Abstract:

Abstract Mechanical properties of polyester/glass fiber reinforced by multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) were studied. MWCNTs nano particles are mixed within resin in various weight fractions of 0.1, 0.2, 0.4 and 0.6 % using sonication. E-Glass fiber (chopped strand mat) is used in various weight fractions within the composite like 80/20 wt%, 70/30 wt%, 50/50 wt% to fabricate polyester/CSM/MWCNTs composites. The effect of the addition of MWCNTs nanoparticles on the mechanical characteristics such as hardness and tensile strength were investigated. The effect of various E-glass fiber chopped strand mat (CSM) wt.% reinforcement is also investigated. A scanning electron microscope (SEM) was used to show the nanocomposites morphological properties such as reinforcement orientation and the bonding between matrix and fiber. It was found that the addition of 0.4 wt% MWCNTs improves the mechanical properties of composites, especially the 50 wt% polyester / 50 wt% CSM composite. The tensile strength improved by 39.8%, and the hardness improved by 38%.

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