Novel carbon nanotube array-reinforced laminated composite materials with higher interlaminar elastic properties

Fiber-reinforced polymeric composites are ideal engineered materials to carry loads and stresses in the fiber direction due to their high in-plane specific mechanical properties. However, interlaminar stresses can arise and lead to a premature failure constituting their fundamental weakness. A solution to this problem is being addressed through the creation of a composite material with an interphase between the composite plies that maximizes shear stress transfer. An aligned dense multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) array, which does not require dispersion into the polymeric matrix, is considered as the nanoparticle reinforcement. Preliminary results have shown the feasibility of creating such an interphase and a significant improvement of the interlaminar shear modulus of the laminated composite materials. (c) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.