Understanding the failure mechanism of wood loaded in compression parallel to the grain has been shown to be an important parameter in the design of timber beams strengthened with fibre-reinforced plastics (FRP). In this paper, a constitutive relationship for wood under uniaxial compression load parallel to the grain was determined experimentally. Several parameters, such as silviculture, moisture content and radial position in the log in relation to the pith from where the specimen was sawn, were considered. Small clear-wood specimens were used. The strain localisation in the failure region (kinkband) was monitored using the digital image correlation method. The results show that silviculture and moisture content are two very important parameters which influence the compression failure mechanism. Furthermore, there is a significant difference in behaviour between specimens from the juvenile region of the log and specimens from mature wood. Based on experimental results, two numerical models were built, considering either a global or a local constitutive relationship. It was demonstrated that both numerical models yield accurate results and that, depending on the experimental equipment available, a constitutive relationship could be extracted and used as input in these numerical models.

In an effort to further reduce weight of carbon fibre reinforced composites, the concept of structural batteries has arisen. A structural battery is a multifunctional material managing both energy storage and enabling of structural integrity. More specific, the carbon fibres in the composites are used as negative electrode in a Li-ion battery. A crucial part of such a battery is the preparation of a thin, ionically conductive and stiff polymer matrix. One route to realize this is the use of electropolymerization, which can cover each individual fibre with polymer. In this study, the surface morphology of coated carbon fibres is investigated with electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy. Additionally, the curing degree as a function of process temperature during polymerization is tested.

A novel functional material allowing stiffness-reduction upon external stimulation was developed. Implementation of such technology in the design of a car front has high potential to result in increased protection of vulnerable road users (VRUs). The composite material is obtained by coating carbon fibres with a thermoplastic polymer in a continuous process, followed by infusion with an epoxy resin. The process is scalable for industrial use. The coating process was optimized regarding coating efficiency, energy consumption, risks involved for operating personnel and environment, and tailored to gain the optimal coating thickness obtained from numerical calculations. A drastic decrease in transversal stiffness could be detected for the composite material by dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA), when the temperature was increased above the glass transition temperature of the thermoplastic interphase. The ability of the material to achieve such temperature and associated reduction in stiffness by the application of current was verified using a special 3-point bending setup developed for this task.

A multiscale approach is used to predict transverse tensile and transverse compressive strength of unidirectional non-crimp fabric (NCF) composites. Numerical analysis on fibre/matrix scale is performed to obtain the transverse strength of the fibre bundle to be further used in an analytical mesoscale model to predict the strength of the unidirectional NCF composite. Design of unidirectional layer composites with the same fibres, interface, matrix and volume fractions as in the bundle is suggested as an alternative method for bundle strength determination. Good agreement of both methods for bundle transverse strength determination is demonstrated. The simple analytical model used on mesoscale gives accurate predictions of the tensile transverse strength whereas the compressive strength is underestimated. The necessity of including bundle waviness in models when bidirectional NCF composites are analyzed is demonstrated by FEM stress analysis and by experimental data showing differences in transverse cracking pattern due to bundle waviness.

This paper presents the work to characterise the effects of tensile induced matrix cracks on capacitance of structural composite capacitor materials. The study is based on earlier work within the field of multifunctional materials where mechanical and electrical properties have been characterised. Effects of damage on electrical properties have, however, not been covered by earlier studies. The structural capacitor materials were made from carbon fibre/epoxy pre-pregs as structural electrodes with thermoplastic PET as the dielectric separator. NaOH etching was used as a route for improved adhesion between the epoxy and PET to ensure matrix cracking in the CFRP electrodes occurred prior to delamination between the electrodes and the PET separator. A method to induce and measure the effect of the matrix cracks on electrical properties was successfully developed and used in this study. The method is based on a simple tensile test and proved to be quick and easy to perform with consistent results. The structural capacitor material was found to maintain its capacitance even after significant intralaminar matrix cracking in the CFRP electrodes from high tensile mechanical loads.

This paper presents an overview of the research performed to date by a Swedish interdisciplinaryteam of scientists striving to develop multifunctional composite materials for storage of electric energy in mechanical load paths. To realise structural batteries from polymer composites, research pursued on carbon fibres for use as negative electrode in the battery as well as on polymer electrolytes for use as polymer matrix in the composite is reported. The work on carbon fibres comprises characterisation of the electrochemical capacity of commercial carbon fibre grades and how this is affected by mechanical load. Co-polymers are studied for their multifunctional performance with respect to lithium ion conductivity and stiffness. Also, rational processing of these polymer electrolytes and the effect of processing on their properties are addressed

We report a method to deposit a thin solid polymer electrolyte (SPE) coating around individual carbon fibres for the realisation of novel battery designs. In this study an electrocoating method is used to coat methacrylate-based solid polymer electrolytes on to carbon fibres. By this approach a dense uniform, apparently pinhole-free, poly(methoxy polyethylene glycol (350) monomethacrylate) coating with an average coating thickness of 470 nm was deposited around carbon fibres. Li-triflate, used as supporting electrolyte remained in the coating after the electrocoating operation. The Li-ion content in the solid polymer coating was found to be sufficiently high for battery applications. A battery device was built employing the SPE coated carbon fibres as negative electrode demonstrating reversible specific capacity of 260 mAh/g at low currents (C/10), suggesting that these coated carbon fibres can be employed in future structural composite batteries.

This paper presents an approach towards realising novel multifunctional polymer composites with combined structural and electric energy storing ability. A series of structural capacitors were made using three thicknesses of DuPont Mylar A thermoplastic PET as a dielectric separator employing carbon fibre/epoxy pre-pregs as structural electrodes. Plasma treatment was used as a route for improved epoxy/PET adhesion. The manufactured materials were mechanically and electrically tested to evaluate their multifunctional efficiency.The multifunctional materials developed show good potential for replacing steel, aluminium and other materials with lower specific mechanical properties but do not match the high specific mechanical and electrical performance of monofunctional composites and capacitors.

A fully recycled carbon fiber reinforced maleic anhydride grafted polypropylene (MAPP)-modified polypropylene (rCF/rPP) composite material has been developed and characterized. This new composite was manufactured employing papermaking principles, dispersing the recycled carbon fibers (rCF) in water, and forming them into mats. Two layers of the recycled polypropylene (rPP) films manufactured using press-forming were sandwiched between three rCF preform layers in a stack. The stack was heated and press-formed resulting in a composite plate with a nominal thickness of 1.20 mm and a fiber volume fraction of 40%. A series of tensile tests using rectangular specimens cut in four different directions (0°, 90°, ± 45°) in the composite plate were performed to confirm in-plane material isotropy. Models to predict stiffness and strength of the short fiber rCF/rPP composite were also employed and validated using experiments. The models were found to be in good agreement with experimental results. Fiber length distribution measurements were performed before (unprocessed) and after (processed) composite manufacturing to investigate the influence of processing on fiber degradation. The results revealed a significant reduction in fiber length by the press-forming operation. To model the viscoelastic and viscoplastic responses of the composite an inelastic material model was employed and characterized using a series of creep and recovery tests. From the creep tests, it was found that the time and stress dependence of viscoplastic strains follows a power law. The viscoelastic response of the composite was found to be linear in the investigated stress range. The material model was validated in constant stress rate tensile tests and the agreement was good, even close to the rupture stress.