TYPES OF FIBER REINFORCEMENT

Introduction
The fiber reinforcement provides the structural performance required of the final part. The fibers
or filaments come in many chemical types and forms and are the primary contributor to the
stiffness, strength and other properties of the composite. The dominant chemical types of
commercially available fibers are: fiberglass, aramid, carbon, polyester and vectran. Other fiber
types may be suitable for special applications. The dominant forms that fibers are sold include:
Strands (or roving or tow or yarn. Many fibers or filaments stranded together in a bundle, wound
in a spool or reel,) woven fabrics (flattened strands of filaments woven in a variety of weaves to
a type of fabric or cloth,) unidirectional (strands laid side by side and stitched or held together by
other means, forming a kind of fabric that bares reinforcement only in the fill direction,)
multiaxials (unidirectional woven fabrics stitched together in a combination of orientations,) and
chopped strand mat (chopped strands held together with some kind of glue or “binder” in the
form of a non-woven fabric.) All fibers designated for use in composites undergo chemical
treatments and are coated with some kind of “sizing”. Sizing is a chemical that binds the
filaments together, reduces abrasion, facilitates impregnation and acts like a coupling agent that
enhances compatibility with one or more types of resin.
Selection of reinforcement type greatly influences costs. This is not only because of the quality
and cost of the material itself, but also because higher cost material usually requires highly
skilled personnel, more sophisticated production facilities and often more labour hours.

Fiberglass
Fiberglass was first discovered in 1893 and was firstly made commercially available in 1936 as
insulation material. It became popular in the 1950’s, when some of the health hazards associated
with asbestos were becoming apparent. Due to the similarity in shape between the fiberglass and
the asbestos fibers, fiberglass was able to effectively replace asbestos in many applications such
as electrical, thermal, and acoustic insulation and structural reinforcement. Today it is the
dominant reinforcement fiber in composite construction, accounting for over 90% of worldwide
consumption. This is simply because it has good strength to weight characteristics, can be
processed easily and sells at a low price. Glass filaments are made relatively easily by extruding
molten glass. The diameters of the fibers produced range from 5 to 25 microns. Many different
types and qualities of glass sell for significantly different cost. The most widespread quality is
“E-glass”, “E” from the word Electric implies that it is an electrical insulator. It is low cost
product, used mostly in the marine industry. Others are “S-glass” and “S2-glass”, the letter “S”
comes from the word Strength implying that it has improved mechanical properties. These types
are much more expensive and used mostly in armor applications. “S” is certified as for the
production parameters. “AR glass” is resistant to alkali chemical attack. “C” or “T-glass” is
resistant to acid and corrosion. “A-glass” is glass with more alkali content similar to window
glass, and costs a bit less. Generally, when cost is a major driving force in the selection of a
reinforcing material, fiberglass is usually preferred.
More information about fiberglass.

Fiberglass is an attractive, lightweight (when compared to non composite products), durable

material. When fiberglass is impregnated with epoxy resin, the resulting composite has high
tensile strength and is stronger than steel on an equal weight basis. This high strength for its
relatively low weight is the primary reason why fiberglass composites became so popular, and
are widely used for many decades now. Glass fiber can be combined with other fiber material
such as Kevlar/Aramid creating a hybrid fabric. This way the properties of the composing fibers
are enhanced by synergy.

Fiberglass reinforcements are classified according to their properties. There are six major types
of glass used to make fibers.

1. E-glass is the most common type used for fiberglass production today (more than 50% of
the fibers made are from E-glass.) ‘E’ implies that it is an electrical insulator. It is
inexpensive and appropriate for general purposes.
2. S-glass, S2-glass, (‘S’ comes from Strength,) is (15%-25%) stronger than E-glass, has
higher modulus, improved mechanical properties, higher melt temperature and is
considerably more expensive.
3. C-glass or T-glass is very resistant to chemicals and corrosion.
4. A-glass is a high-alkali glass. It offers good chemical resistance, but has lower electrical
properties.
5. D-glass has a low dielectric constant and is used in circuit boards.
6. AR-glass is resistant to alkali environment.

