Analysis of fibre degradation in metal matrix composites

Fibre length significant role in stress transfer mechanism in metal matrix composites. A model study has been carried out to investigate reduction in fibre length occurring at various processing stages, for example compounding, palletising and injection molding. For this purpose, three composites mixtures were prepared to study the effects of fibre volume fraction and viscosity in fibre length reduction. The result in fibre length reduction were also compared with mouldings produced by conventional and multiple live feed Molding Device (MLFMD). The research concluded that fibre volume fraction and viscosity causes increases in fibre degradation, however MLFMD did not cause excessive damage to the fibre length in molded components. (author)