ABSTRACT
Introduction .........................................................................................................241 Background..........................................................................................................242 Increasing Dent Resistance................................................................................242 Improving Delamination Resistance ...............................................................245 Crack Initiation Resistance................................................................................246 Crack Propagation Resistance ..........................................................................247 References.............................................................................................................251
The intrinsic brittleness of highly cross-linked thermosetting polymers is translated into brittleness of fiber-reinforced composites made from them. Numerous approaches to toughening of thermosetting composites have been researched, many passing into industrial practice. This chapter describes some of the less well-known aspects of toughening of polyester/ chopped glass fiber composites. It also considers the issue of delamination in laminated composites made from carbon fiber/epoxy prepregs. Selectively placed interleaves of the matrix resin between the prepreg plies are shown to be capable of increasing the resistance to crack initiation between the plies, with a strong dependence on the interleaf location and thickness. The technique of Z-Fiber
