Composite Materials

1. 1
Gaziantep University
College of Engineering
Civil Engineering Department
REPORT ON
Fiberglass
Submitted by
Mohammed Layth Abbas
Student No:201444956
Supervisor
Assoc.Prof. Erhan Güneyisi
CE 543
(composite Materials)

2. 2
Types of Fiber Reinforcement
There are many different types of fibers that can be used to reinforce
polymer matrix composites. The most common are carbon fibers
(AS4, IM7, etc.) and fiberglass (S-glass, E-glass, etc.). As with the
matrix, the fiber chosen will be determined by the end application
Fiberglass
Fiberglass is, as its name implies, glass that has been spun into the
form of fibers. Fiberglass is not as strong or stiff as carbon fibers, but
it has characteristics that make it desirable in many applications.
Fiberglass is non-conductive (i.e. an insulator) and it is generally
invisible to most types of transmissions. This makes it a good choice
when dealing with electrical or broadcast applications.
Glass Compositions
There are two known types of glass fiber: continuous and staple
fibers, which differ in their properties, purpose, and production
technology. Continuous fiber has an indefinitely large length and
rectilinear parallel arrangement of filaments in strands, whereas
staple fiber has a limited length and a tortuousand chaotic
arrangement of filaments in space.
There are major types of fiberglass;
 A-glass (alkali glass) Soda lime silicate glasses used which has
good chemical resistance, but lower electrical properties.
 C-glass (chemical glass) Calcium borosilicate glasses used
which has very high chemical resistance.
 E-glass (electrical glass) Alumina-calcium-borosilicate glasses
with a maximum alkali content of 2 wt. % used which is an
excellent insulator and resists attacks from water.
 S-Glass (structural glass) which is optimized for mechanical
properties.
 D-glass (dielectric glass) Borosilicate glasses which has the
best electrical properties but lacks in mechanical properties
when compared to E and S glass.

3. 3
 S-2 Magnesium aluminosilicate glasses used for textile
substrates or reinforcement in composite structural
applications which require high strength, modulus, and
stability under extreme temperature and corrosive
environments.
E-glass and S-glass are, by far, the most common types found in
composites. These types have good combinations of chemical
resistance, mechanical properties and insulating properties. Of the
two, E-glass offers the more attractive economics, and S-glass offers
better mechanical performance.

4. 4
Glass Filament Typical Mechanical properties

5. 5
Properties of Class Fiber
Properties that have made glass fibers so popular in glass fibre
reinforced composites include:
 Low cost
 High production rates
 High strength,
 High stiffness
 Relatively low density
 Non-flammable
 Resistant to heat
 Good chemical resistance
 Relatively insensitive to moisture
 Able to maintain strength properties over a wide range of
conditions
 Good electrical insulation

6. 6

7. 7
Single-fiber tensile strength at 23◦C for various glass fiber compositions

8. 8

9. 9
Inherent Advantages of Continuous Glass Fibers
Fiberglass brings with it a unique set of advantages that set it
apart from the rest of the field. These can be summarized as
follows:

10. 11
Applications
 Transportation
 Electrical/Electronics
 Building Construction
 Infrastructure
 Aerospace/Defense
 Consumer/Recreation
 Medical Products