Thermal transfer, interfacial, and mechanical properties of carbon fiber/polycarbonate-CNT composites using infrared thermography

Electrical resistance (ER) and thermogram measurements were used to evaluate thermal transfer, interfacial and mechanical properties of carbon fiber reinforced thermoplastic polycarbonate composites. Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were fairly uniformly dispersed in polycarbonates using a solvent dispersion method. The CNTs were then further dispersed with an additional time using a twin screw extruder. The effect of CNT on the mechanical properties of polycarbonate was evaluated using a thin film tensile test. For thermogram to evaluate the transferring temperature the composite was placed on a hotplate and copper wires were inserted in the composite at uniform thickness intervals. Due to the different inherent thermal conductivity of CNT, ER was measured to detect thermal changes in the carbon fiber/CNT-polycarbonate composites. The comparison of interlaminar shear strength (ILSS) was to investigate effects of CNT on mechanical and interfacial properties. The uniform distribution of CNTs affected all of these properties in carbon fiber-reinforced thermoplastic composite. Furthermore, heat transfer and heat release become more rapid with the addition of CNT than the without case.