Application of composites

1. Application of Composites in
Sporting Goods
Prepared by:
Dilpreet Bajwa
Chad Ulven
Chris Dahlen
James Helphrey

2. 2
They can be defined as a material with two (or more)
distinct macroscopical phases. Fibers embedded in or
bonded to a matrix with distinct interfaces between
the two constituent phases
Eg. Concrete
Composite Materials
Stone Age -> Bronze Age -> Iron Age -> Composite Age
Silver – Copper Alloy reinforced with
Carbon Fibers
Iron Bars in the Cement
Matrix
Matrix
Dispersed
Phase

3. Reasons for Composite
• Tailored Properties
• Lightweight
• High Strength
• Specific Strength
• High Stiffness
• High Strength
• Design Flexibility
• Vibration Damping

4. 4
Uses of Composites
Graphite Snowboard
Composite Bicycle
Laminated
Fiberglass Bow

5. 5
Uses of Composites
Composite Baseball
Bat from Miken
Sports

6. Uses of Composites

7. Sports Skis Snowboards
Snowboard Bindings Inline Skates
Nordic Skis Nordic Ski Poles Nordic
Ski Boots Snowshoes
Uses of Composites

8. Composite Fishing Rods
Uses of Composites

9. 9
Uses of Composites
Dodge Viper
Front grill of an Automobile Different part of an airplane

10. Composite Blade

11. 11
Types of Fibers and Architecture
Fiber Glass
Graphite Fiber
Kevlar Fiber
Kevlar/Carbon Hybrid

12. 12
Polymer – Thermoset, Thermoplastic, Elastomer
Metallic – Al, Ti, Mg, and Cu Alloys
Ceramic – Si Alloys
Polymer (Thermoset) – Epoxy, Polyester,
Vinyl Esters
Fibers – Glass, Carbon, Graphite, Natural
fibers (flax, sisal, cotton, hemp etc)
Composite Materials

13. 13
Laminated Composites
Laminated composites can be thought of as sheets of
continuous fiber composites laminated such that each
layer has the fiber oriented in a given direction.

14. 14
Stress:
Stress is defined as the average force per unit
area.
Basic Strength of Materials
Strain:
A deformation produced by stress. It’s the
ratio of difference in length to the actual length.
Strain is always dimensionless.
L
Strain

 
,
2
or
(Pa)
Pascal
-
Units
,
m
N
A
F
Stress 

Difference
Length
Load
Applied
F
Area
sectional
Cross
A
Length
Initial
L






15. 15
Mechanics: Branch of engineering that studies internal effects of
stress and strain in a solid body subjected to external
loading.
a) Statics - branch of mechanics which considers the action of
forces in producing rest or equilibrium of a body.
b) Dynamics - branch of mechanics which treats of the motion of
bodies (kinematics) and the action of forces in producing or
changing their motion (kinetics).
Force: The capacity to do work or cause physical change.
Pressure: Force applied uniformly over a surface, measured as
force per unit of area.
Basic Mechanics

16. f
m
f
f
m
m
c
V
V
f
m
V
V




1
Also,
fiber.
and
matrix
the
refer to
and
subscripts
the
where
:
composite
reinforced
-
fiber
of
density
the
predicts
always
mixtures
of
rule
the
,
composites
laminated
for the
As

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Rules Of Mixture

17. 17
Composite Fabrication
Types of Composite fabrication:
Wet Lay-up/Hand Lay-up
Filament Winding
Pultrusion
Spray Lay-up
Resin Transfer Moulding (RTM)
Vacuum Assisted Resin Transfer Moulding (VARTM)

18. 18
Hand Lay-up
Resins are impregnated by hand into fibres which are in the
form of woven, knitted, stitched or bonded fabrics. This is
usually accomplished by rollers or brushes, with an
increasing use of nip-roller type impregnators for forcing
resin into the fabrics by means of rotating rollers and a bath
of resin. Laminates are left to cure under standard
atmospheric conditions.

19. 19
Filament Winding
This process is primarily used for hollow, generally circular or
oval sectioned components, such as pipes and tanks. Fibre
tows are passed through a resin bath before being wound
onto a mandrel in a variety of orientations, controlled by the
fibre feeding mechanism, and rate of rotation of the mandrel.

20. Skis Layout Process

21. Glass Fiber Types

22. Layout of Glass Fiber Sheets

23. 23
Activity 1. Preparation of
Composite Hockey Stick
Material – Wooden hockey stick, Glass fiber sheets, Natural fiber
mat, Adhesive, Gloves
Procedure:
1. Using the sand paper provided sand all sides of the hockey
stick where fiber mats will be placed (marked section).
2. Tightly layout the glass fiber sheets on the marked section of
hockey stick and apply the adhesive with the roller. Be sure to
wear the gloves and goggles and apply adhesive in the marked
section area.
3. Wait 1 hr for the adhesive to dry and cure. Do not move the
samples once they are set aside for curing.
4. Remove the samples from plastic sheet for testing.

24. 24
Activity 1a. Testing of Composite
Hockey Stick
Material – Hockey Stick, Composite Blade, 2 Tables, Bucket with
weight, Scale and Caliper
Procedure:
The hockey blade will be placed between two tables. A
bucket with known weight will hang from the middle of
the shaft of the hockey stick. Weights will be added to
measure the deflection of composite versus regular
wood hockey stick. The deflection and load values
obtained will be used to measure the elastic properties
of two different hockey sticks.

25. Activity 2. Design fiber reinforced
composite plaques
Material – Glass fiber mats, thermoset resin weighing scale and
Caliper
Procedure:
1. Select 4 sheets of unidirectional fiber mats and 4 sheets of
bidirectional mats.
2. Lay 4 unidirectional glass fiber mats on polyethylene sheets.
3. Lay 4 bidirectional glass fiber mats on polyethylene sheet.
4. Impregnate them with thermoset resin using plastic bottle
and roller.
5. Cure the samples for 1.5 hrs.
6. Conduct a drop ball impact test on the cured samples.

26. What did you learn?
1. What are composites and why use them?
2. How were the concepts of specific strength and specific
stiffness used in today’s activity?
3. How does fiber reinforcement affect the properties?
4. What kind of fiber orientation did and didn’t work?
4. Why do think it did not work?
5. Describe the important strategies needed for designing a
good composite good.

27. Future Directions
• The natural and eco element is gaining
momentum.
• Recycling
• Natural Composites
• Cost/ Processing issues may gain more
importance
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yw7DXelq
d1c
Composite Applications Video