Effects of gamma irradiation on some mechanical properties of novoloid fibers

Novoloid fibers have high chemical, flame and thermal resistance; however they have low tensile properties. Effects of gamma irradiation on the tensile properties of novoloid fibers have been investigated. Loop and knot resistance have also been examined. Maximum tenacity of the single fiber increased with an increase of the radiation dose applied. According to the loop and knot tenacity results it is found that brittleness has been also affected by the amount of radiation dose.     

Effects of drawing speed and water on microstructure and mechanical properties of artificially spun spider dragline silk

The effects of drawing speed and water on the microstructures and mechanical properties of Araneus Ventricosus spider dragline silk were investigated with polarized Raman spectroscopy and mechanical property tester. The major ampullate silk (MAS), spider dragline silk was made by drawing from major ampullate glands of Araneus Ventricosus spider at the rates of 1, 10, 20, 40, and 110 mm/s, respectively. It was found that MAS silk drawn at 20 mm/s contained the most of β-sheet polypeptides with the high orientation and the least of α-helix. The results also revealed that dragline silk spun at aqueous condition (WDS) had lower content and orientation of β-sheets than those at ambient condition (DDS); the existence of water led to smaller tensile strength at break and initial modulus, but larger tensile strain at break of dragline silk.     

Effects of wet-spinning conditions on structures,mechanical and electrical properties of multi-walled carbon nanotube composite fibers

A series of composite fibers composed of multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) and poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) are prepared by varying co-flowing wet-spinning conditions such as spinning geometry and PVA concentration, which affect aligning shear stress for MWCNTs during the wet-spinning. Then, structural features, mechanical and electrical performances of MWCNT/PVA composite fibers are investigated as a function of the aligning shear stress of the wet-spinning process. SEM images of the composite fibers exhibit that MWCNTs are wetted effectively with PVA chains. Polarized Raman spectra confirm that the alignment of MWCNTs is enhanced along the composite fiber axis with increasing the aligning shear stress of the spinning process. Accordingly, initial moduli and tensile strengths of the composite fibers are significantly increased with the increment of the aligning shear stress. In addition, it is found that electrical conductivities of MWCNT/PVA composite fibers increase slightly with the aligning shear stress, which is associated with the formation of efficient electrical conduction paths caused by well-aligned MWCNTs along the composite fiber axis.     

Effects of microfluidization on microstructure and physicochemical properties of corn bran

Corn bran was treated by the microfluidization process and the resulting changes in its microstructure and physicochemical properties were examined. The results showed that the microfluidization process could effectively decrease particle size of corn bran and loosen microstructure of the bran matrix. This led to a significant decrease in bulk density and increases in specific surface area. The swelling capacity, water-holding capacity, oil-holding capacity, and cation-exchange capacity increased by 140%, 90%, 140%, and 90%, respectively, after a total of 8 passes through the IC₂₀₀ and IC₈₇ chambers. In addition, microscopic analysis revealed a gradual disintegration of original cell wall structure and the dissociation of different bran tissues as the extent of microfluidization treatment increased. Findings of this study highlighted the great potential of the microfluidization process in producing a high-quality fiber ingredient from corn bran.     

Electrospinning and mechanical properties of polymeric fibers using a novel gap-spinning collector

Tissue engineering is an interdisciplinary field which combines the basic principles of life sciences and engineering. One promising idea is the combination of scaffolds and living cells in order to produce new functional tissue. The scaffolds play the role of a microenvironment that guides the cells towards tissue formation and regeneration. One of the most frequently used techniques to produce scaffolds is electrospinning. Tissue engineered constructs have to exhibit physiological and mechanical properties comparable to the native tissue they are intended to replace. To create polymeric fibers with controlled orientation, a cylindrical collector that rotates at a certain speed could be used, creating fibers that run longitudinally. The process of gap-spinning enables the production of specifically aligned fibers. Aim of this study was to develop a novel setup capable of producing multilayered structures with controlled fiber angle. The structural, morphological and mechanical characteristics of the fibers were accessed using scanning electron microscopy and uniaxial tensile tests. Longer pre-stretching led to thinner (in the sub-micron scale), more brittle and less elastic fibers. In a nutshell, the results indicated that fiber mats of desired orientation, fiber diameter and mechanical properties could be produced by controlled gap-spinning with a translational collector.     

