In the present work, multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) were anchored with the assistance of vinyl ester resin (VE) on the carbon fiber surfaces of conventional carbon fabrics (CCF) and semi-spread carbon fabrics (SSCF) having different areal density, ply thickness, and crimp number, respectively. Here, MWCNT anchoring means that MWCNT were physically attached on the individual carbon fiber surfaces of each fabric by coating with dilute VE and then by thermally curing it. The MWCNT anchoring effect on the interlaminar shear strength (ILSS) of CCF/VE and SSCF/VE composites was investigated. MWCNT were also simply applied (without physical attachment) to the carbon fiber surfaces of CCF and SSCF for comparison, respectively. It was found that SSCF/VE composites exhibited the ILSS higher than CCF/VE composites, regardless of simple-applying or anchoring of MWCNT, increasing the ILSS with the MWCNT concentration. It was noted that MWCNT anchoring was effective to improve not only the interlaminar adhesion but also the interfacial bonding between the carbon fiber and the matrix due to the formation of MWCNT bridges between the individual carbon fibers of SSCF, indicating that the MWCNT anchoring effect was more pronounced with SSCF than with CCF. The result of the interlaminar property was well supported by the fiber and composite fracture topography.

In this paper, the mechanical properties according to the rCF weight percent(10, 20, 30, 40, 50wt%) of the rCFRP specimen were evaluated and analyzed. First, to prepare rCFRP specimens, pellets were prepared according to the type of weight percent, and rCFRP tensile specimens according to ASTM D638 were prepared using an injection molding machine. Tensile tests were performed on each of 10 specimens according to weight percent conditions, and tensile strength and modulus of elasticity were calculated. For a detailed analysis of the correlation between the internal structure of the specimen and the mechanical properties, the weight percent to the constituent materials of the rCFRP specimen was calculated using mCT and used for the analysis of mechanical properties. For a more detailed analysis, a detailed analysis of the mechanical properties of rCFRP was performed through the fracture surface analysis of the specimen using FE-SEM.

The utilization of carbonaceous reinforcement-based polymer matrix composites in structural applications has become a hot topic in composite research. Although conventional carbon fiber-reinforced polymer composites (CFRPs) have revolutionized the composite industry by offering unparalleled features, they are often plagued with a weak interface and lack of toughness. However, the promising aspects of carbon fiber-based fiber hybrid composites and hierarchical composites can compensate for these setbacks. This review provides a meticulous landscape and recent progress of polymer matrixbased different carbonaceous (carbon fiber, carbon nanotube, graphene, and nanodiamond) fillers reinforced composites’ mechanical properties. First, the mechanical performance of neat CFRP was exhaustively analyzed, attributing parameters were listed down, and CFRPs’ mechanical performance barriers were clearly outlined. Here, short carbon fiber-reinforced thermoplastic composite was distinguished as a prospective material. Second, the strategic advantages of fiber hybrid composites over conventional CFRP were elucidated. Third, the mechanical performance of hierarchical composites based on carbon nanotube (1D), graphene (2D) and nanodiamond (0D) was expounded and evaluated against neat CFRP. Fourth, the review comprehensively discussed different fabrication methods, categorized them according to performance and suggested potential future directions. From here, the review sorted out three-dimensional printing (3DP) as the most futuristic fabrication method and thoroughly delivered its pros and cons in the context of the aforementioned carbonaceous materials. To conclude, the structural applications, current challenges and future prospects pertinent to these carbonaceous fillers reinforced composite materials were elaborated.

Acrylonitrile–butadiene–styrene (ABS) terpolymer was compounded with short carbon fiber (CF) and carbon nanotube (CNT) using a micro-extruder followed by the injection molding process. Composite samples were fabricated with loading ratios of 20 wt.% CF and 0.1, 0.5 and 1.0 wt.% of CNT. Mechanical, electrical, thermo-mechanical, thermal, melt-flow, and structural investigations of ABS-based composites were conducted by performing tensile, impact, hardness, and wear tests, conductive atomic force microscopy (AFM), dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), melt flow rate test (MFR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) characterization techniques, respectively. According to mechanical test data of resultant composites including tensile and impact test findings, CNT additions led to the remarkable increase in tensile strength and impact resistance for CF reinforced ABS composites. The formation of synergy between CNT nanoparticles and CF was confirmed by electrical conduction results. The conductive path in ABS/CF composite system was achieved by the incorporation of CNT with different loading levels. SEM micrographs of composites proved that CNT nanoparticles exhibited homogeneous dispersion into ABS matrix for lower loadings.