Aramid
Aramid was invented by DuPont in 1960’s (“Kevlar” is the registered trade name of Dupont
aramid) as a result of research on nylon (polyamide) fibers. It was firstly introduced in the
market in the 1970’s as tire reinforcement and like fiberglass, as an asbestos substitute. The
chemical structure of aramid shows the aromatic benzene rings along the polymeric backbone.
The word aramid is a contraction of its chemical description–aromatic polyamides. Strength and
modulus of aramid are very good, density very low, UV resistance low and compression and
shear strength are similar to E glass. Its value comes from excellent toughness and resistance to
impact, damage, abrasion and heat (up to 500o C.)
The superior toughness of aramid is an outcome of the energy consuming failure mechanism of
its fibers. This energy absorbing failure mechanism makes it ideal for use in armor, military and
ballistic applications, like helmets and bullet-proof vests. Among many other very important
uses, it is used for firefighting protection, on the underside of airplanes (protection against stone
hits during take off and landing) and the under side of race cars. It is used generally in important
structures whenever impact, abrasion and/or heat is anticipated. It also blends very well and
works together with other fibers, like glass and carbon. Carbon-aramid “hybrid” constructions
bare the high strength and stiffness of carbon and the impact protection of aramid. Processing
aramid in composite fabrication is somewhat more difficult than fiberglass and carbon.
Toughness makes fabrics difficult to cut with conventional methods. Fiber wetout is more
difficult than fiberglass and carbon. Orthophthalic polyester resin will not adhere well to aramid
(isophthalic polyester is much better). Post fabricating aramid components, e.g. trimming off the
edges is also difficult. Quality cutting tools are recommended.
More information about aramid fiber.

Aramid fiber, or known by many as Kevlar (DuPont's brand name,) belongs in a family of synthetic
products characterized by strength (some five times stronger than steel on an equal weight basis) and
heat-resistance (some more than 500 degrees Celcius). It is appropriate for various applications such as
composites, ballistics, aerospace, automotive, protective clothing against heat/radiation/chemicals,
asbestos substitute, telecommunications (optical fiber cables) and many other.

The word aramid comes from a blend of the words "aromatic" and "polyamide" and is a general term for
a manufactured fiber in which the fiber forming substance is a long chain synthetic polyamide, in which
at least 85% is of amide linkages (-CO-NH-) attached directly to two aromatic rings, (as defined by the
U.S Federal Trade Commission.)

Three aramid fiber manufacturers share most of the aramid market worldwide: DuPont in US makes
aramid under the brand name “Kevlar” and “Nomex”. Teijin in Japan makes aramid by the brand name
“Twaron” and “Technora”. Last, Kolon Industries in South Korea makes aramid by the brand name
“Heracron”. Fibermax Composites is a reliable Twaron and Kevlar aramid fiber processor and offers
readymade fabrics, for composites and ballistic protection, with worldwide shipping capability.

Characteristics of Armid

Fiber structure: A series of synthetic polymers in which repeating units containing large phenyl
rings are linked together by amide groups. Amide groups (CO-NH) form strong bonds that are
resistant to solvents and heat. Phenyl rings (or aromatic rings) are bulky six-sided groups of
carbon and hydrogen atoms that prevent polymer chains from rotating and twisting around their
chemical bonds.

Fiber properties: They are characterized by medium to ultra-high strength, medium to low
elongation and moderately high to ultra-high modulus with the densities ranging from 1.38g/cm3
to 1.47g/cm3. Heat-resistant and flame-resistant aramid fibers contain high proportion or meta-
oriented phenylene rings, whereas ultra-high strength high-modulus fibers contain mainly para-
oriented phenylene rings.

Chemical properties: All aramids contain amide links that are hydrophilic. However, not all
aramid products absorb moisture the same. The PPD-T (poly-phenylene terephthalamide) fiber
has very good resistance to many organic solvents and salt, but strong acids can cause substantial
loss of strength. Aramid fibers are difficult to dye due to their high Tg. Also, the aromatic nature
of para-aramid is responsible for oxidative reactions when exposed to UV light, that leads to a
change in color and loss of some strength.

Thermal properties: Aramid fibers do not melt in the conventional sense but decompose
simultaneously. They burn only with difficulty because of Limited Oxygen Index (LOI) values.
It should be mentioned that at 300oC some aramid types can still retain about 50% of their
strength. Aramids show high crystallinity which results in negligible shrinkage at high
temperature.
Mechanical properties: Aramid yarn has a breaking tenacity of 3045 MPa, in other words more
than 5 times than this of steel (under water, aramid is 4 times stronger) and twice than this of
glass fiber or nylon. High strength is a result of its aromatic and amide group and high
crystallinity. Aramid retains strength and modulus at temperatures as high as 300oC. It behaves
elastically under tension. When it comes to severe bending, it shows non-linear plastic
deformation. With tension fatigue, no failure is observed even at impressively high loads and
cycle times. Creep strain for aramid is only 0.3%.