Effect of Ni-coated short carbon fibers on the mechanical and electrical properties of epoxy composites

Ni-coated short carbon fibers (Ni-SCFs) were prepared using an electrodeposition method. Short carbon fiber (SCF) reinforced epoxy composites were prepared by changing the fiber content (0.1–0.7 wt%). To investigate the effect of Ni-coated short carbon fibers on the mechanical and electrical properties of the composites, we prepared two kinds of reinforcements: the short carbon fibers treated by 400 °C (400 °C treated SCFs) and Ni-SCFs. Fracture characteristics of the composites revealed the Ni coatings and the epoxy matrix had a better interface, so that the results of tensile and bending strength were better in epoxy/Ni-SCFs composites than those in epoxy/400 °C treated SCFs composites. The 400 °C treated SCFs decreased the electrical resistivity of the epoxy composites, compared to the pure epoxy. However the epoxy/Ni-SCFs composites had lower electrical resistivity than epoxy/400 °C treated SCFs with the same fiber content.     

The role of thermal stabilization on the structure and mechanical properties of polyacrylonitrile precursor fibers

The thermal stabilization stage of polyacrylonitrile (PAN) fibers is characterized by a steady and continuous reduction in fiber diameter and linear density values together with color changes from reddish brown to shiny black with increasing stabilization time. Thermally stabilized PAN fibers acquire infusible and nonburning characteristics prior to the carbonization stage. Structural characterization of thermally stabilized polyacrylonitrile fibers was carried out using an indepth analysis of equatorial X-ray diffraction traces. Curve fitting of X-ray diffraction traces provided accurate peak parameters which were subsequently used for the evaluation of apparent crystallinity, apparent crystallite size and X-ray stabilization index. The results showed the loss of crystallinity due to the amorphization processes together with a steady and continuous decrease in lateral crystallite size with increasing stabilization time. With the progress of thermal stabilization, a new amorphous phase with a crosslinked and aromatized structure is formed which is expected to withstand high carbonization temperatures. Mechanical properties of the thermally stabilized PAN precursor fibers were found to be adversely affected with the progress of stabilization time. Due to the influence of thermal degradation mechanisms heavily involving chain scission along the fiber axis direction, tensile strength and tensile modulus values were found to decrease by significant proportions with the prolonged stabilization times.     

Influence of alkali treatment on the structure and properties of hemp fibers

Alkali treatment may change the structures and properties of cellulosic fibers. The aim of this work was to study the mechanism of structural changes of hemp fibers treated with different alkali concentrations and time by SEM, FTIR, tensile and bending tests. The results showed that the alkali treatment removed some of non-cellulosic materials from the surface of fibers and caused many cracks along the axis of fibers. The crystalline order index increased firstly followed by decreased with the increase of concentration. The deconvolution spectra in OH stretching region showed that the alkali treatment decreased the amount of hydrogen bonding firstly and then increased. The S/G ratio results also support the removal of non-cellulosic materials. The tensile strength of the fibers increased with the alkali concentration. Furthermore, the suitable chemical treatment not only slenderized the hemp fibers, but also softened the fibers dramatically.     

The variability of mechanical properties and molecular conformation among different spider dragline fibers

Spider dragline fiber is a high-performance biomaterial that has received much attention. To screen the outstanding spider dragline fibers, the mechanical properties and microstructures of dragline fibers collected from Nephia clavata, Nephia pilipes, Argiope bruennichi and Argiope amoena were investigated. It was found that the mechanical properties of spider dragline fiber were variable. Among the four different species, the larger spiders did not always extrude thicker dragline fibers and produce fibers with the maximum breaking force. The dragline fibers could sustain one to three times the body weight of the spider at a reeling speed of 20 mm/s. N. clavata dragline fiber showed a stronger breaking stress and initial modulus than that of N. pilipes, A. bruennichi and A. amoena. With an increasing reeling speed, the breaking strain decreased; the initial modulus increased in N. clavata, N. pilipes and A. bruennichi, but the breaking stress exhibited a different tendency. The results also revealed that dragline fiber of N. clavata contained the most β-sheet polypeptides and an excellent orientation of β-sheet molecular chains.     