In this present investigation, machinability studies on novel aluminum composite with hybrid reinforcements of copper-coated 4% carbon fibers (CFs) and 3% nanoclay in AA6026 matrix fabricated by compocasting method is performed. Step drill bit and multifaceted drill bit are used by adopting central composite design (CCD) in response surface methodology (RSM). The outcomes show that, with a rise in rotational speed surface irregularities, resultant force and material removal rate (MRR) intensifies, and with the additional rise in rotational speed, all the outputs decrease considerably. High MRR, resultant cutting force, and surface roughness are obtained with multifaceted carbide drills, compared with a step drill. Desirability function is used to maximize the MRR and minimize the resultant cutting forces considering the constant surface roughness of 3 μm. The optimal values are rotational speed of 1285 rpm, feed rate of 60 mm/min with the step drill bit, producing an MRR of 0.0439 kg/sec and a resultant cutting force of 185.818 N. The second-order empirical models are developed for outputs, which are fed into the non-traditional metaheuristic Evaporation Rate-based Water Cycle Algorithm (ER-WCA) therefore the lower objective value is achieved with step drill of 51.7421. It is found that using a step drill the machinability performance of this hybrid nanocomposite is well improved than the machining with other drill bits. This composite fulfills the norms of 2000/53/CE-ELV European environmental directives.

Carbon fiber and its composites are increasingly used in many fields including defence, military, and allied industries. Also, surface quality is given due importance, as mating parts are used in machineries for their functioning. In this work, the turning process is considered for Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymer (CFRP) composites by varying three important cutting variables: cutting speed, feed, and depth of cut. Correspondingly, the surface roughness is measured after the completion of turning operation. As well, a prediction model is created using different fuzzy logic membership function and Levenberg–Marquardt algorithm (LMA) in artificial intelligence. Later, the surface roughness values from the developed models are compared against the experimental values for its correlation and effectiveness in using different membership functions of fuzzy logic and ANN. Thus, the experimental results are analyzed using the effect graphs and it is presented in detail.

One-step hydrothermal reduction method was used to prepare three-dimensional carbon fiber brush-based graphene–platinum (CFB/Pt–G) composites to improve the electrocatalytic oxygen reduction activity of cathode materials for seawater oxygen-dissolved battery. Characterization results show that the reduced graphene oxide of as-prepared graphene–platinum composite displays the few-layer folded structure. In addition, Pt nanoparticles with the polycrystalline structure dispplay a preferential growth along the crystal plane of (111) and are mainly distributed around the defect cavities of folded graphene. Electrochemical results show that the diffusion-limited current density of CFB/Pt–G composite tested with 1600 rpm/min in 3.5% NaCl solution reaches 5 mA/cm2, while that of CFB/G is only 2.64 mA/cm2. Battery discharge results show that the maximum volume power density of CFB/Pt–G–Mg battery with a stable open voltage of 1.73 V is 81 times as much as the commercial seawater battery SWB1200.

The effect of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) coating in the presence of polyethyleneimine (PEI) of different molecular weights (MW) on the interfacial shear strength (IFSS) of carbon fiber/acrylonitrile–butadiene–styrene (ABS) and carbon fiber/epoxy composites was investigated. The IFSS between the carbon fiber and the polymer was evaluated by means of single fiber microbonding test. The results indicated that uses of the carbon fibers uncoated and coated with pristine, low MW PEI-treated, and high MW PEI-treated MWCNT significantly influenced the IFSS of both thermoplastic and thermosetting carbon fiber composites as well as the carbon fiber surface topography. The incorporation of low MW (about 1300) PEI into the carboxylated MWCNT was more effective not only to uniformly coat the carbon fiber with the MWCNT but also to improve the interfacial bonding strength between the carbon fiber and the polymer than that of high MW (about 25,000) PEI. In addition, carbon fiber/epoxy composite exhibited the IFSS much higher than carbon fiber/ABS composite due to the chemical interactions between the epoxy resin and amine groups existing in the PEI-treated MWCNT.

