Short CommunicationTensile behaviours of quartz, aramid and glass filaments after NaCl treatment
Introduction
High performance filaments are frequently used as the reinforcements of composites. The important properties contributing to this situation are their high strength-to-weight ratio. The corrosion resistance of the composites is one of the main reasons for the expenditure of the research on these materials. One of the major corrosive conditions is considered to be the NaCl environment. NaCl corrosion has been a major concern for industries such as chemical, oil, marine and electricity. Composites are often used in marine boats, vessels, ships, and offshore drilling platforms for deck grates. These items may be attacked by seawater [1], [2]. Pipes and tubes used to conduct liquid would come in contact with chemicals in which NaCl may be involved. One of the obstacles preventing the extensive use of composites has been a lack of long-term durability and performance data [3]. It is necessary to understand how the materials will behave during service in a critical environment [4].
Fabricated composites were frequently involved in the investigation of the behaviours of the reinforcement filaments in which case the fibres were mixed with the matrix [5], [6], [7], [8]. In such a situation the degradation of the filaments mostly depends on the resin’s corrosion resistance [5], [6], and the crack propagation of the material in the critical environment is also related to the resin toughness [5]. It is indicated that after a prolonged service in a corrosive environment, damage of materials would result [7]. Since filaments are enclosed by the matrices in the composites, the understanding of the basic mechanisms of the damage and degradation of the fibre would be uncertain. On the other hand, many investigations have been focused on the glass fibre reinforced products in this field [5], [6], [7], [8], [9], [10], [11], very little work has been done on the quartz, aramid, and glass filaments.
Quartz, aramid, and glass filaments were treated with NaCl solutions of various densities for different periods of time. Tensile strength comparison between the NaCl-treated and -untreated filaments revealed that degradation of the treated fibres occured. The tensile strength change among the filaments tested showed a different trend. The appearance of the NaCl-treated filaments was also examined, which indicated the corrosion of NaCl on the fibres.
The main objective of the research is to study the immediate effect of NaCl on quartz, aramid, and glass fibres, expecting to exclude the influence of the matrix and reveal the direct response of the fibres to the NaCl environment.
Section snippets
Experimental
Quartz filament with a linear density of 0.1617 tex (QS-2002-29, provided by Jingzhou Quartz and Glass Factory, PR China), Aramid filament with a linear density of 0.2467 tex (Kevlar Type 49, manufactured by Du Pont Toray Co., Ltd.), and glass filament with a linear density of 0.2292 tex (Type E, produced by Tianjin Glass Fibre Company, PR China) were treated with NaCl solutions with densities of 2%, 5%, 7%, and 10%, respectively. The length of the filaments used in the investigation was 50 mm.
Quartz filament
The fineness of the quartz fibre employed in the research is 0.1617 tex, and the average fibre strength is 17.1cN.
Fig. 1 shows the tensile strength of the quartz fibre after the NaCl treatment. Since four concentrations (2%, 5%, 7%, and 10%) of the NaCl solution were adopted, and for each concentration, four different time periods (one to four weeks) were employed, altogether there were 16 groups of samples. Each datum in the figure is the average of five determinations.
From Fig. 1 one may
Conclusion
The research presents a thorough understanding of the response of the quartz, aramid, and glass fibres to the NaCl solutions excluding the involvement of the matrix. NaCl is powerful enough to break the molecular chain and the bond between two elements in some compounds. Deterioration of quartz, aramid, and glass fibres occurs if they come in contact with NaCl; prolonged exposure to NaCl and higher concentration of the NaCl solution would decrease the tensile strength of the filaments greatly.
Acknowledgement
This work is financed by the Key Laboratory of China Education Ministry, Zhejiang University of Sciences under the project “Research on ageing behaviours of composites in moisture environments”, No. 2005003.
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