Interply hybrid composites with carbon fiber reinforced polypropylene and self-reinforced polypropylene

The focus of the present study is on hybrid composites with interplied carbon fiber reinforced polypropylene (CFRPP) between self-reinforced polypropylene (SRPP) layers. SRPP is produced by hot compaction of a woven fabric of highly oriented polypropylene and has an intrinsic behavior of shrinkage under high temperatures. The aim of this research is to enhance the tensile properties of the CFRPP/SRPP hybrid composites by using the SRPP shrinkage to introduce a compressive pre-strain in CFRPP. The results from tensile testing show that the failure strain of the hybrid composites is improved in comparison with CFRPP. The modulus and strength are noted to be lower than the ones expected from the rule of mixture. This may be attributed to the introduction of local misalignment (waviness) of carbon fibers caused by the SRPP shrinkage during consolidation. (C) 2010 Published by Elsevier Ltd.