbon fiber (LCCF) alternatives have recently emerged for use in the automotive market where emissions regulations have pushed automotive manufacturers and research institutions to look for cost effective light weight materials. Fiber reinforced thermoplastics provide an effective solution that align with automotive design including low cost, high processing rates, high impact toughness, unlimited shelf life, and recyclability.

TCF and Zoltek_PX35 fibers are two LCCF aimed at …

Bio-Based Food Packaging Material For Intelligent Food Packaging Applications For Chicken Fillets, Kalpani Y. Perera, Amit K. Jaiswal, Swarma Jaiswal, Shubham Sharma

Articles

Bionanocomposite packaging is made up of bio- based materials that have high performance activity and are ecologically sustainable alternatives to packaging made of synthetic polymers. Intelligent packaging retains track of the state of the food and the environment in which it is stored, and communicates relevant changes to the consumer through visualization or other methods. The aim of this study was to develop a bionanocomposite intelligent packaging material by utilising sodium alginate, gelatin, nanoclay and curcumin. Sodium alginate, gelatin film incorporated with Curcumin (Cur), and Nanoclay (NC) in various concentrations (0% W/V, 0.5% W/V, 1% W/V and 1. 5% W/V) …

Bbt Acoustic Alternative Top Bracing Cadd Data Set-Norev-2022jun28, Bill Hemphill

STEM Guitar Project’s BBT Acoustic Kit

This electronic document file set consists of an overview presentation (PDF-formatted) file and companion video (MP4) and CADD files (DWG & DXF) for laser cutting the ETSU-developed alternate top bracing designs and marking templates for the STEM Guitar Project’s BBT (OM-sized) standard acoustic guitar kit. The three (3) alternative BBT top bracing designs in this release are
(a) a one-piece base for the standard kit's (Martin-style) bracing,
(b) 277 Ladder-style bracing, and
(c) an X-braced fan-style bracing similar to traditional European or so-called 'classical' acoustic guitars.

The CADD data set for each of the three (3) top bracing designs includes …

Evaluating The Effects Of Granulated Rubber And Glass Fibers In Polymer Concrete As A Structural Material For Wafer Grinding Machines, Kevin Gabriel Kuehn, Philip Randall Streeter

Materials Engineering

Polymer concrete is a composite material used to replace cast iron and steel in wafer grinding machines for vibration damping. During the grinding and lapping processes of manufacturing silicon wafers, excessive vibrations may cause subsurface damage which requires additional polishing and reduces yield. Nine compositions containing various levels of granulated rubber and glass fibers were manufactured. CRM WRF-10 granulated rubber was examined at 0%, 5%, and 10% and Corning Cem-Fil glass fibers were added at 0%, 0.5%, and 1% by weight. Smooth-On EpoxAcast 690 epoxy resin was held constant at 16% for each composition. Crushed granite aggregate from Martin Marietta, …

Sustainable Composites From Agricultural And Petroleum Waste, Menisha S. Karunarathna

All Dissertations

Green gas emission has been a pervasive and persistent subject of debate for a prolonged period. The soaring number of industries and vehicle fuel emissions presage a concomitant rise in global CO₂ emissions. Global cement production is responsible for 8% of the total CO₂ release, yet, the production continues due to the surging demand. Hence, there is an ongoing quest to find alternatives for cement and building materials produced with zero to lower CO₂ emissions. The work presented in this dissertation focuses on finding recyclable, zero CO₂ gas-producing high sulfur biocomposites materials, which can compete with …

Prospects For Using Metal-Polymer Composite Structures In The Gear Manufacturing, Umid Mamasobirov, Shoraxmat Shoobidov, A F. Husanboyev

Technical science and innovation

In this paper, some thermoplastic polymer composites and filler composites for the production of metal-polymer gear transmissions are presented. Efforts have been made to expand the raw material base and identify ways to increase the durability of gears through technological and design measures.

Rational Design Of Flexible And Stretchable Electronics Based On 3d Printing, Yuanhang Yang

Theses and Dissertations

Flexible and stretchable electronics have been considered as the key component for the next generation of flexible devices. There are many approaches to prepare the devices, such as dip coating, spin coating, Mayer bar coating, filtration and transfer, and printing, etc. The effectiveness of these methods has been proven, but some drawbacks cannot be ignored, such as lacking pattern control, labor consuming, requiring complex pretreatment, wasting conductive materials, etc.

