Thermally conditioned aerospace-grade carbon fiber reinforced polyether ketone ketone composites: Structure, impact response, and thermomechanical performance


ŞÜKÜR E. F.

Polymer Composites, cilt.44, sa.4, ss.2530-2544, 2023 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus) identifier

  • Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
  • Cilt numarası: 44 Sayı: 4
  • Basım Tarihi: 2023
  • Doi Numarası: 10.1002/pc.27261
  • Dergi Adı: Polymer Composites
  • Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus, Academic Search Premier, PASCAL, Aerospace Database, Chemical Abstracts Core, Chimica, Communication Abstracts, Compendex, INSPEC, Metadex, Civil Engineering Abstracts
  • Sayfa Sayıları: ss.2530-2544
  • Anahtar Kelimeler: carbon fiber (CF), Charpy impact, ductile/brittle fracture, polyether-ketone-ketone (PEKK), thermal conditioning
  • Samsun Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet

Özet

Carbon fiber-reinforced high-performance thermoplastic composites have recently become an efficient alternative for aerospace engineering applications. However, the temperature sensitivity of semi-crystalline carbon fiber/polyether-ketone-ketone (CF/PEKK) polymers revealed the necessity of investigating their performance in service conditions. This study aims to evaluate the effect of extreme service conditions on thermomechanical performance and fracture characteristics of CF/PEKK composite laminates. For this, aerospace-grade composite laminates were manufactured with the automated fiber placement process and were exposed to extreme service temperatures of −50°C (Conditioned I), 180°C (Conditioned II), and initially 180°C following −50°C (Conditioned III), simulating critical service temperature ranges in aerospace applications. According to impact tests, the energy absorbance of CF/PEKK composites decreased in all thermal conditioning scenarios by up to 25%. Additionally, Conditioned I samples represented relatively low glass transition temperature and degree of crystallinity compared to the control samples; however, Conditioned II and Conditioned III samples exhibited an opposite behavior. Dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) investigations revealed a 13% reduction in the storage modulus for all thermal conditionings. While CF/PEKK composites represented ductile/brittle behavior at room temperature and high/low conditioning temperatures, their brittleness increased at −50°C, and the structure became ductile at 180°C. This study confirms that DMA is a powerful tool for determining the glass transition temperature for fiber-reinforced composites with higher sensitivity and accuracy than DSC.