Carbon short fibers/copper composites with different carbon short fiber contents up to 15 wt.% as reinforcements are prepared to investigate the influence of the carbon short fiber surface coating on the microstructure, density, and electrical properties of the carbon short fibers/copper composites. The carbon short fibers were surface treated by acid functionalization followed by alkaline treatment before the coating process. It was observed from the results that coated type copper nanoparticles were deposited on the surface of the carbon short fibers. The surface treated carbon short fibers were coated by copper using the electroless deposition technique in the alkaline tartrate bath by using formaldehyde as a reducing agent of the copper sulfate. The produced coated carbon short fibers/copper composite powders were cold compacted at 600 MPa, and then sintered at 875 °C for 2 h under (hydrogen/nitrogen 1:3) atmosphere. A reference copper sample was also prepared by the same method to compare between the properties of pure copper and the carbon short fibers/copper composites. The phase composition, morphology, and microstructure of the prepared carbon short fibers/copper composite powders as well as the corresponding carbon short fibers/copper composites were investigated using X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD) and scanning electron microscope (SEM) equipped with an energy-dispersive spectrometer (EDS), respectively. The density and the electrical resistivity of the sintered composites were measured. It was observed from the results that the density was decreased; however, the electrical resistivity was increased by increasing the carbon short fibers wt.%.

Interfacial adhesion between carbon fiber and epoxy resin mostly determine the mechanical properties of the carbon fiber/ epoxy composites and the chemical structures of epoxy resin and hardener plays an important role. In this regard, stereoisomerism of epoxy hardeners, such as 3,3′ and 4,4′-DDS (diaminodiphenylsulfone), can have significant influence on the fracture toughness of the cured epoxy and related carbon fiber composites. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the influence of stereoisomerism of epoxy hardeners on fracture toughness of the carbon fiber/epoxy composites. Triglycidyl aminophenol (TGAP) are selected as epoxy resin and 3,3′- and 4,4′-DDS are selected as epoxy hardener. Wetting behaviors and fiber matrix adhesion of TGAP/DDS mixtures onto carbon fiber are investigated and fracture toughness (KIC) of TGAP/ DDS mixtures are also investigated. Then, the mode II fracture toughness test of the carbon fiber/TGAP/DDS composites are carried out to investigate the influence of hardener stereoisomerism on fracture toughness of the resulting composites. Wetting and fiber matrix adhesion to carbon fiber of TGAP/3,3′-DDS was better than those of TGAP/4,4’-DDS and KIC of TGAP/3,3′-DDS was also better than that of TGAP/4,4′-DDS. As a result of the synergistic effect of better wetting, fiber matrix adhesion, and fracture toughness of TGAP/3,3′-DDS, the mode II fracture toughness of the carbon fiber/ TGAP/3,3’- DDS composites was almost twice of that of the carbon fiber/ TGAP/4,4′-DDS composites. Based on the results reported in this study, stereoisomerism of the epoxy hardeners can influence the fracture toughness of the resulting composites as well as that of the resin itself. In other words, only small difference, such as the spatial arrangement of the molecular structure of epoxy hardeners can cause huge difference in the mechanical properties of the resulting composites.

The widespread use of automobiles has greatly increased energy demand and exhaust gas pollution. In order to save energy, reduce emissions and protect the environment, making lightweights automobiles is an effective measure. In this paper, carbon fiber composites and automobile B-pillars are briefly introduced, and then the mechanical properties and impact resistance of the DC590 steel B-pillars and carbon fiber composites B-pillars are simulated by the ABAQUS finite element software. The results show that the quality of compound B-pillars is reduced by 50.76 % under the same dimensions, and the mechanical property of unit mass is significantly better than that of metal B-pillars. In the course of a collision, the kinetic energy of the two B-pillars is converted into internal energy, but the total energy remains the same; the converted internal energy of the composite B-pillars is greater, the deformation is smaller and the maximum intrusion and intrusion speed is also smaller, indicating that the anti-collision performance of the composite B-pillars is excellent. In summary, the carbon fiber composites can not only reduce the quality of the B-pillars, but also improve their anti-collision performance..