In this investigation, we propose to adopt 3D printing technology to design flexible and stretchable electronics. The objective is to rationally design flexible and stretchable sensors, simplify the preparation process, form …

Molecular Modeling Of High-Performance Polymers, Sagar Umesh Patil

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

High-performance polymers are extensively used in the aerospace and aeronautics industries due to their low density, high specific strength, and high specific stiffness. These properties along with better infiltration with reinforcements [carbon nanotubes (CNTs), glass, etc.] capability make them an excellent candidate to fabricate Polymer Matrix Composites (PMCs) tailored for specific applications. The applications range from products used daily to deep space exploration. These materials are subjected to varying temperatures and pressures during fabrication and in service. Therefore, the evolution of their intrinsic properties needs to be studied and their ability to sustain extreme environmental conditions in outer space needs …

Interfacial Bonding Between Thermoset And Thermoplastic Polyurethane Reinforced Textile Grade Carbon Fiber: Structure Property Relationships, Surbhi Subhash Kore

Doctoral Dissertations

The research work focused on examining the interfacial adhesion of unsized, epoxy, and urethane-sized textile grade carbon fiber (TCF) reinforced in different classes of polyurethane (PU) thermoplastic (TPU) and thermoset (TSU) polyurethane (PU) through the structure-property relationship. The Carbon Fiber Technology Facility (CFTF) at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) has produced TCF to reduce the cost of commercial-grade carbon fiber. The first part of the research examined the fundamental relationships between (a) soft segment thermoplastic polyurethane (S-TPU), (b) hard segment thermoplastic polyurethane (H-TPU), (c) thermoset polyurethane (TSU) and TCF reinforcement’s molecular behavior at the interface using the surface and thermal …

Advanced Materials Design Using Application-Based Processing Techniques, Daniel S. Camarda

Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation pertains to generating advanced materials using application-based processing techniques. First, billets consisting of PTFE sintering powders are evaluated using Thermomechancal Analysis. It was found that both shape change and volume change are associated with enthalpic and entropic recoil, respectively. These phenomena, due to melting and stored energy during the powder compaction process, were found to be molecular weight dependent. Additionally, kinetics of the recovery and sintering process were found to be slower in blended specimens than pure samples. Next, the creation of graft copolymers by selectively grafting a second polymer to the amorphous fraction of a semi-crystalline polymer …

Seaweed Polysaccharide In Food Contact Materials (Active Packaging, Intelligent Packaging, Edible Films, And Coatings), Kalpani Y. Perera, Shubham Sharma, Amit K. Jaiswal, Swarna Jaiswal

Articles

Food contact materials (FCMs) are materials that come in contact with food products such as food packaging which play a significant role in the food quality and safety. Plastic, which is a major food packaging material, harms the eco-system, wildlife, and the environment. As a result, numerous researches have been in progress on alternative polymers, which has similar properties as plastic but is also environmentally friendly (biodegradable). In recent years, the utilization of seaweed polysaccharides has piqued interest due to its biodegradability, non-toxicity, antioxidant capabilities, and excellent film formation ability. However, it has a number of drawbacks such as low …

Tools And Strategies For The Patterning Of Bioactive Molecules And Macromolecules, Daniel J. Valles

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Hypersurface Photolithography (HP) is a printing method for fabricating structures and patterns composed of soft materials bound to solid surfaces and with ~1 micrometer resolution in the x, y, and z dimensions. This platform leverages benign, low intensity light to perform photochemical surface reactions with spatial and temporal control of irradiation, and, as a result, is particularly useful for patterning delicate organic and biological material. In particular, surface- initiated controlled radical polymerizations can be leveraged to create arbitrary polymer and block- copolymer brush patterns. Chapter 1 will review the advances in instrumentation architectures from our group that have made these …

Rapid Annealing Of Perovskite Solar Cell Thin Film Materials Through Intense Pulse Light., Amir Hossein Ghahremani

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have garnered a great attention due to their rapid efficiency improvement using cheap and solution processable materials that can be adapted for scalable high-speed automated manufacturing. Thin film perovskite photovoltaics (PVs) are typically fabricated in an inert environment, such as nitrogen glovebox, through a set of deposition and annealing steps, each playing a significant role on the power conversion efficiency (PCE), reproducibility, and stability of devices. However, atmospheric processing of PSCs would achieve lucrative commercialization. Therefore, it is necessary to utilize materials and methods that enable successful fabrication of efficient PSCs in the ambient environment. The …

Phase-Field Modeling Of The Polymer Membrane Formation Process For Micro- And Ultra-Filtration, Michael Rosario Cervellere

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Porous polymer membrane filters are widely used in separation and filtration process. Micro- and ultra-filtration membranes are commonly used in biopharmaceutical applications such as filtering viruses and separating proteins from a carrier solution. The formation of these membrane filters via phase inversion is a complex and interconnected process where varying casting conditions can have a wide variety of effects on the final membrane morphol- ogy. Tailoring membrane filters for specific performance characteristics is a tedious and time consuming process. The time and length scales of membrane formation make it extremely difficult to experimentally observe membrane formation. Modeling the membrane formation …