To sum up, aramid general characteristics are:

- High strength
- Resistance to absorption
- Resistance to organic solvent, good chemical resistance
- No conductivity
- No melting point
- Low flammability
- Excellent heat, and cut resistance
- Sensitive to acids and ultraviolet radiation

Hybrid armid aplications

Aramid/Kevlar fibers can be used as reinforcement alone, but also combined with other fibers. This way
the properties of the composing fibers are enhanced by synergy. Synergy is the interaction of multiple
elements in a system to produce an effect different from or greater than the sum of their individual
effects [definition from wikipedia]. In other words, when two or more fibers are combined, the resulting
material has a tendency to keep the «good» properties and drop the «bad» ones. For this reason, hybrid
fabrics woven in many styles are usually a favorite choice of many composites manufacturers and are
used extensively. Aramid fibers can be woven to hybrid fabrics with:

Carbon fiber
Examples
- In plain weave (CK170P

Description

Areal weight: 165 g / m2

Weaving style: Plain
Available width: 1.20 meters
Warp: 3K TR30S carbon fiber + aram. 1260, 50%, 3.3+1.7=5 ends(threads) / cm
Weft: 3K TR30S carbon fiber + aram. 1260, 50%, 1.7+3.3=5 ends / cm

MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF FIBERS USED

Carbon:
Tensile strength (MPa): 4410
Tensile modulus (GPa): 235
Elongation at break (%): 1.9
Aramid:
Tensile strength (MPa): 2987
Tensile modulus (GPa): 91
Elongation at break (%): 3.10
 Please click on picture, for a closer view to the fabric's real size. To realize actual size
with precision please observe the threads / cm feature mentioned above.

DISCLAIMER
All information herein is given for guidance and general information purposes only,
represents typical properties, and should not be used for specification limits purposes
or basis for design. Fibermax Composites reserves the right to make modifications on
fabrics, change yarns, specifications, and all information given herein, without notice.
It is only on written certificates and agreements that we provide our customers with
warrants for the quality and/or advise for the suitability of products for particular uses.
Data sheets and certificates of conformity are promptly provided upon request with roll
serial number, for all 100 lm rolls.)

- In twill weave (CK210T2)

Fiberglass
Examples
- In plain weave (KG251P)

- In twill weave (KG250T2)

- In multi-axials (KG376X)

Vectran fiber (V200T2)

Polyester-Diolen fiber (KP185P)

Other more complex combinations (CKPG251P)

Armid composite

In a world where lightweight and durable composites are increasingly replacing conventional materials,
aramid and para-aramid fibers play an important role. They are essential for reinforcing composites
where weight reduction and excellent damage tolerance are required. Many different kinds of
composite goods are reinforced with aramid because of the strength, stiffness and dimensional stability
of laminates that contain it. Aramid and Kevlar fibers are compatible or can be used with many types of
resin systems. The best choice of resin system is epoxy as it adheres best to the fiber surface. Vinyl
ester, and isophthalic polyester may also be used. Orthopthalic polyester should be avoided as it does
not provide sufficient adhesion to the fiber.

Carbon
Carbon has the highest strength and highest price of all reinforcement fibers used in composites
today. It was invented in the UK in early 1960s at the Royal Aircraft Establishment at
Farnborough, Hampshire. The most common method of making carbon fiber is the oxidation and
thermal pyrolysis of an organic precursor, polyacrylonitrile (a polymer fiber based on
acrylonitrile.) When heated in the correct conditions, the non-carbon constituents evaporate
away. The resulting fiber is 93–95% carbon. Instead of PAN as a precursor, carbon fiber can also
be manufactured from pitch or rayon. The size, or thickness of Carbon tows is measured in “k”
or thousands of filaments. A 3k tow has 3,000 filaments and a 12k has 12,000. Carbon fibers
exhibit: substantially better strength and stiffness values than all the others, outstanding
temperature performance, high electrical and low thermal conductivity. Impact or damage
tolerance of pure carbon composite products can be from relatively low to very poor, and greatly
depends on processing method. Despite that, when weight on a composite product is important,
carbon fiber is the reinforcement to use.
More information about carbon fiber.

