Investigation of mechanical and thermal properties of CNC / Glass Fiber / epoxy hybrid composites

In this study, composite structures were prepared by conventional thermoset casting method by dispersing cellulose nanocrystal (CNC) nanomaterial in epoxy matrix at different concentration ratios (0,5%-1%-1.5%). Furthermore, hybrid composite sheets with glass fiber reinforcement of 0°/90° fiber orientation were produced by hand lay-up technique. In terms of mechanical properties, tensile and three-point bending tests were conducted on CNC/epoxy composites while the ILSS test was additionally applied to CNC/E-glass fiber/epoxy hybrid composites. Thermal characteristics of all samples were evaluated via thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) method. The fracture surfaces of whole tensile test specimens' were examined by scanning electron microscope (SEM) to determine the compatibility between the reinforcement phase(s) and the matrix.