Effects of alumina nanoparticles on dynamic impact responses of carbon fiber reinforced epoxy matrix nanocomposites

The influence of alumina (Al2O3) nanoparticles addition upon low-velocity impact behaviors of carbon fiber (CF) reinforced laminated epoxy nanocomposites have been investigated. For this purpose, different amounts of Al2O3 nanoparticles ranging from 1 to 5 wt% were added to the epoxy resin in order to observe the effect of nanoparticle loadings. CF reinforced epoxy based laminated nanocomposites were produced using Vacuum Assisted Resin Infusion Method (VARIM). The low velocity impact (LVI) tests performed according to the ASTM-D-7136 standard under 2, 2.5 and 3 m/s impact velocities. After LVI testing, the damage formations within composites were examined by using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The results of this study showed that addition of Al2O3 nanoparticles provided a significant improvement in impact damage resistance. The highest damage resistance and minimum energy absorption were observed for 2 wt% Al2O3 nanoparticles loadings. As a result, we can confidently claim that the addition of the Al2O3 nanoparticles in CF/epoxy composites has considerably affected the dynamic response of the nanocomposites.