Tensile Failure Behaviors and Theories of Carbon/Glass Hybrid Interlayer and Intralayer Composites

Abstract

Hybrid composites combine various types of fiber that not only provide an effective method to minimize material costs but also enhance the mechanical properties of composites. The tensile fracture behaviors of hybrid composites are more complex than single-fiber composites due to various reinforcing fibers and hybrid effects, and the relationship between tensile behaviors and hybrid structures is not clear. In this paper, various structures of C/G (carbon/glass) interlayer and intralayer hybrid composites were designed, and tensile behaviors were investigated; it revealed that tensile failure is characterized by the synergistic effect and failure acceleration effect. Second, the tensile properties of interlayer and intralayer hybrid composites with various hybrid ratios and stacking structures were systematically analyzed; our results demonstrated that the tensile strength of interlayer and intralayer hybrid composites was predominantly impacted by the hybrid ratio of C/G and increased with the increase in carbon fiber content. For interlayer hybrid composites, with the assistance of the synergistic effect, excellent tensile strength could be obtained for the glass fiber sandwiched carbon fiber structure. For intralayer hybrid composites, the tensile strength was small, while the dispersion degree was high. We compared the tensile properties with theoretically calculated values based on the rule of mixing (ROM) and revealed that the tensile modulus and strength of interlayer and intralayer hybrid composites exhibited a positive hybrid effect. This work serves as a foundation for the structural optimization and potential applications of C/G non-crimp hybrid composites.