Effects of interface characteristics on mechanical properties of carbon nanotube reinforced polymer composites

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) possess exceptional mechanical properties and are therefore suitable candidates for use as reinforcements in composite materials. To take full advantage of their exceptional properties, load sharing mechanisms needs to be understood in the composite materials. Load transfer in composites is achieved through the fibre/matrix interface. In the present paper, finite element method is used to investigate the effects of interface behaviour on carbon nanotube based composite mechanical properties. The effective nanocomposite mechanical properties are evaluated using a three-dimensional nanoscale representative volume element (RVE). In this RVE approach, a single nanotube and the surrounding polymer matrix are modelled. Two cases of perfect bonding and an elastic interface are considered. In addition, the rule of mixtures relations is used to validate the results of numerical models. The results indicate that mechanical properties of nanocomposite materials are significantly influenced by the interface strength.