Fracture Toughness of Carbon Fiber Composites Containing Various Fiber Sizings and a Puncture Self-Healing Thermoplastic Matrix

Ongoing efforts at NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) have resulted in the identification of several commercially available thermoplastic resin systems which self-heal after ballistic impact and through penetration. One of these resins, polybutylene graft copolymer (PBg), was selected as a matrix for processing with unsized carbon fibers to fabricate reinforced composites for further evaluation. During process development, data from thermo-physical analyses was utilized to determine a processing cycle to fabricate laminate panels, which were analyzed by photo microscopy and acid digestion. The process cycle was further optimized based on these results to fabricate panels for mechanical property characterization. The results of the processing development effort of this composite material, as well as the results of the mechanical property characterization, indicated that bonding between the fiber and PBg was not adequate. Therefore, three sizings were investigated in this work to assess their potential to improve fiber/matrix bonding compared to previously tested unsized IM7 fiber. Unidirectional prepreg was made at NASA LaRC from three sized carbon fibers and utilized to fabricate test coupons that were tested in double cantilever beam configurations to determine GIc fracture toughness.