Investigation Of Membrane Based Processes For Biomedical Applications, Efecan Pakkaner

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

As substantial developments were achieved in nanotechnology and polymer engineering, especially in the last few decades, the use of membranes and membrane-based procedures was found to be expanding into more and more research and development areas; including biological engineering, life sciences and biomedical engineering. Not only have they been the main focus of meaningful research, but they have also been the main pieces of the solutions to very thorny problems encountered within a wide range of applications from microfluidics to water treatment, thanks to their versatility, cost-effectiveness and biocompatibility, when compared to conventional separation techniques. To celebrate and embrace these …

3d Printing Of Hybrid Architectures Via Core-Shell Material Extrusion Additive Manufacturing, Robert Cody Pack

Doctoral Dissertations

Biological materials often employ hybrid architectures, such as the core-shell motif present in porcupine quills and plant stems, to achieve unique properties and performance. Drawing inspiration from these natural materials, a new method to fabricate lightweight and stiff core-shell architected filaments is reported. Specifically, a core-shell printhead conducive to printing highly loaded fiber-filled inks, as well as a new low-density syntactic foam ink, are utilized to 3D-print core-shell architectures consisting of a syntactic epoxy foam core surrounded by a stiff carbon fiber-reinforced epoxy composite shell. Effective printing of test specimens and structures with controlled geometry, composition, and architecture is demonstrated …

Nature-Inspired Material Strategies Towards Functional Devices, Sayantan Pradhan

Theses and Dissertations

Naturally sourced, renewable biomaterials possess outstanding advantages for a multitude of biomedical applications owing to their biodegradability, biocompatibility, and excellent mechanical properties. Of interest in this dissertation are silk (protein) and chitin (polysaccharide) biopolymers for the fabrication of functional biodevices. One of the major challenges restricting these materials beyond their traditional usage as passive substrate materials is the ability to combine them with high-resolution fabrication techniques. Initial research work is directed towards the fabrication of micropatterned, flexible 2D substrates of silk fibroin and chitin using bench-top photolithographic techniques. Research is focused on imparting electrochemical properties to silk proteins using conducting …

Development Of Light Actuated Chemical Delivery Platform On A 2-D Array Of Micropore Structure, Hojjat Rostami Azmand, Hojjat Rostami Azmand

Dissertations and Theses

Localized chemical delivery plays an essential role in the fundamental information transfers within biological systems. Thus, the ability to mimic the natural chemical signal modulation would provide significant contributions to understand the functional signaling pathway of biological cells and develop new prosthetic devices for neurological disorders. In this paper, we demonstrate a light-controlled hydrogel platform that can be used for localized chemical delivery in a high spatial resolution. By utilizing the photothermal behavior of graphene-hydrogel composites confined within micron-sized fluidic channels, patterned light illumination creates the parallel and independent actuation of chemical release in a group of fluidic ports. The …

The Development Of Structural Hollow Carbon Fibers From A Multifilament Segmented Arc Spinneret: Precursors, Oxidation, And Carbonization, Elizabeth Ashley Morris

Theses and Dissertations--Chemical and Materials Engineering

Carbon fiber is an ideal material for structural applications requiring high strength and stiffness and low weight. Yet it has seen only incremental improvements in properties over the last few decades. Carbon fibers remain limited in attaining their theoretical tensile strength and modulus, largely due to defects in their structure, some of which stem from the fiber production process itself. Through the mitigation of defect formation as well as approaches to decrease fiber linear density, it is hypothesized that carbon fiber with enhanced specific properties, including specific strength and modulus, could be produced which would significantly propel its unique capabilities. …

Discontinuous Recycled And Repurposed Carbon Fiber Reinforced Thermoplastic Organosheet Composites, Philip R. Barnett

Doctoral Dissertations

There is a significant need for low cost, high volume composites in the automotive industry to aid in vehicle lightweighting and safety. The current state-of-the-art severely compromises the mechanical properties of composites to achieve cost and cycle time goals. In this dissertation, a novel composite format, termed discontinuous carbon fiber organosheets, using recycled and repurposed carbon fibers in a thermoplastic matrix is developed and studied. Unlike traditional composites, the long fiber length and rapid processing time yield mechanical properties and cycle times competitive with automotive metals.

