Author(s)

Mbarka Mohamed¹, Michel Johnson², Farid Taheri^3*

¹Advanced Composites and Mechanics Research Laboratory, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Canada.
²Clean Technologies Research Institute, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Canada.
³Department of Mechanical Engineering, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Canada.

An experimental investigation is conducted to evaluate the potential degradation in the mechanical properties of an epoxy resin and unidirectional glass fiber-reinforced epoxy (GFRE) as a result of exposure to fluctuating temperature. A commonly used room-cured epoxy resin and the GFRE are subjected to various numbers of thermal cycles (up to 1000 heating/cooling cycles). Mechanical tests are conducted to examine the influence of thermal cycles on the stiffness, ultimate strength and strain of the resin and its GFRE. The Fourier transform-Raman spectroscopy (FT-Raman) is conducted to investigate the influence of the thermal cycles on the resulting chemical changes and curing degree of the resin. In addition, the Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) analysis is conducted to investigate the variation in the glass transition temperature (T_g) of the resin as a function of the applied thermal cycles.

Epoxy Resins, Composites, Mechanical Properties, Degradation, Degree of Cure, Raman Spectroscopy

Mohamed, M. , Johnson, M. and Taheri, F. (2019) On the Thermal Fatigue of a Room-Cured Neat Epoxy and Its Composite. Open Journal of Composite Materials, 9, 145-163. doi: 10.4236/ojcm.2019.92007.