Carbon fibers have high tensile strength, and are very light and very stable. Carbon crystals are bonded
together in a chain, creating a very strong material, which compared to steel is 5 times stronger on an
equal weight basis. Carbon fiber diameter is very small, it ranges from 5-10 microns. Production and
consumption of carbon fibers has grown recently because of their great mechanical properties. High
manufacturing cost is balanced by its high strength in both tension and compression, and high resistance
to corrosion, creep and fatigue, low weight and high performance.

Woven Carbon fabric is used in various applications like marine, sporting goods, defense and many
others. The two most common weaving styles are «plain» and «twill». Both have an equal amount of
carbon fiber going each direction, and their strengths are quite similar. Other styles are satin,
unidirectional, biaxial. Alternatively, fabrics can be added to a resin system (like epoxy) that hardens,
and this way structural composite parts are formed. Since resin systems are strong low density
materials, the composite part is also very strong and light-weight at the same time.

The dominant raw material for carbon fiber manufacturing is polyacrylonitrile (PAN), pitch follows, and a
very small amount of carbon fibers are derived from rayon.

Carbon fibers are usually grouped according to the modulus or strength band in which their properties
belong. These bands are commonly referred as: high strength, intermediate modulus, high modulus and
ultra high modulus etc. These references for carbon fiber quality are not very clear, as different
companies that produce different qualities may consider or evaluate certain quality differently. PAN
fiber density ranges from 1.75gr/cm3 to 1.90gr/cm3. PAN tensile strength can be as high as 1000Ksi.

Main advantage

Over other materials, carbon fiber offers many advantages. The main advantageous
characteristics are:

 High strength
 Light in weight
 Corrosion resistance
 Excellent creep resistance
 Good thermal and electrical conductivity
 Compatible with most resin systems
 Very high dimensional stability
 Low thermal expansion coefficient
 X-ray permeability
 Carbon fiber application

Carbon fiber is preferred to many applications, as it outperforms many other fiber materials. It is
mainly used to high quality products to replace fiberglass, wood or alloys, as it offers lower
weight, higher stiffness and better fatigue resistance. Also, as attention on environmental issues
is increasing, carbon fiber use has grown. For instance, carbon fiber can reduce the vehicle
weight and consequently fuel consumption. At the same time, composite product manufacturing
has much less carbon footprint than metal (product) manufacturing, so this way there is an
additional, (not so obvious to realize) positive impact on the environment.

Examples of carbon manufactured products are:

 Sporting goods: Surf boards, bikes, fishing rods, tennis rackets, hokey sticks, running
shoes.
 Automotive – motor racing: Bodywork parts (like doors, hoods etc,) structural
components (like chassis,) mechanical (like drive shafts) and protection (like helmets,
shock absorbers.)
 Marine: Manufacturing of boats, yachts and ships, structural and non-structural parts.
 Defense and aerospace: Aircrafts, vehicles, armor etc.
 Musical instruments: Guitars (and other stringed,) drums, as well as wind instruments.
 Wind industry: Turbine blades.
 Electronic fields: Printed circuit, house electronic equipment, PCs, camera bodies.
 Medical science: Wheel chairs, artificial body parts, x-ray transparent operation tables.

 Construction: Bridge building, building close to sea and harsh weather conditions, old
building rehabilitation.
 Environment and energy fields: Fuel batteries, oil industry.

Due to carbon fibers great properties, a significant growth in the carbon fiber market is expected.
For any application, in order to produce high quality products with carbon fiber, high skills and
technical equipment are required.

Carbon structure

he atomic structure of carbon fiber is similar to that of graphite, consisting of carbon atom layers
arranged in a hexagonal pattern. Depending on precursors and manufacturing process, the layers
might be turbostratic, graphitic or in a hybrid structure. In graphitic structure the sheets are
stacked parallel in a regular fashion. Bonding between planes is weak, giving graphite its soft
characteristics. Carbon fibers made of PAN are turbostratic and can provide higher strength,
while pitch can provide higher modulus.
Hybrid
When different types of reinforcing fibers are combined, usually woven in a fabric, the result is a
hybrid fiber reinforcement.
Hybrid fabrics are a weaved mixture of two or more different types of fiber yarns. This mixing is
generally utilized in order to take advantage of the good properties and characteristics of each
reinforcement type, while at the same time mitigating the effects of their less preferable
properties (synergy effect). A similar synergy result could be obtained by two or more layers of
the different materials, however on the other hand, hybrid fabrics also prevent or reduce the
possibility of delamination. This happens because on hybrid fabrics the different types of yarns
are woven into each other, thus making the whole thickness of the laminate skin material more
uniform, (avoiding layers of different materials, that have different mechanical properties, with
higher concentration of stress and mechanical loads at the point of surface contact of different
material layers).
Read more about possible fiber combinations in hybrid composites.

