History of Composites

Many individuals in the twentieth century would have associated composites primarily with aerospace applications such as planes or space craft. From the 1970s onward, this view changed as composites began to be increasingly utilized in sporting equipment, such as skis and tennis racquets. 

The demarcation between polymers and composites is often a subject of debate. As a general rule, we will define composites to be materials that have distinct 

Prehistory Straw reinforced mud bricks used in construction of the pyramids 

1942 Fiberglass/polyester composite parts for airplanes produced by Owens-Coming 

However, we will confine our discussion to composites that do not naturally occur, but result from the purposeful joining together of two or more dissimilar materials to take advantage of desirable properties of each (or to lessen the imdesirable properties of either). 

Steel-belted tires (a polymer/metal composite) and later aramid-reir forced tires (a polymer/polymer composite) greatly improved the safety of tires against blowouts. Carbon in the form of lampblack is added to vulcanized rubber (a polymer/ceramic assuming carbon is considered a ceramic) as an inexpensive filler that strengthens and 

Composites were introduced into nonmilitary aircraft by pioneers such as Bert Rutan, whose Voyager airplane that flew nonstop around the world without refueling and his SpaceShipOne that won the X-prize built almost entirely from laminated composites. Rutan s company. Scaled Composites is known for its use of nonmetal, fiber-composite materials in the development of concept aircraft, and prototype fabrication processes. 

Some of the composites have also been in the consumer market for some time. In addition to plywood, homebuilders and furniture makers are making extensive use of particle board (woodchips in a polymer matrix) because of its superior dimensional stability. Often it is laminated to a wood veneer for use as furniture. Decorative vinyl-clad steel or aluminum panels are used in office buildings. Generally, the more advanced composites such fiber-reinforced metals and ceramics have been too expensive for 

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Brent S A (2002), History of composite materials — Opportunities and necessities . Composites Manufacturing, 1-8. 

Van der Straeten, E. (1993). Adhesive-bonded joints in wooden aircraft, 1920-1945 techniques and materials. Unpublished paper presented at a seminar on The History of Composites, at the Aeronautical Department of the Science Museum, London. 

To gain an understanding of the composition of the reservoir rock, inter-reservoir seals and the reservoir pore system it is desirable to obtain an undisturbed and continuous reservoir core sample. Cores are also used to establish physical rock properties by direct measurements in a laboratory. They allow description of the depositional environment, sedimentary features and the diagenetic history of the sequence. 

A general prerequisite for the existence of a stable interface between two phases is that the free energy of formation of the interface be positive were it negative or zero, fluctuations would lead to complete dispersion of one phase in another. As implied, thermodynamics constitutes an important discipline within the general subject. It is one in which surface area joins the usual extensive quantities of mass and volume and in which surface tension and surface composition join the usual intensive quantities of pressure, temperature, and bulk composition. The thermodynamic functions of free energy, enthalpy and entropy can be defined for an interface as well as for a bulk portion of matter. Chapters II and ni are based on a rich history of thermodynamic studies of the liquid interface. The phase behavior of liquid films enters in Chapter IV, and the electrical potential and charge are added as thermodynamic variables in Chapter V. 

Tool life tests are used to evaluate the effects of changes in tool materials, cutting variables, processing history, workpiece composition, or workpiece microstmcture. Tool life, T, and cutting speed, can be related by the following equation ... 

Composites. The history of phenoHc resin composites goes back to the early development of phenoHc materials, when wood flour, minerals, and colorants were combined with phenoHc resins to produce mol ding compounds. In later appHcations, resin varnishes were developed for kraft paper and textile fabrics to make decorative and industrial laminates. Although phenoHcs have been well characterized in glass-reinforced composites, new developments continue in this area, such as new systems for Hquid-injection molding (LIM) and sheet-molding compounds (SMC). More compHcated composite systems are based on aramid and graphite fibers. 

The phases and their proportions present ia hardened amalgam are controlled by many factors. The composition of the alloy the size, shape, and size distribution of the particles the thermal history of the cast ingot and the comminuted alloy and the surface treatment of the particles are some of the factors for which the manufacturer is responsible. The tooth cavity preparation and the mixing, compacting, and finishing techniques of the dentist can make the difference between satisfactory and unsatisfactory restorations, even with the best of alloys. A minimal amount of residual mercury and porosity are needed to obtain the most serviceable restorations (138). 

The elemental composition of the fish otoliths is a potential source of the useful information to recreate environment history of the individual fish in some of the species. In-depth study of the chemical composition of the otolith center (formed eaidy in fish life) and otolith edge (formed later in fish life) ensures chronological and environmental information stored in the otoliths [1]. This infoiTnation may be achieved by X-ray electron probe microanalysis (EPMA). EPMA is the analytical method to determine the elemental composition of different otolith s parts, their sizes varying from ten up to some tens of microns. 

The basic nature of composite materials was introduced in Chapter 1. An overall classification scheme was presented, and the mechanical behavior aspects of composite materials that differ from those of conventional materials were described in a qualitative fashion. The book was then restricted to laminated fiber-reinforced composite mafeffals. The basic definitions and how such materials are made were then treated. Finally, the current and potential advantages of composite materials were discussed along with some case histories that clearly reveal how composite materials are used in structures. 

Transmission electron microscopic observaiion reveals various morphologies of precipitates depending upon the constituents and composition of an alloy system, history of heat treatments etc. Typical examples are spherical precipitates found in Nl-Cr-Al system and cuboidal precipitates in Fe-Mo system [1]. The first question raised is what determines the shape of a precipitate. 

PET, see Polyethylene terephthalate Petit, Rowland, 524 Petroleum, catalytic cracking of, 100 composition of, 99-100 gasoline from. 99-100 history of, 99 refining of, 99-100 Pharmaceuticals, approval procedure for, 165 origin of, 164 Phenol(s), 599... 

The physicochemical properties of carbon are highly dependent on its surface structure and chemical composition [66—68], The type and content of surface species, particle shape and size, pore-size distribution, BET surface area and pore-opening are of critical importance in the use of carbons as anode material. These properties have a major influence on (9IR, reversible capacity <2R, and the rate capability and safety of the battery. The surface chemical composition depends on the raw materials (carbon precursors), the production process, and the history of the carbon. Surface groups containing H, O, S, N, P, halogens, and other elements have been identified on carbon blacks [66, 67]. There is also ash on the surface of carbon and this typically contains Ca, Si, Fe, Al, and V. Ash and acidic oxides enhance the adsorption of the more polar compounds and electrolytes [66]. 

It is now widely accepted that the compositions of the atmosphere and world ocean are dynamically controlled. The atmosphere and the ocean are nearly homogeneous with respect to most major chemical constituents. Each can be viewed as a reservoir for which processes add material, remove material, and alter the compositions of substances internally. The history of the relative rates of these processes determines the concentrations of substances within a reservoir and the rate at which concentrations change. Commonly, only a few processes predominate in determining the flux of a substance between reservoirs. In turn, particular features of a predominant process are often critical in controlling the flux of a phase through that process. These are rate-controlling steps. 

Figure 1. Bow development for two cooling histories of the composite panel. At the figure, the bow (m) is plotted versus cooling time (sec) for two cooling regimes. (Reprinted with permission from ref. 7. Copyright 1986 SPI, Inc.)...

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