Materials scienceLesson 2 of 3 in the course Composites and mechanical behaviour

Fibre-Reinforced Polymers: Preforms, Processing, Performance, and Uses

5 flashcards · 5 quiz questions · 5 match pairs · 5 fill-in sentences · English

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Summary

Fibre-reinforced plastic (FRP) combines a polymer with reinforcing fibres to create a composite with useful mechanical properties. This lesson introduces the material, its constituents, and the historical developments that made FRP an important engineering material.

Fibre-reinforced plastic, also called fibre-reinforced polymer, is a composite made from a polymer matrix reinforced with fibres. The matrix is the continuous plastic phase that holds the fibres in place and transfers forces between them. The fibres provide much of the material's strength and stiffness.

All flashcards

Fibre-reinforced plastic (FRP)
A composite in which reinforcing fibres are held in a polymer matrix.
Polymer matrix in FRP
The continuous plastic phase that holds fibres, protects them, and transfers loads.
Anisotropy in FRP
Direction-dependent material properties, often caused by the alignment of reinforcing fibres.
Delamination
Separation between layers of a laminate.
Prepreg
Fibre reinforcement that already contains a measured quantity of resin.

Quiz questions

  1. What distinguishes a three-dimensional fibre preform from a two-dimensional one?Answer: It includes fibres through the material thickness as well as in-plane fibres.
  2. Which process continuously pulls fibres through resin and a heated shaping die?Answer: Pultrusion
  3. In vacuum-assisted resin transfer moulding, what draws resin into the mould cavity?Answer: A vacuum applied to the mould cavity
  4. What does delamination mean in a fibre-reinforced laminate?Answer: Separation between adjacent laminate layers
  5. Why can wrapping an FRP composite around a column improve its compressive strength?Answer: The wrap confines the column's lateral expansion.

Based on the Wikipedia article Fibre-reinforced plastic, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Adapted into a summary, flashcards and quizzes.

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