Development of functional (flame‐retardant and anti‐bacterial) and hybrid (carbon‐glass/epoxy) composites with improved low velocity impact response

Abstract

High-performance synthetic fiber reinforced composites are utilized in hightech applications due to their higher mechanical properties. However, in previous work, these composites were not used in outdoor (parks, picnic) and hygienic (hospitals, schools, offices) furniture applications due to fire hazards and bacterial attack. In this work, functional (flame retardant and antibacterial) composites were fabricated along with improved low velocity impact (LVI) response. In the first part of the work, glass/epoxy composites were loaded with the different zirconium phosphate (ZrP) particles percentages (5%, 10%, and 15%) to optimize their flame retardancy and LVI properties. In the second part, glass/epoxy composites were loaded with different zinc oxide (ZnO) particles percentages (0.5%, 1% and 1.5%) to optimize their anti-bacterial and LVI properties. ZrP with 15% concentration showed the highest value of flame retardancy, and energy absorption (31.70 J) and maximum impact force (1377 N) during drop weight impact test. Also, ZnO with 1.5% concentration showed the best anti-bacterial activity along with improved LVI response (29.70 J absorbed absorbed). In the third part, these optimized percentages of ZrP (15%) and ZnO (1.5%) were used for the development of the hybrid carbon-glass epoxy composites. Overall, hybrid H3 (GCCG) and H4 (CGGC) showed the optimized and comparable flame retardancy, anti-bacterial and LVI (29.70 J {H3} and 29.20 J {H4} absorbed absorbed) response.

Mechanical performance of flame retardant and antibacterial glass-carbon/epoxy hybrid composites for furniture applications

“…34 The lowest values of flame and afterglow durations were showed by the ZrP3 sample with 15% loading of ZrP particles while the highest values were showed by the ZrP0 without ZrP particles. 14 Tensile testing. The effect of ZrP particles on tensile stress in the glass/epoxy composites is shown in Figure 1, which showed the tensile stress versus extension curves.…”

“…The impact energy was improved to 40% as the ZrP percentage was increased from zero to 15% in the composites. 14 Short beam shear (SBS) testing. The effect of addition of ZrP particles in the glass/epoxy composites on short beam shear stress is shown in Figure 4.…”

“…11,12 Also, composites can be made flame retardant and antibacterial and other functionalities can be added in the composites by mixing different filler content or fibers or resins having inherent desired properties. [13][14][15] Gopinath et al, examined the mechanical performance of composite made from jute fibers with polyester and epoxy resins. It was revealed that jute/epoxy exhibited superior mechanical properties than jute/polyester composites.…”

Evaluation of the Fire-retardancy of ULTEM 9085 Polymer Composites Processed by Fused Deposition Modelling

“…Modification of design and geometry such as printing sandwich structure, the mixture of different materials, and printing part with entrapped water can also provide flame retardancy, however, more research and data are needed to prove these methods can produce certified parts [16,17]. Horizontal and vertical flame retardant tests could be successfully applied for checking the thermal resistance and stability of polymers and polymer-based composites [18].…”

“…Processing parameters for FDM such as printing orientations, printing strategies, percentage of infill, nozzle diameters, layer thickness, printing speed, bed temperature, filling structure, and filling angle need to be experimentally evaluated against flame retardancy. The test information needs to be compiled into a database for designers and endusers to use for certification [18]. To the best of the authors' knowledge, no such or similar results for ULTEM materials regarding the effect of processing parameters on flameretardant properties were previously discussed in the literature.…”