Masters Theses

Date of Award

12-2000

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science

Major

Polymer Engineering

Major Professor

John F. Fellers

Committee Members

J. Spruiell, Roberto Benson

Abstract

This work explores and studies the uninterrupted filament winding process for fabricating structures made of polypropylene and glass fiber. Based on this work, a unique fuzzy inner surface of tubes and the key role of the mandrel temperature on the composite's mechanical properties were observed. It was concluded that the fuzzy inner surface of the tube can improve the strength and fatigue property of the composite and the higher mandrel temperature can diminish the void content within the composite and improve the mechanical properties of the composite. Steel rebar, thermoset pipe and rebar produced by filament winding or pultrusion have long been used for reinforcing cement, but these products suffer from corrosion, high cost and poor toughness. Through greatly improving the resin's wetting ability to glass fiber bundle, and more precise control of the process elements, this project starts as a way to produce composite tube made from polypropylene and glass fiber that offers some improved properties, while being cheaper and tougher. The tubes were filled with a cement mixture and some of them were reinforced with internal tapes. Three point bending experiments, microscope observation, and image analysis were used as the investigative tools in this work. Processing elements such as the mandrel temperature, wetting die temperature, wetting die rotating speed, exit gate pressure etc., were studied and the relationship between the processing elements and the mechanical properties was investigated.

Download
Files over 3MB may be slow to open. For best results, right-click and select "save as..."

Share

COinS