Impact behavior of aminosilane functionalized nanosilica based shear thickening fluid impregnated Kevlar fabrics

Abstract

In the present work, two types of shear thickening fluids have been synthesized by using neat and aminosilane functionalized silica nanoparticles and their viscosity curves have been obtained by the rheometer. Based on the values of peak viscosity of synthesized shear thickening fluids, the surface functionalized nanosilica based shear thickening fluid has been chosen as a best candidate due to the high viscosity for impregnation into the neat Kevlar of different layers viz. four (04) and eight (08) layers for velocity impact study. The experimental investigations reveal high energy absorption of shear thickening fluid impregnated Kevlar as compared to the neat Kevlar. The maximum energy absorption 62 J is achieved corresponding to the initial velocity 154 mÁs −1 for 08 layers shear thickening fluid impregnated Kevlar specimen. The data have also been analytically determined and validated with the experimental data. The experimental data have good agreement with the analytical data within the accuracy of around 15 to 20%. The present findings can have significant inferences towards the fabrication of shear thickening fluids using nanomaterials for numerous applications such as soft armors, dampers, nanofinishing and so forth.

Fabric Impregnation with Shear Thickening Fluid for Ballistic Armor Polymer Composites: An Updated Overview

“…The most adopted type of PEG fluid was the one with 200 g/mol, although higher molecular weight generally promotes a higher viscosity, as already reported in previous works [ 183 ] and tested in different papers [ 184 , 185 ]. The works of Yeh et al [ 172 ], Yeh et al [ 171 ], Chang et al [ 173 ], Zhang et al [ 176 ], Zhihao et al [ 181 ] and Katiyar et al [ 175 ] carry out what was stated.…”

“…Although Katiyar et al [ 175 ] followed the research conducted by Zhihao et al [ 181 ], they focused on investigating the effect of functionalization of SiO 2 particles of a SiO 2 /PEG 400 STF using aminosilane. To define the content of STF to be impregnated into the Kevlar fabric, the authors performed rheological tests to verify the thickening of the fluids as a function of increasing shear rate.…”

“…The ballistic results of the impregnated Kevlar panels showed that the STF contributed to an improvement in ballistic performance when compared to the panels without the presence of STF. Under an initial velocity around 154 m·s −1 , the residual velocity decreased by about 22% with an increment of four layers, although this modification increased energy absorption by 32% [ 175 ].…”

“…The use of chemical treatment in soft armors was also investigated by Grineviciute et al [ 167 ]. Differently from the work of Katiyar et al [ 175 ], in which the authors chemically treated the silica particles, Grineviciute and collaborators [ 167 ] analyzed the influence of plasma treatment on Twaron fabrics and then impregnated them with different types of STF for ballistic protection in soft armors. For the impregnation, two types of STF were produced.…”