International Journal of Advancements in Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering
Author(s) : ACHILLES VAIRIS, ILONA LAZARIDOU, MARKOS PETOUSIS, NIKOLAOS D. ALEXOPOULOS
This work studies the effect of artificial surface notches on glass fiber reinforced polymers (GFRPs) under constant amplitude fatigue loadings and for various nano-reinforced matrices. Different concentrations of Multi-Wall Carbon Nanotubes (MWCNTs) were added to the resin before the vacuum assisted resin infusion (VARI) of the composites. Three different MWCNT nanocomposites were manufactured that had concentrations namely 0.5, 0.75 and 3.0 wt% MWCNTs. Before testing, an artificial notch was introduced and two different regions of the composite was continuous monitored during mechanical testing: (a) healthy (without defect) and (b( notched (with the presence of defect). Fatigue tests were performed and with different fatigue maximum stress levels so as to address all fatigue regimes. It was found that a sudden increase takes place on the transition of stage III of the fatigue mechanism. This sudden increase point in the electrical resistance change was applied maximum stress as well as wt% MWCNT concentration (different matrix) dependant.