The statistical investigation of mechanical properties of PP/natural fibers composites

A systematic and statistical approach to evaluate and predict the properties of random discontinuous natural fiber reinforced composites. Different composites based on polypropylene and reinforced with natural fibers have been made and their mechanical properties are measured together with the distribution of the fiber size and the fiber diameter. The values obtained have been related to the theoretical predictions, using a combination of the Griffith theory for the effective properties of the natural fibers and the Halpin-Tsai equation for the elastic modulus of the composites. The relationships between experimental results and theoretical predictions are statistically analyzed using a probability density function estimation approach based on neural networks. The results show a more accurate expected value with respect to the traditional statistical function estimation approach. In order to point out the particular features of natural fibers, the same proposed method is also applied to PP-glass fiber composites.     

Influence of the draw ratio on the mechanical properties and electrical conductivity of nanofilled thermoplastic polyurethane fibers

Electrically conducting textile fibers were produced by wet-spinning under various volume fractions using thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) as a polymer and carbon black (CB), Ag-powder, multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs), which are widely used as electrically conducting nanofillers. After applying the fiber to the heat drawing process at different draw ratios, the filler volume fraction, linear density, breaking to strength, and electrical conductivity according to each draw ratio and volume fraction. In addition, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images were taken. The breaking to strength of the TPU fiber containing the nanofillers increased with increasing draw ratio. At a draw ratio of 2.5, the breaking to strength of the TPU fiber increased by 105 % for neat-TPU, 88 % for CB, 86 % for Ag-powder, and 127 % for MWCNT compared to the undrawn fiber. The breaking to strength of the TPU fiber containing CB decreased gradually with increasing volume fraction, and in case of Ag-powder, it decreased sharply owing to its specific gravity. The electrical conductivity of the TPU fiber containing CB and Ag-powder decreased with increasing draw ratio, but the electrical conductivity of the TPU fiber containing MWCNT increased rapidly after the addition of 1.34 vol. % or over. The moment when the aggregation of MWCNT occurred and its breaking to strength started to decrease was determined to be the percolation threshold of the electrical conductivity. The heat drawing process of the fiber-form material containing the anisotropic electrical conductivity nanofillers make the percolation threshold of the electrical conductivity and the maximum breaking to strength appear at a lower volume fraction. This is effective in the development of a breaking to strength and electrical conductivity.     

Effect of enzymatic treatment on the dyeing properties of protein wool fibers

Two proteolytic enzymes were used as auxiliaries in the dyeing of wool fabrics with acid dyes. The effect of the enzymes on dye exhaustion (%E) and dye uptake (K/S) was studied at 70, 85, and 98 °C and compared to the corresponding values obtained for the control samples which were dyed without enzymes under the same conditions. Two commercially available dyeing auxiliaries commonly used for the dyeing of wool at low temperatures were also used under the same conditions and compared with the dyeings made with and without enzymes. Treatment with transglutaminase was done in order to compensate the damaging effects of protease. The study shows that the enzymes could be used as auxiliaries in the dyeing of wool at lower temperatures.     