A two-level full factorial design 22 with three replications was employed to assess the effect of the incorporation of PSF into the epoxy matrix and the surface treatment of carbon fibers on the work of adhesion (WA) and the interfacial shear strength (IFSS) of carbon fiber–epoxy composites. The IFSS was determined using the microbond (or microdrop) micromechanical test, and the work of adhesion was estimated using two different procedures: (1) using the Owens and Wendt method, and (2) from the Dupre–Young expression using the contact angle θ of a cured epoxy resin on a single carbon fiber and the surface energy of the cured epoxy resin. It was found that the treatment of the carbon fiber with the silane-coupling agent appreciably increases its polar component because of the nitric acid oxidation and the chemisorption of the silane-coupling agent onto the carbon fiber surface. Also, the O=S=O group present in the polysulfone chain resin fairly increases the polar component of the epoxy–PSF blend. The results show that the wetting of the silane-treated carbon fiber by the thermoplastic-modified epoxy resin is better, thus increasing the fiber–matrix adhesion. It was also found that there is a similarity between the trends of both, the IFSS and the WA results. Also, from the ANOVA results it was also seen that both the incorporation of the PSF to the epoxy matrix and the surface treatment of the carbon fibers and their interaction were statistically significant to the IFSS and the WA.

This study provides an economical and effective method to improve the interlaminar properties of carbon fiber-reinforced polymers (CFRPs) using aluminum trihydroxide (ATH) microparticles. ATH microparticles are cheap and are expected to show good affinity to epoxies in the matrix and sizing agents of the carbon fibers owing to the presence of three hydroxyl groups. In addition, ATH particles are reported to improve the mechanical properties of polymers when used as the reinforcement. In this study, ATH microparticles of various sizes, 1.5, 10, and 20 μm, were used to improve the interlaminar properties of the CFRPs. ATH particles with a size of 1.5 μm improved the tensile properties of the ATH/epoxy resin and did not significantly alter the curing behavior. The interfacial adhesion between the carbon fiber and the epoxy resin was also improved, and the impregnation of the resin mixture remained similar to that of the neat resin, resulting in no significant void and defect formation. Considering the above results, the resulting 1.5 μm ATH-reinforced CFRP showed improved interlaminar properties compared to CFRP without ATH. However, 10 and 20 μm ATH-reinforced CFRPs showed deteriorated interlaminar properties due to the diminished tensile properties of the resin itself and resin impregnation, which resulted in more voids and defects, despite the interfacial adhesion between the fiber and the matrix resin.

GNPs have several excellent mechanical properties including high strength, a good young’s modulus, thermal conductivity, corrosion resistance, electronic shielding, etc. In this study, CF/GNP/Epoxy composites were manufactured using GNP weight ratios of 0.15 wt%, 0.3 wt%, 0.5 wt%, 0.7 wt% and 1 wt%. The composites were manufactured with a mechanical method (3-roll-mill). Tensile, impact and wear tests were performed according to ASTM standards D3039, D256 and D3181, respectively. The results show that the CF/GNP0.3wt%/Epoxy composites have good mechanical properties, e.g., tensile strength and impact and wear resistance. In this study, both carbon fabric and GNPs were used as reinforcements in the composites. The mechanical properties increased and weight loss decreased as the GNP content in the resin films was increased.

Carbon composites for flexible fiber heating element were examined to improve the electrical conductivity in this study. Carbon composites using carbon black, denka black, super-c, super-p with/without CNF or dispersant such as BCS03 and Sikament-nn were prepared. Carbon composite slurry was coated on plane film and yarns(cotton, polyester) and the performances of prepared heating materials were investigated by checking electrical surface resistance, adhesion strength. The plane heating element using carbon black under natural drying condition(25℃) had better physical properties such as surface resistance(185.3 Ohm/sq) and adhesion strength(above 90%) than those of other carbon composite heating elements. From these results, polyester heating element coated by carbon black showed better electrical line resistance(33.2 kOhm/cm) than cotton heating element. Then, it was found that polyester heating element coated by carbon black with CNF(3 wt%) and BCS03(1 wt%) appeared best properties(0.604 kOhm/cm).