Flow-Induced Alignment in Composite Materials

1. Flow-induced alignment in composite materials: current applications and future prospects
Andre Benard
2. Fiber-fiber and fiber-wall interactions during the flow of non-dilute suspensions
3. Closure Models for flow induced orientation
Andre Benard
4. Macroscopic modelling of the evolution of fibre orientation during flow
Julien Ferec, Phan-Thien Nhan and Gilles Ausias
5. Flow-induced alignment in injection molding of fiber-reinforced polymer composites
Athanasios Papathanasiou and Ines Kühnert
6. Control and manipulation of fibre orientation in large scale processing
7. Theory and simulation of flow-induced microstructures in liquid crystalline materials
Alejandro Rey and Edtson Emilio Herrera Valencia
8. Mesostructural characterisation of aligned fibre composites
9. Materials property modelling and design of short fibre composites
10. (nano)-Fiber Orientation in Micro-Scale Flows
Sam Kenig

The purpose of aligning short fibers in a fiber-reinforced material is to improve the mechanical properties of the resulting composite. Aligning the fibers, generally in a preferred direction, allows them to contribute as much as possible to reinforcing the material.

The first edition of this book detailed, in a single volume, the science, processing, applications, characterization and properties of composite materials reinforced with short fibers that have been orientated in a preferred direction by flows arising during processing.

The technology of fiber-reinforced composites is continually evolving and this new edition provides timely and much needed information about this important class of engineering materials.

Each of the original chapters have been brought fully up-to-date and new developments such as: the advent of nano-composites and the issues relating to their alignment; the wider use of long-fiber composites and the appearance of models able to capture their orientation during flow; the wider use of flows in micro-channels in the context of composites fabrication; and the increase in computing power, which has made relevant simulations (especially coupling flow kinematics to fiber content and orientation) much easier to perform are all covered in detail.

The book will be an essential up-to-date reference resource for materials scientists, students, and engineers who are working in the relevant areas of particulate composites, short fiber-reinforced composites or nanocomposites.

• Presents recent progress on flow-induced alignment, modelling and design of fiber and particulate filled polymer composites
• Discusses important advances such as alignment of CNTs in polymer nanocomposites and molecular alignment of polymers induced by the injection molding process in the presence of fillers such as short fibers
• Presents fiber interaction/diffusion modelling and also the fiber flexure/breakage models

Scientists, students, engineers and technicians working in the relevant areas of particulate composites, short fiber-reinforced composites or nanocomposites