Carbon kevlar is a term that is used to describe mixed type of reinforcing carbon and kevlar
fibers for composite laminates.
In applications where very thin, light weight hybrid laminates are required, a hybrid, carbon
Kevlar fabric would allow the two types of fibers to appear in one single thin layer of fabric
instead of two, alternating threads of each fiber in both directions, saving weight and reducing
cost.
In other applications it is possible to have only one fiber running on the weft direction and the
other on the warp direction. A laminate like this would exhibit carbon properties in one direction
and Kevlar or aramid on the other. The special composites effect is called anisotropy. Anisotropy
effect is greatly valued in most composite applications.

Carbon aramid hybrid constructions bear the high tensile strength and stiffness of carbon and the
high impact resistance of aramid. Both fibers have low density and are relatively expensive.
Carbon aramid hybrid fabrics are used in aerospace and marine applications, in construction,
transportation, and for decorative purposes. An example of using hybrids in aerospace
applications is to utilize the natural toughness of Kevlar to offset the brittleness of typical carbon
fiber. Carbon aramid hybrids have low thermal stress compared to other (hybrids), increased
modulus and compressive strength compared to 100% aramid design, and increased strength
compared to full carbon design.

Other possible fiber combinations in hybrid composites are:

 Aramid-Glass: The high impact resistance and strength of aramid fiber combines with the
good compressive and tensile strength of glass. The aramid glass laminate has also
improved delamination resistance.
 Carbon-Glass: Carbon fiber exhibits high tensile strength and stiffness, glass reduces the
cost, and this mix results in a strong material, with somewhat improved impact resistance
at reasonable price.

Hybridization by increasing carbon content in selected areas is used to increase strength or

stiffness at this specific area, whereas with kevlar aramid, glass or other fiber material in carbon
to make it locally softer.

Conclusion:
Combining materials in composites manufacturing can optimize the overall performance of the
final product. It can also affect cost as hybrid fabric may be less expensive compared to using
only expensive fibers. For example, add a proportion of cheaper glass fiber to reduce cost of
expensive composites with carbon fiber. Moreover, using hybrids allows even closer tailoring of
composites properties to suit better desired requirements.

High modulus polyester - Diolen

HMP and Diolen are high strength polyester fibers. Such fibers have been used in industrial
applications for many decades, in a wide field of applications like tire reinforcement, safety
belts, ropes and nets. Recognition of their value in composite applications for aerospace, defense,
marine and transportation has come in the late years. They are used both as primary
reinforcement and in hybrid arrangements with fiberglass and aramid. Toughness makes them
ideal for use on the outside layers of composite construction for impact protection. Placed on the
outside layers they also protect aramid and glass from moisture (and blistering) and being
smooth, they reduce print-through. At the same time, their very low density also makes them
ideal for use in the middle layers, where working as a core material, they add stiffness to the
structure. Other attractive features include good impact and fatigue resistance, and potential for
vibration damping. Generally, properties of Diolen resemble the properties of aramid at lower
level, but its reasonable price and reliability make it attractive. Diolen performance at elevated
temperature falls off. It should not be used in above 200o F applications. Processing is easier than
this of aramid, but not as easy as fiberglass and carbon.

Vectran
Vectran is the outcome of 30 years research on liquid crystal polymer (LCP) fibers. 100% of
world production is now owned by one company, Kuraray Co., Ltd. Annual production is only
600 tons in 2007, but is growing at a rate of about 10% a year. This fiber is formed by melt
extrusion of LCP through fine diameter capillaries. It is used in aerospace composites and many
other high value industry applications. It exhibits high strength and modulus, excellent creep
resistance, high abrasion resistance, excellent flex/fold characteristics, minimal moisture
absorption, excellent chemical resistance, high dielectric strength, outstanding cut resistance,
high impact resistance, outstanding vibration damping characteristics, very good property
retention at high/low temperatures (melting point of 330 °C, with progressive strength loss from
220 °C.) They have gold color, similar to aramid, but are usually painted in other colors for
cosmetic purposes. Vectran also adheres to resins better than aramid. Among others, it should be
used in applications where weight and impact resistance are important.