Nanocomposite Interphases for Improved Transparent Polymer Composite Materials

Abstract

The U.S. Army has a critical need for a lighter, more varied array of visibly transparent materials which are currently limited to a handful of and ceramics. This limitation restricts the design of lightweight transparent laminates since only a narrow range of mechanical properties are available, and the proper design of these structures often relies on the engineer's ability to specify the acoustic impedance of each layer. Composite materials offer the ability to tailor mechanical properties but, due to scattering at multiple interfaces, are not typically transparent unless the refractive indices (RI) of composite constituents (e.g., glass fibers and polymer matrix) are well matched.

Open PDF

Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Aug 01, 2008
Accession Number
ADA486614

Entities

People

  • Daniel J. O'brien
  • James R. Heflin
  • Jason Ridley
  • Jason Robinette

Organizations

  • United States Army Research Laboratory

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Advanced Electronics
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Chemistry
  • Composite Materials
  • Fibers
  • Glass Fibers
  • Laminates
  • Manufacturing
  • Materials
  • Materials Laboratories
  • Materials Processing
  • Materials Science
  • Mechanical Properties
  • Nanocomposites
  • Nanoparticles
  • Optical Materials
  • Polymer Matrix Composites
  • Refractive Index
  • Self Assembly

Fields of Study

  • Materials science
  • Physics

Readers

  • Reinforced Composite Materials
  • Systems Analysis and Design