Effect of cure temperature on the thermal degradation, mechanical, microstructural and moisture absorption behavior of vacuum‐only, carbon‐fiber reinforced phenolic composites

Abstract

Phenolic resin is the material of choice used for composite liners in solid rocket motor nozzles. We investigate the effect of the cure conditions (94, 116, and 155 C) on vacuum only (VO) processed composite mechanical, thermal, and microstructural changes. Although the T g 's correlated with the processing conditions, mechanical properties showed unexpected non-linear degradation after 94 C processing. This difference is primarily due to the lower cure state of the

Surface Characteristics of Phenolic Resin Coatings

“…This is supported by the work of Zhao et al [65] who studied the effects of moisture on the relaxation mechanisms of cross-linked PF-resins and found that water acts as a plasticiser by breaking hydrogen bonds between the hydroxyl groups of the network. Additionally, Zaldivar et al [7] observed a decrease in glass transition temperature (T g ) for carbon fibre-phenolic resin composites with increasing moisture content, where the strength of the decrease was influenced by the state of cure.…”

“…The term 'phenolic resin' (PR) refers to a versatile class of polymers with an equally versatile range of applications. PRs are used for instance as adhesives and coatings for wood and metal substrates, and their varied applicability is due to their favourable cost, a plethora of options for chemical modifications [1][2][3][4], and good mechanical and fire-retardant properties [5][6][7] after curing.…”

“…The use of PRs however is not limited to just wood, and they can also be employed in ablative materials for air-and spacecraft [7,22], often in the form of a composite reinforced with carbon materials [23], and as binders for fibrous materials such as glass fibres and stone wool [2,[24][25][26].…”

The effect of heat-treatment temperature (HTT) on the carbon matrix development of both polyarylacetylene-and phenolic-derived carbon–Carbon (C/C) composites

“…The evolution of these gaseous by-products has been one of the primary causes for catastrophic delaminations in phenolic-derived composites during C/C manufacturing. 12 A large contributing factor to the mechanical performance of C/C composites relies on the development of the matrix microstructure with temperature. The conversion of carbon into graphite is one of the most fundamental aspects of carbon materials science and has been the subject of considerable study.…”

“…The evolution of these gaseous by-products has been one of the primary causes for catastrophic delaminations in phenolic-derived composites during C/C manufacturing. 12…”