Synthetic granite composite for precision equipment structures

Abstract

The structure is a component that plays an extremely important role in the equipment's performance, it must withstand efforts without compromising the function, receive and transfer heat, dampen vibrations and position the elements, as well as promote ergonomics and aesthetics. In lightweight and precision equipment's the raw material used must also allow thin walls, rigid, resistant and low density. The objective of the present work is the development of a synthetic granite composite for manufacturing of equipment's structures. For this, an abundant Brazilian granite, a high strength epoxy resin and segmented carbon fibers were selected as materials. Test specimens, with maximized packing with granite gravel less than 2.0 mm were fabricated and tested for tensile strength, compression, flexural, damping, hardness, dilatometry, thermal conductivity and density. The maximized composition supported flexural stresses above 42 MPa, without fiber reinforcement and 51 MPa with carbon fiber reinforcement. The damping coefficient was about 7 times higher than cast iron, coefficient of thermal expansion of 1.4E-05 m/m.K, thermal conductivity coefficient of 1.2 W/m.K and density of 2.1 g/cm³. The developed composite showed potential for refining structures, with ease of molding of thin-walled elements, use of inserts, re-machining, providing economical manufacture of single parts, and is still able to perform the function with high damping coefficient and low weight.

Experimental study of the production of resin granite and marble using their solid waste

“…For general application, where flexural strength is highly relevant, granite and marble show similar results, as observed in works such as LOVO et al [2] and CABRAL [17].…”

“…Recent studies with three different combinations of particle sizes were conducted by RAMOS et al [15] for a resin-bonded composite material, which experimentally achieved the best compaction with large (7 to 12 mm), medium (2 to 4 mm), and fine (0.3 to 1.2 mm) sizes, using 30%, 20%, and 50%, respectively. Also, for a resin composite, LOVO et al [2] outlined a diagram of the best compaction with three value ranges-large (1.2 to 2 mm), medium (0.3 to 0.6 mm), and fine (0.1 to 0.2 mm)-using the same proportions of 50%, 15%, and 35%, respectively. The result was obtained by performing 66 mixtures, following ABNT NBR 12173 [26] and ABNT NBR 248 [27].…”

“…Structural materials play a fundamental role in the efficiency and operation of equipment, responsible for supporting materials, transferring stresses and heat, preventing water absorption, and resisting abrasion from supporting materials. To fulfill these functions, it is essential for these materials to possess appropriate properties such as compressive and flexural strength, good chemical and thermal stability, low electrical conductivity, and low porosity, adapting to each application [1,2].…”

“…Research such as that conducted by LOVO et al [2], RAMOS et al [15], and SILVA et al [16] investigated different synthetic granites in epoxy resin matrices with varying dosages. This resulted in efficient materials and proper disposal of their waste.…”

Tribological Properties of Fly Ash Blended Polymer Composites

“…Various researchers have used alumina and silica in polypropylene and polyethylene. But very few attempts have been made to use the cheap materials like rise husk, coir, jute fibre and even chicken feather [4,5].…”