Study on properties of basalt continuous fiber reinforced PMMA composites by vacuum assisted resin infusion (VARI)

In the preparation of continuous fiber-reinforced composites, the replacement of thermosetting resin by thermoplastic resin is an inevitable trend of development. In this study, PMMA+MMA binary liquid resin (PMBLR) with different viscosities was prepared by adjusting different molecular weights of poly (methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) and its concentration in methyl methacrylate (MMA). PMMA/basalt fiber (BF) composite laminates were prepared by employing Benzoyl peroxide (BPO) and N, N-dimethylaniline (DMA) as the redox initiator to fabricate the casting and the PMMA/BF composite by VARI. The mechanical properties were measured and compared between PMMA/BF and Epoxy/BF composites. It was found that the PMMA castings exhibit optimal mechanical properties at a Mn of 5.2 x 104 g/mol and a PMMA to MMA mass ratio of 29/100 with the viscosity of 307 mPa<middle dot>s. The mechanical properties of PMMA/BF composites were tested, which suggested that 90 degrees tensile strength, tensile modulus, flexural strength, and short beam shear strength are higher than those of BF/epoxy composites. The 90 degrees tensile strength and tensile modulus of BP2-c are 14.08% and 2.37% higher than those of BEp, respectively. The flexural strength of BP2-c is 24.31% higher than that of BEp, and the short beam shear strength is 12.75% higher than that of BEp.Highlights A continuous basalt fiber-reinforced PMMA/BF composite by VARI was prepared. The mechanical properties of PMMA/BF were comparable to those of the Epoxy/BF composite.