Effects of high energy electrons on physical and tensile properties of non-mulberry silk fibers

Tassar silk fiber (Antheraea mylitta) was irradiated with the available maximum dose range upto 100 kGy using 8 MeV electron beam at room temperature. Irradiation effect in these fibers is quantified in terms of the changes in microstructural parameters studied using wide-angle X-ray scattering data (WAXS). The crystal imperfection parameters such as crystallite size (〈N〉), lattice strain (g in %), and surface weighted crystallite size (D_s in Å) have been determined by line profile analysis (LPA) using Fourier method of Warren. For this purpose, exponential, lognormal, and Reinhold functions for column length distribution have been used for the determination of these parameters. These parameters were compared with tensile properties of the fibers. The increasing trend of crystallite size values (〈N〉 as well as D_s in Å) and tenacity (gf/den) with increasing dosage of radiation clearly indicates the cross linking polymer network in fiber. Comparison of SEM photographs also confirms the X-ray results.     

The evaluation of the thermal and mechanical properties of aramid/semi-carbon fibers hybrid composites

In this research work, aramid and semi-carbon fibers (SCFs) were hybridized in the form of interlayer or layer by layer into epoxy matrix by hand lay-up method. Afterward, the effect of hybridization on the thermal and mechanical properties of epoxy composites was characterized by thermal analysis; horizontal burning; tensile and bending tests. Based on the results of the mechanical tests, increasing SCFs to aramid fibers ratio decreased tensile strength, elastic and flexural modulus. But with increasing this ratio to 53 % failure strain reduced, whereas in the ratios of more than 53 %, the failure strain enhanced. The results of thermal analysis curves indicated that there are three stage mass loss at the temperature ranges of 100-220, 270-470 and 500-620 °C. It was also found that with increasing the SCFs to aramid fibers ratio decreased the third-stage of the mass loss. The results of horizontal burning showed that increasing the SCFs to aramid fibers ratio decreased the rate of burning.     

Microstructure and mechanical properties of apocynum venetum fibers extracted by alkali-assisted ultrasound with different frequencies

Apocynum venetum (AV) fibers were extracted by the combination of low (28 kHz) and high frequency (53 kHz) ultrasonic treatment after aqueous alkali maceration. The surface impurities and cementing components between fibers in the range of 10–50 μm were removed by low frequency ultrasound. The surface impurities in the range of 2–8 μm, as well as the residuals in the surface depression and inner cavum of fibers were further eliminated by high frequency ultrasonic irradiation. The treatment did not change crystal structure of cellulose I of AV fibers and could lead to a higher degree of crystallinity. Meanwhile, the examination of mechanical properties showed that the AV fibers could be used for textile industry. It is demonstrated that the combination of low and high frequency ultrasound after alkali treatment is simpler, more controllable and more environment-friendly and is a promising degumming method for textile industry.     

Effect of boron phosphate on the mechanical, thermal and fire retardant properties of polypropylene and polyamide-6 fibers

The effect of boron phosphate (BPO₄) nanoparticles on the mechanical, thermal, and flame retardant properties of polypropylene (PP) and polyamide 6 (PA-6) fibers are investigated by tensile testing, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), and micro combustion calorimeter (MCC). The addition of BPO₄ reduces the mechanical properties of the both PP and PA-6 fibers. According to the TGA results, the addition of BPO₄ does not change the thermal behavior of PP fiber and slightly reduces the thermal stability of PA-6 fiber by about 30 °C. According to MCC results, the addition of BPO₄ does not change the effective total heat evolution and heat release rate (HRR) peak for PP fibers. Although the inclusion of BPO₄ does not change the total heat evolution of PA-6 fiber, it reduces the HRR peaks due to increase in barrier effect of char.     

Evaluation of mechanical properties of jute/glass/carbon fibers reinforced hybrid composites

A study on the tensile and flexural properties of jute-glass-carbon fibers reinforced epoxy hybrid composites in inter-ply configuration is presented in this paper. Test specimens were manufactured by hand lay-up process and their tensile and flexural properties were obtained. The effects of the hybridization, different fibers content and plies stacking sequence on the mechanical properties of the tested hybrid composites were investigated. Two-parameter Weibull distribution function was used to statistically analyze the experimental results. The failure probability graphs for the tested composites were drawn. These graphs are important tools for helping the designers to understand and choose the suitable material for the required design and development. Results showed that the hybridization process can potentially improve the tensile and flexural properties of jute reinforced composite. The flexural strength decreases when partial laminas from a carbon/epoxy laminate are replaced by glass/epoxy or jute/epoxy laminas. Also, it is realized that incorporating high strength fibers to the outer layers of the composite leads to higher flexural resistance, whilst the order of the layers doesn’t affect the tensile properties.     

