Interfacial adhesion evaluation via wettability for fiber reinforced polymer composites: A review

Abstract

As the demand for fiber-reinforced composite (FRC) has increased in various industries, composite materials have been manufactured in larger sizes and more complex shapes. Since the FRC has been manufactured in such larger and more complex shapes, wettability, one of the important factors in FRC manufacturing efficiency, has been the focus of many researchers. This paper explores various evaluation methods of the wettability between fiber and polymer matrix. Generally, work of adhesion, capillary, and permeability methods have been used to evaluate the wettability parameters between the fibers and the polymer matrix. These three parameters exhibit different scales of measurements such as surface energy, viscosity of the polymer, the fiber volume fraction, fiber orientation, and so on. Future research may include complementary studies between these evaluation methods.