Several studies were performed to characterize this new material format. First, samples were manufactured …

3-D Fabry–Pérot Cavities Sculpted On Fiber Tips Using A Multiphoton Polymerization Process, Jonathan W. Smith, Jeremiah C. Williams, Joseph S. Suelzer, Nicholas G. Usechak, Hengky Chandrahalim

Faculty Publications

This paper presents 3-D Fabry–Pérot (FP) cavities fabricated directly onto cleaved ends of low-loss optical fibers by a two-photon polymerization (2PP) process. This fabrication technique is quick, simple, and inexpensive compared to planar microfabrication processes, which enables rapid prototyping and the ability to adapt to new requirements. These devices also utilize true 3-D design freedom, facilitating the realization of microscale optical elements with challenging geometries. Three different device types were fabricated and evaluated: an unreleased single-cavity device, a released dual-cavity device, and a released hemispherical mirror dual-cavity device. Each iteration improved the quality of the FP cavity's reflection spectrum. The …

Effect Of Post-Consumer Content And Bioplastic Incorporation On Polymeric Resin In Consumer Applications, Shelby Bicknell

Electronic Theses & Dissertations

Controversy surrounds the use of plastic products, primarily due to their potentially negative impact on the environment at the end of their lifecycle. The most widely used plastics are manufactured from petrochemicals such as petroleum, coal or natural gas. Petrochemical plastics are not able to readily breakdown in the environment, which aggravates the existing pollution problems. Fortunately, there are eco-friendly alternatives to petrochemical-based plastics. Bioplastics may be derived from renewable sources, biodegradable, or both. Bio-based plastics are plastics that may be derived from renewable biomass sources including, but not limited to, vegetable oils, cornstarch, straw, woodchips, and food waste. They …

Multiscale Modeling Of Carbon Fibers/Graphene Nanoplatelets/Epoxy Hybrid Composites For Aerospace Applications, Hashim Al Mahmud

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Significant research effort has been dedicated for decades to improve the mechanical properties of aerospace polymer-based composite materials. Lightweight epoxy-based composite materials have increasingly replaced the comparatively heavy and expensive metal alloys used in aeronautical and aerospace structural components. In particular, carbon fibers (CF)/graphene nanoplatelets (GNP)/epoxy hybrid composites can be used for this purpose owing to their high specific stiffness and strength. Therefore, this work has been completed to design, predict, and optimize the effective mechanical properties of CF/GNP/epoxy composite materials at different length scales using a multiscale modeling approach. The work-flow of modeling involves a first step of using …

Effect Of Incorporating Pottery And Bottom Ash As Partial Replacement Of Cement, Bassam A. Tayeh, Doha M. Alsaffar, Lawend K. Askar, Asmahan Issa Jubeh

Karbala International Journal of Modern Science

This study addressed the environmental constraints in cement produc­tion. Ordinary Portland cement (OPC) was replaced with pottery powder (PP, produced by grinding locally available pottery) and bottom ash (BA) at 10%, 20% and 30% of cement mass. Moreover, 4% calcium chloride solution (CaCl₂.2H₂O) was used as mixing water. Material properties, such as standard consistency, setting time and compressive strength, were measured with different percentages of OPC replacement with PP and BA. Results indicated that the replacement with PP and BA increased the water demand to achieve the standard consistency. These results revealed that the strength evolution …

Damage Resistance And Tolerance Of 3d Woven Composites, Justin T. Mcdermott

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Composite materials have been adopted into primary aircraft structures by virtue of their great strength-to-weight and stiffness-to-weight ratios, fatigue insensitivity, and corrosion resistance. These characteristics are leveraged by aircraft designers to deliver improved fuel effciency and reduced scheduled maintenance burdens for their customers. These benefits have been impressively realized in the Boeing 787 and Airbus A350 XWB, with airframes utilizing about 50% composites by weight. Tempering these successes, however, are the inherent vulnerabilities of carbon-fiber reinforced composites. When compared to conventional metallic structure, composite laminates are more sensitive to stress concentrations at mechanical fastenings and damage due to low-velocity impact. …

Graphene Foam Reinforced Shape Memory Polymer Epoxy Composites, Adeyinka Idowu

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Shape memory polymer (SMP) epoxy has received growing interest due to its facile processing, low density, and high recoverable strain. Despite these positive attributes, SMP epoxy has drawbacks such as slow recovery rate, and inferior mechanical properties. The slow recovery rate restricts the use of SMP epoxy as a functional structure.

The aim of the present work is to explore the capabilities of three-dimensional (3D) graphene foam (GrF) and graphene nanoplatelet (GNP) as reinforcements in SMP epoxy to overcome their slow recovery and improve the mechanical properties. GrF and GNP based SMP epoxy composites are fabricated by mold-casting approach and …