Effect of surface treatment on the structure and properties of para-aramid fibers by phosphoric acid

The surface of para-aramid fiber was modified by phosphoric acid solutions (H3PO4) based on an orthogonal experimental design and analysis method. Statistical results indicate that treatment temperature is the most significant variable in the modification processing, while treatment time was the least important factor. The structure and morphology of the modified fiber were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), X-ray diffraction instrument (XRD), and scanning electron microscope (SEM). The results showed that some polar groups were introduced into the molecular structure of aramid fibers and the physical structure of the treated fibers was not etched obviously. The interfacial properties of aramid fiber/epoxy composites were investigated by the single fiber pull-out test (SFP), and the mechanical properties of aramid fibers were investigated by the tensile strength test. The results showed that the interfacial shear strength (IFSS) of aramid/epoxy composites was remarkably improved and the breaking strength of aramid fibers was not affected appreciably after surface modification.     

Effects of blanching conditions on the mechanical properties of french fry strips

Control of the various processing operations is crucial for achieving optimal texture in french fries. This, in turn, requires precise measurement of the effect of each processing operation on the mechanical properties of the fries. A puncture test was used to measure the effects of blanching and freezing on peak force of french fry strips. Potatoes (cv. Russet Burbank) were grown at two locations in Manitoba in 1994 and 1995. Two blanching treatments (a 1-stage process, and a 2-stage process with a low-temperature long-time step) were followed by blast freezing. Strip position within the tuber was found to be a major source of variation for mechanical properties. Because peak force varied widely within and between tubers, it was necessary to compare the efficacy of the two blanching regimes using a pair of strips taken from as close a position as possible in the tuber. For both locations and crop years, blanched french fry strips taken from the pith of the tuber (referred to as inner strips), exhibited higher peak force than outer strips taken from the cortex. The 2-stage blanching process decreased the variation seen in the mechanical properties of different potato strips. Overall, strips blanched by the 2-stage process had significantly higher peak force than strips blanched by a single blanching process. The effect of blanching was evident in the mechanical properties of strips even after freezing and thawing. Microstructural analysis revealed that cells in the outer strips had a “balloon-like” appearance due to the degree of starch swelling pressure generated by swollen granules. For inner strips, this “balloon-like” appearance was less evident. Such appearance is in support of the starch swelling pressure hypothesis. The research shows that measurement of the effect of processing can be achieved by comparing treatments on adjacent strips in order to minimize variation between strips, and that a 2-stage blanching treatment can ameliorate texture differences between strips taken from different parts of the tuber.     

Effects of plasticizer on the mechanical properties of kenaf/starch bio-composites

Research and development of biodegradable bio-composite can replacement the synthetic polymer materials, which is used for automobile interior materials, finishing materials of air conditioner and refrigerator. To develop both components as biodegradable bio-composite, this research used natural polymer starch as matrix and kenaf fiber as a filler. Various plasticizer(polyvinyl alcohol, polyethylene glycol, glycerol) were added and examined the mechanical properties of the kenaf/starch bio-composites according to these plasticizer. The kenaf bast which cultivated in Korea was retted with 2 % NaOH solution. The plasticizer weighting 10 % of that of matrix was added. kenaf/starch composites were molded with hot press for 30 minutes at 130 °C and 3,500 PSI molding condition. The mechanical properties such as tensile strength, elongation, and young modulus of the kenaf/starch composites were measured. Also, we measured the SEM cross-section images in order to investigate interfacial adhesion properties of fractured surfaces. The order of strength size of composites were G (12.42 MPa) > PVA (9.72 MPa) > PEG (4.73 MPa) samples respectively. The tensile strength of PEG sample is lower than the control sample (5.40 MPa).