Mechanical performance of UHMWPE composites subjected to different fiber surface treatments

The growing demand for lightweight high-performance materials has expanded the use of composite materials, and especially of polymers reinforced with various kinds of fibers. UHMWPE fiber-reinforced epoxy composites exhibit excellent mechanical properties, such as high specific strength and high specific stiffness, light weight and designability. Therefore, these composites have attracted extensive attention and are widely used in many fields. Nevertheless, poor interfacial adhesion between UHMWPE fibers and epoxy matrix, due to the nonpolar and smooth UHMWPE surface, hinders their broad application. Massive efforts have been made to improve the interfacial properties of UHMWPE fiber reinforced epoxy composites, including chemical, physical and mechanical treatments. In this work, within a research project funded by Fondazione Ente Cassa di Risparmio di Firenze (INCIPIT, id:22044), different environmentally friendly surface treatments have been applied on fibers, and the mechanical properties of the obtained epoxy-matrix composites have been determined.