Design of reactive sizing for carbon fibers

Reactive carbon fiber sizings were designed in order to achieve high levels of interfacial adhesion and mechanical properties with acrylate, vinyl ester and polyester systems. The relevance of reactive sizing approach is also demonstrated with the rapid curing of acrylate-based carbon fiber composites by electron beam and without any thermal posttreatment. Inter-laminar Shear Strength (ILSS) values of unidirectional composites increased from 30 to 50 %, depending on the matrix system that was used. The observation of the fracture surface clearly showed a change in the rupture mode, from a purely adhesive failure to a cohesive failure. Such improvements in non-traditional carbon fiber composite systems constitute a breakthrough for the development of high volume, rapid carbon fiber composite manufacturing.