Effect of Aramid Fabric Orientation Angle on the Mechanical Characteristics of Basalt-Aramid/Epoxy Hybrid Interply Composites

This study investigates the effect of aramid fabric orientation angle on the mechanical characteristics of 2-D basalt-aramid/epoxy hybrid interply composites. Hybrid laminates were fabricated by sandwiching three layers of basalt between the aramid face sheets using compression molding process. The composites were tested for tensile, flexural, interlaminar shear strength (ILSS) and Charpy impact test to understand the influence of aramid fabric orientation angle on the mechanical behaviour of hybrid composites. Results show that mechanical strengths of the hybrid laminates decline with increase in the orientation angle of aramid fabric. The (0₁^A/0₃^B/0₁^A) composite possess the highest tensile, flexural, ILSS and impact properties followed by (30₁^A/0₃^B/30₁^A) and (45₁^A/0₃^B/45₁^A) composites. The fractured samples were analysed to identify the failure modes using scanning electron microscope (SEM) and optical microscope. The examination revealed that primary reason for (30₁^A/0₃^B/30₁^A) and (45₁^A/0₃^B/45₁^A) specimen failure was due to the delamination, fibre pull out and matrix crack. Strong interfacial bonding was observed between the fibre and matrix in case of (0₁^A/0₃^B/0₁^A) composites.

Keywords:
Hybrid composites; Fibre orientation angle; Compression molding; Mechanical characterisation