Preliminary Feasibility Analysis of Tubular Braided Composites Composed of Natural Fibers

• Author / Creator

  Brianna Bruni-Bossio

• Naturally derived or “green” based materials are increasing in demand for use as reinforcement and matrix materials in composites. However, it is still relatively unknown how well these materials can perform as constituents in tubular braided composite materials. In this work, tubular braided composites were manufactured with 100% cellulose natural fibres and two different types of high-bio content resins. The viability of these materials is evaluated by two different studies. In the first study, the sample preparation and quality control is evaluated by examining the final geometry and microstructure of the samples with the use of micro-computed tomography (μCT). With the use of μCT imaging, the void content, fibre volume fraction, final diameter and braid angle of each sample are quantified and visualized into 3D solid models. In the second study, the tensile elastic properties are determined by measuring the 3D deformation with stereo-digital image correlation. There are two main contributions from this work. For one, these materials are capable of producing high-quality composite materials with consistent mechanical properties and low content of voids and imperfections. In addition, due to their reasonable properties and very low density, their specific stiffness properties are comparable to e-glass braided composites. A feasible application could be low load-bearing applications inside automotive vehicles and other non-critical structures, sports equipment.

• Subjects / Keywords

  • natural fibers
  • digital image correlation
  • cellulose fibers
  • braided composites
  • bio-composites

• Graduation date

  Fall 2018

• Type of Item

  Thesis

• Degree

  Master of Science

• DOI

  https://doi.org/10.7939/R37W67N4M

• License

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