Abstract
The present chapter is focused mainly on polypropylene based composites filled by mineral fillers, but some results can be generalized for other particle composites. The stiffness and toughness of the composite is modelled using a three-phase continuum consisting of the polymer matrix, mineral particles and an interphase between them. It is shown that the effect of the interphase on the macroscopic characteristics of the composite is decisive. Generally, the addition of the mineral filler to the polymer matrix leads to ebrittlement of the composite. The computational methodology presented quantifies the effect of the microstructure properties and morphology on the macroscopic material response. It is shown that properties of the interphase control both the stiffness and embrittlement of the particulate composite. Primarily, the interaction of micro-cracks with coated particles is studied. It is concluded that in some cases of the microscopic particles, size and specific interphase properties the addition of mineral fillers can lead to a good balance between fracture toughness and stiffness. Linear elastic fracture mechanics is used for calculations.
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Acknowledgements
This research was supported by grants 106/07/1284 and 106/08/1409 of the Czech Science Foundation and grant KJB 200410803 of the Grant Agency of Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic.
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Hutař, P., Náhlík, L., Majer, Z., Knésl, Z. (2011). The Effect of an Interphase on Micro-Crack Behaviour in Polymer Composites. In: Murín, J., Kompiš, V., Kutiš, V. (eds) Computational Modelling and Advanced Simulations. Computational Methods in Applied Sciences, vol 24. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-0317-9_5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-0317-9_5
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