Source: Textile Review

Composite materials are one such class of materialsthat play a significant role in current and future aerospace components.Composite materials are particularly attractive to aviation and aerospaceapplications because of their exceptional strength and stiffness-to-densityratios and superior physical properties. Composites can be defined as acombination of dissimilar materials to perform a task that neither ofconstituent material can perform alone.

The aerospace industry and manufacturer's unrelentingpassion to enhance the performance of commercial and military aircraft isconstantly driving the development of improved high performance structuralmaterials. Composite materials are one such class of materials that playasignificant role in current and future aerospace components. Compositematerials are particularly attractive to aviation and aerospace applicationsbecause of their exceptional strength and stiffness-to-density ratios andsuperior physical properties.

Composites can be defined as a combination of dissimilarmaterials to perform a task that neither of constituent material can performalone. There fore composites have varied and wide applications.

A composite material typically consists of relativelystrong, stiff fibers in a tough resin matrix. Natural composite materials: woodconsists of cellulose fibers in a lignin matrix and bone consists ofhydroxyapatite particles in a collagen matrix. Better known man-made compositematerials, used in the aerospace and other industries, are carbon- andglass-fiber-reinforced plastic (CFRP and GFRP respectively) which consist ofcarbon and glass fibers, both of which are stiff and strong (for theirdensity), but brittle, in a polymer matrix, which is tough but neither particularlystiff nor strong. Very simplistically, by combining materials withcomplementary properties in this way, a composite material with most or all ofthe benefits (high strength, stiffness, toughness and low density) is obtainedwith few or none of the weaknesses of the individual component materials.

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About the Authors:

Authors are associated with Department of Textiles D.K.T.ESTextile and Engineering Institute,Ichalkaranji

Originallypublished in &sec=article&uinfo=<%=server.URLEncode(2451)%>">Textile Review :February2010